06/01/2014-10/01/2014:
It's the last week and I attended classes as usual. I did henna for all the students in the school as a gift for them before I go. At the end of each class, I took a group photo with them and their hometeacher. Henna is the only thing I can give them as a memory though it can only last for 1 week. I regretted not buying Instax camera before coming to Taiwan because I could have use it to take photos with the students and give them the photo instantly. Then, that will be a gift that will last forever. :( WHY DIDN'T I BUY IT........
I attended a meeting with all the teachers. During that meeting, I shared about my experience and gave each of them a small handmade gift. I bought the materials needed last week and started to make them furiously, as fast as I can so that I can give the teachers during the meeting on time. So what did I give them? I made dragonflies with satin cords and beads and attached a note with a small wooden peg. The reason for giving them this is because I didn't prepare anything for them before I leave for Taiwan. Therefore, I thought of making something myself.
It took me about 4 days to make 82 dragonflies and 3 days to finish writing all the notes. I not only gave them to the teachers but all the staffs working in the school. I gave it to Eehui and asked her to passed some to Bolin's friends and family. I'm also giving them to my host family and Maggie's sister's family. For my host family, I bought 4 cards at the bookstore and gave them together with the dragonflies instead of giving them a small note. I definitely have to use a card as I have more things to say to them! HAHA, I'm really thankful for their care for these 6 weeks. They provide me with all the things I need, brought me to many places to visit and bought me many food to eat too. It's a great 6 weeks with them.
Throughout the week, I received presents from the students too. I received 7 decorated bananas (yes, it's decorated and why banana? It's because I told them my favourite fruit is banana), a big red apple, 3 蛋饼 (this is from the students who gave me bananas), 2 big bags of cards and small presents too. I took photo with those students who gave me cards and presents as I scared I might forget who gave me which card or present. I can't remember all their names so taking photos with them is the way to go. Anyway, I ate the 7 decorated bananas all by myself! I had 2 bananas in the morning to clear them. As for the 3 蛋饼, I finished them all too. My highest record thus far is to eat 蛋饼 for breakfast for 3 consecutive days. Now, I have broke the record by eating 3 蛋饼 in A DAY. I'm still lovin' it ~~~ The children from the kindergarten also gave me a card. I think, that's my favourite! It's fully decorated and with drawings and colours. There's also a message for me too. They wrote each and every word on the card. I'm really touched to see the card.
Lastly, I got a present from the principal too. She gave me some of the elementary school sovenior and a plaque. O.O For the first time in my life, I receive a plaque as gift. It's kinda big too. The principal wanted to give me something that I can use and smaller in size. However, she explained that she was really busy the day before and only communicate with the vendor by phone and thus they got the wrong one. Nevertheless, I really appreciate her gift.
Teachers here are also very generous too, I received presents from some of them. One of the teachers actually gave me 2 big bottles of 金门高粱. I was shocked! She said the 金门高粱 is the best thing in 金门 and it's really nice. She told me the one she gave me contain 50% alcohol. O.O Also, she said the longer I keep it, the better it taste. I'm kinda worried how am I gonna bring it back home. Then I realized I can't hand-carry it because they are liquid......so I gave one to my host family and return one back to my colleague.
My return trip check-in luggage was only 25kg. When I came, my luggage in total weighed about 24kg. I only had 20kg for check-in luggage so I handcarried one. I was thinking my luggage might be more than 25kg as I bought quite a lot of food, some other stuffs, a pair of shoes and 3 pieces of clothing. Plus, I got presents from both students and teachers. Therefore, I decided to add another 5 kg. When I went online to check, it costs 16 SGD for 5kg and 17 SGD for 10kg. Of course I took the 10kg one since it's just 1 SGD more. So now I have 35kg worth of check-in luggage to spare. Heheheh.......
Oh ya, the principal gave me a present too. She gave me a 剑狮 plaque because 剑狮 is the 守护神 in 安平. There's a short message at the bottom, to thank me for what I've done. It's my first time receiving a plaque as a present. It's kinda big but meaningful. Other than hanging it on the wall, I can't really use it in any other way. Nonetheless, it's something memorable from the principal and I really appreciate it. :)
On thursday, I went for the badminton session. Since I'm leaving already, it's better for me to attend and bade farewell with the badminton players there. I had fun with them. Although they are still so pro and making me feel stress, I learn quite a bit of skills from them. I'm also thankful for 郑老师, he helped me a lot by guiding me along. He will tell me where to stand, when to hit, when not to hit and most importantly, break the ice by making the atmosphere not so awkward. He is like a 开心果, in the group. I can't imagine how it will turn out without his presence. I'm so glad to meet such a person. A person who will help me get along with others, pull me into the group so that I won't be awkward. I'm always grateful to these kind of people. Too bad I only manage to start to talk to him more when I'm leaving but still, I'm still feel very grateful to be able to meet him.
Oh ya, the principal gave me a present too. She gave me a 剑狮 plaque because 剑狮 is the 守护神 in 安平. There's a short message at the bottom, to thank me for what I've done. It's my first time receiving a plaque as a present. It's kinda big but meaningful. Other than hanging it on the wall, I can't really use it in any other way. Nonetheless, it's something memorable from the principal and I really appreciate it. :)
On thursday, I went for the badminton session. Since I'm leaving already, it's better for me to attend and bade farewell with the badminton players there. I had fun with them. Although they are still so pro and making me feel stress, I learn quite a bit of skills from them. I'm also thankful for 郑老师, he helped me a lot by guiding me along. He will tell me where to stand, when to hit, when not to hit and most importantly, break the ice by making the atmosphere not so awkward. He is like a 开心果, in the group. I can't imagine how it will turn out without his presence. I'm so glad to meet such a person. A person who will help me get along with others, pull me into the group so that I won't be awkward. I'm always grateful to these kind of people. Too bad I only manage to start to talk to him more when I'm leaving but still, I'm still feel very grateful to be able to meet him.
11/01/2014: Bye bye, Tainan, Taiwan!
I took the High Speed Rail from Taoyuan to Tainan when I arrived in Taiwan in December. Therefore, I decided to take the coach back as suggested by Maggie. The main reason is to save moeny as the High Speed Rail is really expensive and second reason is for another experience. According to Maggie, the coach is comfortable and is those with 2 columns of seats only, so you can imagine the amount of space each passenger has.
The principal and her husband came down to send me off. They came to Maggie's house at around 8.30am and had a chat before I leave for the bus station. It's been a great 6 weeks with them. I'm thankful for the care and concern from the principal. To thank the principal, I went to the bookstore to buy another card so that I can write my message and give the card to the principal on my last day in Taiwan. I totally forgot about principal when I was buying the cards for my host family. I didn't mean it, I guess I've just many things on my mind at that point of time....such as making of the dragonflies, giving out dragonflies, taking photos with all the classes, packing my luggage, planning which modes to bid etc.
We leave at about 9.30am but before we leave, we took group photos outside the house to keep it as a memory. Yup, there's always an end to everything, I bade farewell to the principal and her husband and my host family sent me off at the bus station. They accompanied until I board the bus. It's a wonderful 6 weeks with them. I'll definitely be back and visit time but before that, I'll have to save up for the trip.
It's about 4 hours and 30 minutes bus ride to the bus station at 中栗, where another van will pick me up and send me to Taoyuan International Airport. The return journey is really always faster.....I slept a little, day dream a little and the next moment, I'm already at the airport. It was only 3.30pm!!! My flight was at 8.15pm and I can only check in at 6.15pm. So what did I do while waiting for my flight? All thanks to my laptop and free wifi at the airport. I watched Exo's showtime EP 6, surfed the net, chat with the students on Facebook and ate some tidbits. After that, I checked in my luggage and have dinner at the food court. Once I finished my dinner, it's already 7pm. I can board at around 7.30pm so once I finished my dinner, I make my way to the boarding gate.
When I reached the boarding gate, there were so many Singaporeans waiting for the flight to go home. After being away for 6 weeks, for a moment, I couldn't get use to the Singaporean's english and the slang. It just feel weird.....I guess I'm already used to the Taiwanese accent. The flight back took about 4hours plus. It was super fast too....I slept my way back as I was SUPER DUPER TIRED. When I reached the airport, I was the first few to be out of the plane as I was seated in the first 10 rows. However, my luggage took about more than 20minutes to reach me. =.= Lesson learnt, no point sitting in the front and get out of the plane ASAP. Anyway, my dad came to pick me up from the airport. The first time that came into my mind when I stepped out of the airport that day was, 一个字：热! I was wearing 2 layers of long sleeves can! I was perspiring like mad when I stepped out of the airport. I think partly because I also need to carry my luggages around. I got the same surreal feeling before I fly to Taiwan. The surreal feeling because I couldn't believe that I'm back in Singapore. 6 weeks, 1.5 months, away from Singapore. Singapore is a still the same to me but the feeling is just not right. I feel a little foreign to Singapore although I'm away for 6 weeks. I feel like as though I'm a foreigner in Singapore. HAHAHAHAHAHA....
Anyway, a lot of things are different when I'm back. There are now a lot of new tv programmes, dramas that were previoulsy showing before I left were replaced by new dramas. My house? There's a new drawing hung in my living room, new bedsheets and cups. My brother even got a new phone and new number. Then I have to start school a day after I come back. It's super rush.....I was super tired too. Yet, I still have to unpack my luggage, wash the dirty bags that I've used during the trip, prepare for school, plan and prepare for tuitions. It's exactly what I've predicted...BUSY BUSY BUSY. Hais. I have yet to find time to upload the photos I took too......then many gatherings have been planned too as many are back for school reopen, so can meet up already. :) Looking forward to see my friends, as it feels like a LOOOOOOOONG time since I meet them. I wonder if they have change in anyway. :) :) :) Looking forward to the meet ups!
Oh....I've finally decided to change my phone. YUP. I'm going down to Singtel to get a new phone. This means that I will have no more rebates for my monthly phone bills and my data plan will no longer be 12 GB. :( I was in a dilemma for at least 2 months regarding this. I couldn't tolerate my phone any more. Let's not just say how lag it is, the fake cable wire which I bought couldn't work after 1 or 2 months and my earpiece is like a cui now. SO, getting a new phone means I will have new ear piece, new cable wire and no laggy phone. I gotta start to control my use of data plan already. :( :( :( So what phone will I be getting? It's none other than the IPHONE 5S. YUP, YUP, YUP. I can't get enough of apple products? Nope, I think it's more like I'm already used to it and I don't really fancy huge screen for phones. Laptop yes, but phone....not really. Anyway, this means that I have to spend money. I know I shouldn't since I'm just back from a trip but still, I just can't tolerate it anymore. And then, I found out that my BLUETOOTH MOUSE is spoilt. I sort of fixed it by adding something into the mouse so that I can still click but the connection is sort of cranky and keep losing connection. I went to check out the mouse in stores, most of them are USB mouse which I don't like. It just take up my USB slot. *URGH* I'm still struggling with my current spoilt mouse. I hope it can still work for some time because I don't want to spend money so soon....at least let me get my ang bao money first? Hehe......
The principal and her husband came down to send me off. They came to Maggie's house at around 8.30am and had a chat before I leave for the bus station. It's been a great 6 weeks with them. I'm thankful for the care and concern from the principal. To thank the principal, I went to the bookstore to buy another card so that I can write my message and give the card to the principal on my last day in Taiwan. I totally forgot about principal when I was buying the cards for my host family. I didn't mean it, I guess I've just many things on my mind at that point of time....such as making of the dragonflies, giving out dragonflies, taking photos with all the classes, packing my luggage, planning which modes to bid etc.
We leave at about 9.30am but before we leave, we took group photos outside the house to keep it as a memory. Yup, there's always an end to everything, I bade farewell to the principal and her husband and my host family sent me off at the bus station. They accompanied until I board the bus. It's a wonderful 6 weeks with them. I'll definitely be back and visit time but before that, I'll have to save up for the trip.
It's about 4 hours and 30 minutes bus ride to the bus station at 中栗, where another van will pick me up and send me to Taoyuan International Airport. The return journey is really always faster.....I slept a little, day dream a little and the next moment, I'm already at the airport. It was only 3.30pm!!! My flight was at 8.15pm and I can only check in at 6.15pm. So what did I do while waiting for my flight? All thanks to my laptop and free wifi at the airport. I watched Exo's showtime EP 6, surfed the net, chat with the students on Facebook and ate some tidbits. After that, I checked in my luggage and have dinner at the food court. Once I finished my dinner, it's already 7pm. I can board at around 7.30pm so once I finished my dinner, I make my way to the boarding gate.
When I reached the boarding gate, there were so many Singaporeans waiting for the flight to go home. After being away for 6 weeks, for a moment, I couldn't get use to the Singaporean's english and the slang. It just feel weird.....I guess I'm already used to the Taiwanese accent. The flight back took about 4hours plus. It was super fast too....I slept my way back as I was SUPER DUPER TIRED. When I reached the airport, I was the first few to be out of the plane as I was seated in the first 10 rows. However, my luggage took about more than 20minutes to reach me. =.= Lesson learnt, no point sitting in the front and get out of the plane ASAP. Anyway, my dad came to pick me up from the airport. The first time that came into my mind when I stepped out of the airport that day was, 一个字：热! I was wearing 2 layers of long sleeves can! I was perspiring like mad when I stepped out of the airport. I think partly because I also need to carry my luggages around. I got the same surreal feeling before I fly to Taiwan. The surreal feeling because I couldn't believe that I'm back in Singapore. 6 weeks, 1.5 months, away from Singapore. Singapore is a still the same to me but the feeling is just not right. I feel a little foreign to Singapore although I'm away for 6 weeks. I feel like as though I'm a foreigner in Singapore. HAHAHAHAHAHA....
Anyway, a lot of things are different when I'm back. There are now a lot of new tv programmes, dramas that were previoulsy showing before I left were replaced by new dramas. My house? There's a new drawing hung in my living room, new bedsheets and cups. My brother even got a new phone and new number. Then I have to start school a day after I come back. It's super rush.....I was super tired too. Yet, I still have to unpack my luggage, wash the dirty bags that I've used during the trip, prepare for school, plan and prepare for tuitions. It's exactly what I've predicted...BUSY BUSY BUSY. Hais. I have yet to find time to upload the photos I took too......then many gatherings have been planned too as many are back for school reopen, so can meet up already. :) Looking forward to see my friends, as it feels like a LOOOOOOOONG time since I meet them. I wonder if they have change in anyway. :) :) :) Looking forward to the meet ups!
Oh....I've finally decided to change my phone. YUP. I'm going down to Singtel to get a new phone. This means that I will have no more rebates for my monthly phone bills and my data plan will no longer be 12 GB. :( I was in a dilemma for at least 2 months regarding this. I couldn't tolerate my phone any more. Let's not just say how lag it is, the fake cable wire which I bought couldn't work after 1 or 2 months and my earpiece is like a cui now. SO, getting a new phone means I will have new ear piece, new cable wire and no laggy phone. I gotta start to control my use of data plan already. :( :( :( So what phone will I be getting? It's none other than the IPHONE 5S. YUP, YUP, YUP. I can't get enough of apple products? Nope, I think it's more like I'm already used to it and I don't really fancy huge screen for phones. Laptop yes, but phone....not really. Anyway, this means that I have to spend money. I know I shouldn't since I'm just back from a trip but still, I just can't tolerate it anymore. And then, I found out that my BLUETOOTH MOUSE is spoilt. I sort of fixed it by adding something into the mouse so that I can still click but the connection is sort of cranky and keep losing connection. I went to check out the mouse in stores, most of them are USB mouse which I don't like. It just take up my USB slot. *URGH* I'm still struggling with my current spoilt mouse. I hope it can still work for some time because I don't want to spend money so soon....at least let me get my ang bao money first? Hehe......
LOL shi hui, I feel abit like you felt, everytime I come back to SG =D
ReplyDeleteSo glad you had an awesome 6 weeks!!
-Jia Ying ^^