Goodbye Singapore

I'm now reaching my last few hours in the beautiful city (country) of Singapore. It's so hard to believe that in 24 hours I will be in China, a place that still sounds just as distant now as it did back in the States. I'm not too sure what to expect there, but I do know that I'm looking forward to a change of scenery and a taste (figuratively and literally) of something new.

If I make any nonsensical statements during the course of this post, my apologies beforehand. I also tend to be more verbose in the early hours of the morning, at least in terms of my writing. Intelligible conversation, on the other hand, is a foreign concept at two am. Anyway, that is my disclaimer for the following lines, so be forewarned.

So where did I last leave off in my travels? Monday? Well then, I suppose it would make sense to start with Tuesday, which was quite busy. It was our last day of class and we were all ready to be through with the work intensive part of the program. The next two weeks should be very busy but not strictly academic in the classroom-based sense. We do have a final exam that takes the form of a daily journal, but that should be enjoyable and not too much of a struggle. As far as exams go, that sounds like an excellent alternative.

So classes were over and essays (almost) all turned in. We have one more for the class on Thailand that's due in the next few days, but since we'll be in China we all wanted to finish it early and turn it in. I just did that myself this afternoon.

Sorry, back to Tuesday. I'm sure my academic pursuits hold little interest for most people who read this, but they do take up a good part of my time here and are always hanging around in the back of my mind. With them gone, it should be a different type of experience.

Like I said, BACK to Tuesday! (see earlier disclaimer) We had the interesting opportunity to visit a primary school (like an elementary school at home) while in session, which gives you a different perspective on the average life in Singapore. It seemed very orderly, with uniformed students and well-spoken fifth-grade guides for our tour. Seriously, these kids were eleven but they were very bright and had vocabularies well beyond what I had at that age. We first had a information session and a Q&A period with some school administrators, but I definitely enjoyed the tour more. The kids were more than willing to talk to us, telling us about their day and how their classes were and what they liked to do.

The facilities at the school were also impressive, with a new technology initiative that was installing software and widespread programs for students to hook up to and interact online. Each student would have an online account to keep track of grades, similar to what I have at UNC except geared towards younger students, obviously.

Then I discovered (though not to my surprise at all) that this was an upper-middle class/upper class residential area and that the students' backgrounds were probably much more academically oriented than other schools' students. That part definitely reminded me of home.

After the primary school visit we went out for our farewell Singapore dinner at an Indonesian restaurant. The food was good, but some of it was too spicy for my taste. I also don't really know how healthy it was in terms of fried foods and sauces. Some of the dishes were great, though. I'd probably go back there.

Today was my last day in Singapore and the schedule was completely free, so Andrew and I decided to do what we termed "MRT hopping." Basically we went to Little India, Chinatown, Orchard Road, then to Boat Quay to meet a larger group for dinner at an Italian restaurant. (I know, I know, Italian... but we're going to have nothing but Asian food for the next two weeks straight, so we thought we were okay.)

Little India was, well, Little India. It's only the second time I've been there, and I have to say it's definitely not one of my favorite areas of Singapore. It is less touristy, I suppose, but it is also less attractive. I mean nothing against Singaporeans of Indian background, but it's just not my scene. I did, however, want to try out some Indian food at least once (other than prata), so I got some mutton murtabak at a rather authentic restaurant there. It was pretty good, but I'm not sure I would order it again.

Then we went to Chinatown and looked around for a few minutes, got some ice cream, then went to a performance area where the old men play mah jong every day. We sat there for a few minutes and watched some teenagers setting up some music and a mat of sorts, then they came out and practiced. Turns out that one of them was a contortionist and the others were performers as well. I got some of it on video. We watched them for about an hour, then decided to head up to Orchard to check that out one last time (and also stop at BreadTalk for our breakfast tomorrow). We sat by the street and people watched for a while. Then we headed to Boat Quay and watched it get dark by the river.

All in all, definitely a great day. Very chill and we got to see the main Singaporean attractions in the process. I'd do it over in a second. At the same time, like I said earlier, I am ready for a change and looking forward to experiencing China and Thailand.

So there you have it, folks. That's about where I am now, nearly 2:30 am and waiting around until we have to check out at 4:30. We have to take three planes to get to Kunming, so that should be oodles of fun. Otherwise, the flights don't sound to bad. We should get to our destination by late afternoon. Dinner, then bedtime for sure!

Well, I guess this will be my last post for at least a few days. I'm not really sure what the internet access will be like in the next two weeks, but hopefully I'll manage something. We might have decent access in our hotel rooms.

Thank you all, and I hope you have lovely weeks!