So it begins: holistic neglect of my non-essential coursework, dwindling hours of sleep, excess scholarship money becoming more dedicated to the "important" things in life...you understand. Next weekend, 20+ exchange students are making a pilgrammage to Phi Phi island in Thailand (where The Beach was filmed), considered the most beautiful beach on Earth as it's currently undisturbed by Cancun and Phuket's tourist-targeting development. White sand, crystal blue water, mis amigos borrachos, and cheap everything. After returning Monday night, I will commit three whole days to self-actualization via academia, and then fly to Krabi, Thailand, for a 5-day weekend. I'm taking myself on a date: rock climbing in Railay, some of the most scenic climbing in the world. It's also considered some of the best, but my skill level doesn't warrant boasting about the style points I'll rack up climbing challenging walls. And of course, the icing on the cake: my frequent (and yes Dad, responsible) use of my Hilton Honors AmEx card has earned me a free night in a classy-ass hotel. Thanks to Alpha Kappa Psi, I know what to do in this situation: book one room for "a few" people, invite everyone I know, spend two days and one night exhausting every 5-star amenity, and sleep like sardines.
So that's the low-down...as it happens, my anticipated Spring Break rail journey from Shanghai to Lhasa tanked because the train is turbo popular; that sucks, but I'm going to try to get to Tibet for the week either way, after catching some of the ruckus associated with Chinese New Year.
As for the last few weeks, Singapore is really juicing up its appeal, and becoming quite the nice little city. Kyle came for four days before hitting the road to school in Hong Kong, which was a ton of fun. We did the tourist stuff I hadn't paid attention to and found a great jazz club, awesome free shows and a performing arts library at The Esplanade (SGP's performing arts venue), good eats in Little India and Chinatown, etc. etc. He also brought three days of rain, and thankfully, he must've taken it with him.
The roommates and I went out last night with a big group of students and had yet another good time, though true Singaporean spirit reared its ugly head: at the club, Tassja asked if we could pay for a shot with our free drink tickets. The guy nodded, poured two drink and two shots. We have him our tickets, and he asked for $21. Seeing this misunderstanding, we offered two more drink tickets, but he wouldn't accept them even though the shots were poured and he would have to throw them away if we didn't drink them. In the States, either we would get free shots for being women, or at very least we could expect some leniency on the rules. No dice. Also, I've been trying to pay with a torn $10 bill for days, and nobody will take it. That's Singapore: adhere to the rules under any and all circumstances. Fear creativity. Love your government. (On that note, Singaporean students do not understand the meaning of the political "left" or "right", liberal or conservative. It's wild, but they're completely oblivious. Also, you can be prosecuted for demonstrating if you're doing anything sketchy in a group of four or more.
I'll post some pictures once I find an internet connection that sucks less.
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3 comments:
for real! i've nv been so tuned into politics til i came to USA. In most of Asia, citizen take care of their businesses and the government will take care of the rest. Why bother if the government has provided you with pretty much everything u need in life? Social stability is the key and priority in Asia, in most parts of East Asia at least, fierce political debate generates strifes within the general will(creating right & left), creating alot of unrest. Unity is strength, beside politics is a dirty game.. jus another pt of view..
Oh.. and there isn't any left or right wing govt in places like Singapore, there's pretty much only one real political party in the govt. All others are destroyed. hahaha
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