Day 34 (17/10, Sun)

LAST DAY IN WUHAN!!!

Yup! Day 34 of our OIP trip has finally arrived.

As much as I look forward to going home, I will definitely miss the local students who have been taking their precious time off to keep us company for the past 5 weeks. Thank you guys for bring such great hosts to us by showing us the wonderful sights of Wuhan!

Well, we basically spent our last night busy packing our luggage. Hopefully it doesn’t exceed 30KG or we’ll have to pay RMB115 for every excess kilogramme of baggage.

ASSEMBLNG TIME: 8AM

Getting ready to leave

All baggage started to line up on the ground floor of our hostel. We are setting off to Wuhan’s Domestic Airport in an hour’s time!

The local students arrived at our hostel to send us off to the airport. HOW NICE OF THEM!

After bidding our rooms goodbye, we set off.

Our Luggage!

Arrival at Wuhan Domestic Airport

AT WUHAN DOMESTIC AIRPORT

My Check-In Luggage Weight in Total: 23.6kg + 6kg + 4kg = 33.6kg.

Shortly after arriving at the airport, all of us found the local students missing. I thought they wanted to send us off? Apparently, I heard from the others that they decided to leave early as they could not bear to send us off. During the 4^th OIP, all of them teared as the friendship forged during their 6 weeks stay was very strong.

Final Group Photo in Wuhan before we head home

my luggage

our luggage getting ready to board the plane with us

AT GUANGZHOU INT’L AIRPORT

A little hiccup over here. Han Hui misplaced his boarding pass for the flight back to Singapore. Fortunately, he was able to get a replacement one after verifying from the air tickets Mr Chia presented.

CZ 351 to SI NGAPORE!

BOARDING!!! :D

Let's Go!!!

Before we know it….

HOME SWEET HOME!!!

WE ARE HOME!!!

Group E back home safe and sound :)

There's no place I'd rather be
You'll always be a part of me
And even though I've roamed the world
It's still my home I long to see

This is where my family and my friends grew up with me
So I'll cross the skies and sail the seas
To be where I wanna be

(NDP 2007 “There’s No Place I’d Rather Be” by Kit Chan)

SUMMARY REFLECTION

These 5 weeks has definitely been an eventful and enriching experience.

Well, all good things always come to an end.

Being away from home for 5 weeks had made me miss so many things back home: my family, my friends, the security etc.

Being away from home for 5 weeks made me realise the many things I have taken for granted back home and I have learnt to appreciate Singapore more, be it the safe and organised traffic or the high level of security.

Being away from home for 5 weeks has taught me to be very independent especially getting used to washing my own clothes.

In summary, there is nothing about OIP that did not benefit me at all. If I were to turn back time, I will definitely attend it again.

I’m glad I attend the 5^th OIP with great company :)

Day 33 (16/10, Sat)

2^nd LAST DAY IN WUHAN!

While others rush to do some last minute shopping at 江汉路 etc, Weilin, Shiling and I thought otherwise.

We spent our 2^nd last day in Wuhan in a slow paced and relaxing manner deciding to finish exploring the surroundings of the whole campus and head to 建设7路’s night market again.

No use going so far to shop as we have limited cash with us!

While spending our 2^nd last day shopping, we also did not forget to take some photos of the campus too!

Let us now take a look at the place I called home for 5 weeks:

Our Home for 5 weeks.

The badminton court beside our hostel

the conveience store beside our hostel

小鹿洗衣: where we all sent our clothes to be washed

the washing lady who washed all our clothes for 5 weeks

Well, at the end of the day I am left with RMB 15++

Our walking route to class for 5 weeks

POPCORN at 7路!

CANDY FLOSS at 7路! Notice that the machine is operated manually by the leg paddle and not automatic?

REFLECTION

In the blink of an eye, we are going home soon.

5 weeks has come and gone so quickly.

I still remembered the day when we all arrived here at the hostel in the wee hours, going into our rooms and busy unpacking our things to settle down.

Now, we are busy packing up our things to go home.

AS WE GO ON,

WE REMEMBER,

ALL THE TIMES WE HAD TOGETHER

These 5 weeks has been a fruitful one. I made at least 20 new friends, learned to live away from home for 5 weeks and of course, enjoyed 4 weeks of cool autumn breeze.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR MAKING THESE 5 WEEKS SUCH AN ENJOYABLE & FRUITFUL ONE :)

Day 32 (15/10, Fri)

Hey All!

FREE & EASY DAY 2 IS HERE!

As mentioned yesterday, today’s the BASKETBALL MATCH between the local students and us!


The players of both sides



Players at Work

Well, it was a rather exciting match as both teams were equally skilled.

During the 1^st half, we had a strong lead against our opponent. GREAT JOB GUYS!

However, we found ourselves trailing behind during the 2^nd half of the match as our players were tired out. Why? We had no substitute players to give our main players a rest.

It was an exciting game as a whole.

Our 2^nd highlight of the day was the FAREWELL international buffet dinner we had with the LSCT and the local student.

The farewell dinner marks our soon-to-end trip here at Wuhan. Well, I sure have mixed feelings on going home to Singapore. Going to miss the friends I have made here!

Our Dining Place

MDE with the local students! :)

Group E!!!

REFLECTION

Well, the real outcome of the match was that we lost.

That is not because our players were not good enough, but the fact that the local students play sports almost every day. Remember my post on how we usually spend our free time in front of our laptops while the local students usually spend their free time playing sports? Playing sports every day increase their skills on the particular sport as a result.

People, we have to exercise soon!

Day 31 (14/10, Thurs)

SHOPPING, SHOPPING AND MORE SHOPPING!

No classes today, that means that we got to sleep in!

Basically, we literally spent the whole day shopping till some of us dropped.

We did have lunch: Dumplings and Beef Noodles. YUM YUM but the portion was SUPER HUGE.

Well, we went to 江汉路again, hoping to shop at the retail stores in the day and try to finish the rest of the night market at 步行街in the night. It has been raining these few days and today was no exception. Initially, we were afraid that if the rain continues into night, the night market would not open. This was exactly what happened last night; the night market did not open at 建设7路as it was raining. Sigh, we made our way there for nothing.

GOOD NEWS! THE RAIN STOPPED when night approached and the night market did open! WHEW, what a relief! We continued our shopping mission till it was time to go back to the hostel.

We had GREAT HARVEST today!!!

Tomorrow’s the friendly basketball match between the local students and us! Check out the highlights as I report to you tomorrow. Stay tuned!

REFLECTION

EVERYWHERE WE GO

PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW

WHO WE ARE

WHERE WE COME FROM

Yup, that was the question that many people ask us when we walk along the streets of Wuhan since the first week we came here. Even the people on the bus we meet ask us “你们从哪来的啊？” translated as “where are all of you from?”

We would often try to avoid answering that question when stall vendors ask us this question. Want to know why? We are afraid that when they know that we are foreigners, they will charge us more than should be.

Oh well, better to be safe than sorry!

Day 30 (13/10, Wed)

LAST LECTURE DAY!

As the heading says, we had our very last lecture of Project Management class today.

LAST LECTURE = LAST DAY OF USING THE CLASSROOM EVER

We will definitely miss our classroom for 5 weeks!

Check out the photo again for memory’s sake:



Our beloved classroom for 5 weeks

After our final lecture here @ WUST and knowing that we only have 4 more days before we head home, we have been trying out as many local foods as possible and visiting as many new eateries we have not been to. As such, we decided to explore anew eatery at 堕落街 called 长江餐厅. Its concept is the same as 柠檬乐餐厅 and 快乐厨房. Ok, nothing special, but at least we tried out new places.

LAST LECTURE = FREE & EASY!!!

With no more classes to attend to, we have all the time to ourselves. HURRAY! Some went to the salon today to get their hairs done, (I know, we love salons) while some of us decided to go to 建设7路 to visit the flea market! HOWEVER, the rain today prevented the stalls from setting up and therefore there was no flea market today :(

That was how our day ended, short and sweet. Nothing much today, but we are going to shop till we drop tomorrow! Hopefully my luggage will not exceed 30kg or I’ll have to pay RMB115 per kg of excess baggage. Keep your fingers crossed!

REFLECTION

Our last day of lecture, our last day of using the classroom of 5 weeks.

5 weeks is neither long nor short, but it’s long enough for us to develop feelings for something.

I definitely have grown a liking for our beloved classroom. This is the classroom where we had our class, our written test and also our practical test.

Although not much memories were made there, I still like the small classroom that kept us cool in the summer and warm in autumn.

BYE CLASSROOM, I WILL MISS YOU.

Day 29 (12/10, Tue)

FINAL PRESENTATION

PERFORMANCE NIGHT!

Hello people!

We had our final presentation for our module Project Management today.  Besides that, we also presented a draft of our group’s video to Mr Chia.

Our afternoon was filled with final rehearsals for our performance night. Rushing rushing! We have to get everything right to the smallest details!

PERFORMANCE TIME

This performance night was meant to be a farewell night for us. How time flies and in 5 days time, we will all be flying back to Singapore.

Our Audience!

the snacks spread out for us on the table!

For us MDE, we had a total of 7 items. They include individual groups’ performance, girls’ performance and the boys’ performance. All groups’ performance were based on our country’s culture.

Let the highlights of the show begin!

the MCs for the night!

Fan Dance by the local students

Group A on our multi-racial groups country



the soloist local student who sang "Take a Bow"



Group B on our traditional games

GAME'S TIME!

A skit by the local students

A local student singing and playing at the same time. IMPRESSIVE!

Group C on the origin of our country

  

local students dancing to 4Minute's HUH.. KPOP!!!

 

Our guy's sing-a-long

 

Group E!!!

REFLECTION

On the first few days of our arrival at Wuhan, we were informed that apart from our groups’ performance, there was also going to be a guys’ and girls’ performance. The girls’ performance was a dance item. After looking at how the choreography is like, I thought to myself: I don’t think I can do this, it’s too difficult. Then again, I tried my best to master the choreography even to the extent of having one-to-one training by Agnes, our choreographer. I’m really relieved that our performance went on well and proud of myself that my effort put in was not in vain. Just like climbing up 武当山, WITH DETERMINATION, WE CAN SUCCEED.

Day 28 (11/10, Mon)

MUSCLE ACHES!!!!

I got up today to be welcomed by muscle aches on both of my calves all thanks to yesterday’s climb

:(

Today’s class has been pushed back to the afternoon as our kind and understanding lecturer know that we are tired out from yesterday’s climb up the mountain.

My body alarm woke me up at 8.10am today to buy breakfast for my roomies! We finally tried the local delicacy 热干面! How we wanted to try ever since Miss Grace told us during OIE lecture about it. Even though it was just noodles with picked vegetables and sauces, it was really yummy! Come try it if you come to Wuhan!

 

热干面

We had dance practice today to prepare for tomorrow’s performance for the local students. NERVOUS! Hope we will do a good job tomorrow! 加油!

Our class today was conducted in a very interactive manner. We were asked by Miss Hock to build a bridge made out of papers and paper clips.

The purpose? It has something to do with our VERY LAST LECTURE on Wednesday: Team & Diversity. Being able to work well as a team is important when handling a project. That is why I think we were asked by Miss Hock to work as a team to accomplish this task.

 
    

withstanding the weight of the books!



Tomorrow’s the Farewell Night! 5 weeks is passing really really soon!

REFLECTION

In the blink of an eye, we are already on our vey last week at Wuhan and our OIP trip will soon be over. It seemed only like a few days ago when we first arrived at Wuhan.

The last week will be all about getting our reports done, videos finished and presenting our assignment. BUSY BUSY BUSY! But with efficient group mates, WE CAN DO IT!

Day 26 to 27 (09/10, 10/10 Sat, Sun)

武当山两天一夜之旅，出发!

武当山 Trip Day 1 (09/10, Sat)

We rose up bright and early at 6am today to embark on our 5 ½ hours journey to 武当山. Unlike Singapore, the day rises earlier and sets earlier too. At 6.30am, the sun was already bright and up. Our day will be filled with travelling and sightseeing.

It was time for lunch when we arrived at our destination. HUNGRY!

I made another interesting discovery today: THE TOILET. IT HAS NO DOORS. Yes, no privacy.



NO DOOR toilet



Sightseeing time! We visited 3 places on 武当山 today, namely the 太子坡，紫霄宫 and Tian Yi Hu.

环保车! the bus that takes us around the 武当山 tourist area

don't fall!!!

this is a real well. i've never seen such a thing in my life.

see the bowl afar off? apparently your wishes can come true if you can throw a coin successfully into it.

After a day of travelling and sightseeing, we finally made our way to our resting stop: 万豪商务酒店.

This time round, my roomie is Weilin! The room was way nicer than the ones on the cruise. The sad thing is that we only got to enjoy the room for only 1 night. BOO HOO! Check them out!

万豪商务酒店. Our resting stop for the night.

nice bed right? :)

toilet with a door and TOILET BOWL!

REFLECTION

I was surprised that the place of attraction was so big. It takes around 45 mins to get from the entrance to the end. That travelling time is from Jurong to Changi Airport! It is amazing how the people manage to construct and build the whole place. KUDOS TO YOU PEOPLE! You have constructed such an impressive and wonderful place :)

武当山 Trip Day 2 (10/10, Sun)

Rise and shine at 6am AGAIN. We are going to conquer 武当山 today. How I wanted to back out from climbing up the mountain, but with everyone going, I have to go! With all reluctance; I dragged my feet to climb the mountain with everyone. How I wish I do not have to climb the mountain, I AM SUPER UNFIT! I’ve climbed Mount Ophir and I know I’m not the type who likes strenuous activities that pushes myself to the limits.

金顶, here we come!!!

8am

Climbing of 武当山starts! The whole hiking route is made up of staircases, up and down, up and down.

a group photo before we embark on our hike

On the way up the mountain, we saw uncles with sedan chairs to lift people up the mountain. Of course, you have to pay a price to hire them to carry you up. How I wanted them to carry me up the mountain! Not even 1/3 up the mountain, I was already tired out. However with my group members’ constant encouragement, I pulled myself together and continued climbing.

Come to think of it, the climbing of the stairs up to 白帝城 the previous time during our cruise trip was nothing. This is the bigger challenge. 

the sedan chairs

Our Mission: 金顶.Let's Go!

GREAT! 0.3 KM more!

After 3 1/2 hours of climb. Our drenched and tired out look.

12pm

WE FINALLY REACHED 金顶!!!

HOORAY!!!

With all the encouragement I got from my group members, we finally made it all the way up to the peak! It sure was NO MEAN FEAT!

WE HAVE REACHED!!! my relieved face. haha!

OH YES! take more photos! we made it to the top!

Getting down the mountain was sure much easier than climbing up the mountain. We used 4 hours to get up and used only 2 hours to get down. Amazing!

REFLECTION

I was really relieved I made it all the way to the peak. I almost wanted to give up along the way as I was really tired out from climbing all the upscale staircases. However, my ever encouraging group mates Eliza, Houng Sheng, Agnes and Michelle continued to encourage me to push on. They even helped to carry my things for me so as to lighten off my load. Each time I stopped to take a break, they stopped to wait for me too. All these encouragements truly show the care and concern my group shows towards me. Without their encouragement, I don’t think I would have made it to the peak.

While climbing, we noticed people carrying bags of food and cartons of bottled water and even beers up the mountain. There were even people carrying climbers who apparently gave up on the idea of walking up the mountain by themselves on sedan chairs. These added loads that they carry surely made their climb even tougher. Apparently, they do it for a living and they climb up the mountain every day. To me, climbing the mountain once is enough but these people who climb the mountain each and every day have no choice as they have to make a living. Looking at their tough job makes me think back on how fortunate we Singaporeans are. Compared to what they are doing, our job is more relaxing than theirs. Sure, we make use of our brains a lot and are very stressed because of our work (I’ve been through attachment, I understand how it feels). On the other hand, our work environment is so much better as compared to them, and we have a nice and comfortable home for us to return to after a hard day’s work. Do you think they return to a nice and comfortable home after their really tough day’s work? Well, if we really feel stressed out and frustrated after a tough day’s work, why not think about how these people are leading their everyday life and you might just feel that you are much more fortunate than them.