Friday, February 22, 2013
Ho Si Min, Singapore Management University, Singapore
11 February, 2013, Monday
12 February, 2013, Tuesday
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Joining the locals in
paying respects to the gods at the popular temple Wong Tai Sin was an interesting
experience. Standing in the crowd amidst the incense and smoke, I was totally
immersed in the festive season.
12 February, 2013, Tuesday
Visiting during
Chinese New Year was not as elaborated as compared to back home in Singapore. I
was surprised to find out that other than the traditional 2 mandarin oranges
that we usually bring to visit relatives, the Hong Kong people were also open
to receiving other gifts such as cookies and chocolates, especially if the
packaging is golden, symbolizing wealth and prosperity. I had an enjoyable time
indulging in Hong Kong people’s favourite past time activity– Mahjong, and at the same
time, tucking in a heartwarming meal in a local friend Rocky’s cosy and warm
Hong Kong apartment.
13 February, 2013, Wednesday
There is no better
day to visit the many museums of Hong Kong than Wednesday, when the admission fee
is waived. Nonetheless, I underestimated the wealth of knowledge housed in the
exhibits. One afternoon is certainly not enough to soak up all the information
and hence I bought the Museum Pass (at a very affordable rate of HK$25 for half
a year if you present your student pass), intending to spend many more
afternoons lost in the corridors of exhibits.
14 February, 2013, Thursday
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Valentine’s Day was
spent chasing cherry blossoms at kadoorie farm and making wishes at Tai Po! With
the guidance of our pretty local tour guide Chantal, it was certainly a fun day
out immersed in the arms of Mother Nature.
15 February, 2013, Friday
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While I am thankful
for all the fun we had for the whole week of Chinese New Year, today was the
time to catch up on school work and take a break before the re-commencement of
school next Monday. I had been working on a blog post for one of my modules;
all play and no work makes SiMin a dull girl.
Labels: 2012/2013 Semester B
Friday, February 15, 2013
Xie Wenjun, Beijing Institute of Technology, China
February 2, 2013, Saturday
February 3, 2013, Sunday
It’s been nearly a month since I’ve
arrived in HK. My Taiwanese friends and I decided to do the touristy things
today. The trip started at the Avenue of Stars, where we took the rickshaw – basically
a two-wheeled passenger cart pulled by manpower. We then headed to the Victoria Peak, apparently the
tourist-must-go attraction in HK. The Peak Tram was a fun
way to get to the Peak, it climbs seemingly vertically up.
The first stop
we visited was the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. For a loyal fan of HK stars like me, it was definitely worth-visiting. I
think we took photos with almost every wax figure. Call us crazy.
They said HK’s night view is the best in the world, it’s really not exaggerating.
When we left the museum, the gorgeous night
scene of the whole HK landscape came into view. It was definitely the highlight
of the day.February 3, 2013, Sunday
The long day
yesterday did not tire us out and we went cycling today! The route started from
Sha Tin to Tai Po. With my bright red bike that I rented at a bargain,
we rode along the coastline of Tolo Harbors. The
refreshing air with the smell of sea made what would be a tough ride so much
more relaxing.
After several hours of riding,
we were exhausted and hungry. We
found a restaurant and ate a huge Hawaiian
pizza in the outdoor area. With a filled stomach, we continued our journey and after an hour later, we finally arrived our destination. We took a walk in the Tai Po coastal park with our tired body,
embracing the nature in this vibrant city.
February 4, 2013, Monday
Chinese
New Year has to be the most important festival for Chinese. The Exchange
Student Club was thoughtful enough to organize a lunar new year party for us
exchange students. You may think that being a Chinese, I
must be familiar with the customs but to my surprises the way they celebrate
Chinese New Year in HK is not quite the same from where I’m from.
Everyone was wearing bright-colored traditional
clothes. We
wrote spring couplets and received red packets. Along with beating gongs and sound drums, the party started,
then we cheers and ate a huge poi chai dinner. As we were stuffing ourselves with all the traditional food, I shared
with other exchange students about Chinese traditions. It was a fun night and we
were living the CNY spirit fully.
February 5, 2013, Tuesday
Tuesday
is my busiest school day in the week. The courses I’m taking are relatively
tough. I will go to library in between classes to revise
what I’ve learned or meet with my project group mates. I
was at first worried about working and communicating with local students but
they are all very helpful and kind. That makes work a lot more pleasant and
efficient.
February 6, 2013, Wednesday
With
the Chinese New Year approaching, a Lunar New Year Fair was held in Victoria Park.
There is no way we were gonna miss that. We headed there in the evening and it
is the busiest time of the day. We never expected there would
be so many people. But the crowd got us even more excited.
The Lunar New Year Fair is basically a huge flea market where they sold
creative craftworks, colorful balloons, dolls and all kinds of stuff related to
Chinese New Year. As next year is the year of snake, we saw products with all
sorts of snake design on. One area of the fair was occupied with flower shops.
There were different kinds and colors of beautiful flowers. Locals bought them to decorate their houses and to celebrate the new year’s coming.
It
was a fun night and I went home with two
hands full of shopping bags and an empty wallet.
Labels: 2012/2013 Semester B
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