The Phases...

I recall in one of the classes that I attended in Odense, we’re given a talk about the phases of cultural adjustment.. Virtually, everybody who lived abroad went through these distinct phases of cultural adjustment..

- Preliminary: before everything happened, as such, it’s about the preparation of the journey.. Exciting? Yes! Exhausting?? Yes! I remember there were so many things to settle I was even an inch away to lose the excitement..

- Initial euphoria: Began when I stepped on Europe for the first time, namely in Amsterdam.. and when i saw copenhagen and odense! met new people, attended classes for the first time.. the list went on and on..

- Irritability: The initial excitement started to wear off… nonetheless, I didn’t recall there was such a huge problem on that.. maybe it was only about the weather that irritated me quite much…

- Gradual Adjustment: when everything became so familiar I didn’t even realize it’s happening..

- Adaptation and biculturalism: I felt as a part of it.. I had my own favorite places to go to.. activities for my spare time.. I treated myself foods that I loved to eat.. basically I was already comfortable with the host culture..

- Re-entry phases: when returning to homeland.. it can be the most painful phase of all.. excited about sharing experiences, realized that u’ve changed in a way u couldn't explain.. but in one way or another, u're just forced to change back.. bcos u're now back in a place where everything seemed to be at standstill when u're not around..

The speaker said we’d find ourselves going through that cycle all over again once we returned to homeland.. I guess she’s true.. I write this because distinctly, I’m finding myself at the stage of “Irritability” at the moment.. sighhhh...

Pictures: Barcelona in Spain..

“Traveling – it leaves u speechless then turns u into a storyteller” Ibn Battuta

Life's back to normal...!!

I stay in PGP, go to the campus by NUS shuttle bus, eat at Engineering canteen most of the time.. yea, that normal.. 7 months feels so short a time.. I mean, I can even remember very clearly the smell of the newly checked in room in PGP.. and I’ve been asked questions like “how did it feel to leave denmark?”.. “how do u feel to come back here to nus again?”.. “how’s life treating u there in denmark? Was it better than here?”… hmm..

To be frank, after stepping on nus again, after attending my first week’s lectures and after the first meeting with my FYP supervisors, everything is so normal.. and boring.. I wonder where’s that missing feeling due to not being here for the past 7 months? there’s nothing like that.. so being there in denmark was like being in another world living another kind of life, a more exciting life..

“Prototype development of an EEG based mental fatigue screening system”.. That’s my FYP project title which honestly, has totally freaked me out.. I just don’t understand what was I thinking, it’s my first choice, yes, nobody forced me I chose it!..

Another thing is, it’s amazing that I sweat like all the time.. even without doing anything vigorous at all like sitting on the bench waiting or queuing for foods.. don’t u think it’s bloody hot recently?? are we actually living in a huge micro-oven??

I spent the first 3 days in PGP without internet connection.. I didn’t even know whom to thank for the trouble.. maybe it’s the line connection in my room, maybe it’s my laptop which was configured by the Danish staff in the Syddansk Uni.. in order to get things done faster, I complained to PGP Management and reconfigured my laptop at the same time.. =P why? there were two things for sure, we’d never make it to study in NUS without internet connection.. and spending 3 days in NUS without internet connection was like spending a week in a forest without fire.. =P u know how hard it was??

I guess it's time to post my overdue eurotrip pictures.. i'll start from Paris in France.. enjoy =P

Musee Du Louvre

The View from Notre Dame
Tour Eiffel
Château de Versailles

The most prestigious and broadest avenue in Paris, Avenue des Champs-Élysées (fyi, i risked my life taking this pic =P)

Ciao...

Easier said than done...

So lately, the hottest topic has been about this friend who once left the group but for one reason or another, she just had to come to us again after 2 years of losing contact.. So, u can roughly imagine the situation happening here, thinly veiled sarcasms mostly everywhere and constant rehashing of her so-called sins followed by the never-ending apologies from her.. bottom line is, some of us don’t seem to totally get behind it though deeply we understand how situations had gone awry for her..

I don’t think I can afford to be that sarcastic towards her anyway and I just don’t know why.. it’s more like I’ve been the one defending her when others try to corner her.. maybe that’s because all these while we’ve always been in a very good term.. or maybe, I really think she’s very fun to be with.. I am indeed very happy to see her again like I always used to.. but even so, I’ve been questioning why others were that bothered, it’s as if they’re hurt so badly.. maybe it’s because I wasn’t here so my life wasn’t actually affected directly by her sudden disappearance, it wasn’t that big a deal to me..

Trying to put myself in others’ shoes, I’ve been thinking, what if I were to be one of “the others”? first…. most probably I’d be the most sarcastic one.. =P secondly, perhaps I’d not even want to listen to her explanation.. then again, being the way it is now, I’m relieved bcos I don’t have to go through it considering I’ve skipped that part where “the others” are still in now, and I’ve come out the other side better than ever..

But the bottom line is, I’m really grateful that I wasn’t here at that time bcos most probably I’d not be able to forgive her, nor wanting to see her as often as I do now.. who can mend a broken glass? u tell me..

Took early morning flight back to singapore (I’m all sleepy n tired now).. =P and of course, I had real good times there in medan!!

Some pictures that i've got.. =P

and this is my favourite..

Ciao...

Time of our lives...

Sitting there, Story-telling, laughing together, reminiscing.. and facing those that I’ve known forever.. have I told u? that is the time of my life.. we don’t talk about deep stuffs and serious future plans.. nor making cheap promises about how our friendship would last forever.. but if I count carefully, it’s been 9 years since we’re placed in the same class in that school..

Without us realizing it, there are things that actually can be perceived only by our group.. we laugh on the joke that others may not even find a slight amusement out of it.. it’s like being there and forgetting about the world, for a moment.. and without me realizing it, I truly cherish them - the teacher and those high-school friends that have actually been rooting in me..

Twice in a year is the most frequent meeting with them.. but even so, there has never been a big problem of catching up with the group and I feel I’m always a part of them.. just like it’s always used to be.. maybe we don’t push it, but we’ve become the best of friends to one another.. maybe it’s nothing profound but it’s kinda grown into something so light that talking and finishing others’ sentences is a very natural thing to happen, which never fails to end up with a burst of laughter from which I am always an inch away to drop my jaw..

Saturday’s dinner has left me with a piece of advice from the teacher “Remember that u can never buy ur friend”.. a simple sentence that’s always taken for granted.. so cliché a sentence that’s easily found in those Hallmark cards.. nonetheless, it dawned on me afterwards, sometimes in a glimpse, what we had might seem easy to be exchanged.. but when regrets came, we’re hit by the fact that no matter how much we offered, apparently, we couldn’t be able to buy the same thing ever again..

Anyways, my short holiday this time has been filled with catching up with family, cousins and friends.. but these two are the only pictures that i have with me at the moment.. =P

Ciao...