e-Blog (International Students): Low Kai Jie Samuel, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Monday, October 21, 2013

Low Kai Jie Samuel, National University of Singapore, Singapore

1/9/2013 Sunday

Lantau Island excursion is an excursion that is organized by the college of business. We took an hour ride to there and met up with fellow exchange students there. One of the highlights is the great Buddha of the Lantau island where the bus brought us there with much effort due to the steep slope. From the great Buddha, one can take a paranomic view of the whole Lantau island and the view is awesome! Attached is the group photo that I took with my Singaporean friends after climbing down from the flight of stairs. After visiting the Buddha, we went to have vegetarian lunch in the restraint near the great Buddha. The foods are quite nice with some local dishes. Following that, we went to the Tai O fishing village to see the shop houses which is situated near the river bank. The view is breathtaking. I tried the doughnuts which is quite crispy and nice. Following that we proceed to the bus after a long day out there. I would like to thank college of business for planning such a wonderful event.

13/9/2013 Friday

What is going to Hong Kong without going to Victoria harbor? Today, one of my friend’s buddy Derek decided to buy us to the Victoria harbor to watch the night sea as well as the laser show which is only shown at 8pm every day. After we met up at Tsim Sha Tsui mtr, we proceed to have a quick dinner. After dinner, we ran to the Victoria harbor. However, we managed to only catch a glimpse of the laser show only. Despite that, we were amazed with the night view of the Hong Kong as the lights from the business districts buildings are quite beautiful at night. Another highlight of the Victoria harbor is the galaxy of stars whereby it shows the famous artiste in Hong Kong such as Anita Mui, Jacky cheung and Andy Lau. Lastly, we came across the statue of Bruce Lee which is an icon of Hong Kong. It depicts the fighting spirit of Hong Kong. My friends and I managed to take a group photo as a remembrance of the beautiful scenery of Hong Kong.

20/9/2013 Friday

One of the highlights of my Hong Kong exchange is the Mid-Autumn festival here in Hong Kong. Unlike Singapore, it is actually a public holiday here. The most happening place to celebrate mid-autumn festival is at the Victoria Park. My group which consists of fellow Singaporeans, Koreans and China exchange students decided to go there together. We were amazed by the colorful lanterns there. For example, there are lanterns which are showing a person selling Dim Sum and lanterns which are of the shape of Bao. Furthermore, there are lanterns showing the Cai Shen Ye which is the god of fortune which symbolizes good luck and fortune in this joyous occasion. During the mid-autumn festival, the Victoria park is packed with people picnicking at the grass patches and lighting up lanterns which is one of the traditions here. Finally, we took a group photo near the globe which I found is one of the most beautiful scenery here in Victoria park. This is because the globe changes color every few seconds. After walking out from the Victoria park, we started eating the mooncakes that we brought over there. It is one of the memorable ways to celebrate mooncake festival here.

25/9/2013 Wednesday

Among the hikes which I had been to, such as lion rock, Mui Wo and lamma island. The scenery at dragon back is quite awesome. This is because from the top one can see the blue sea which I found is quite clear and it forms a total contrast with the blue sky. Hence, sitting at the grass patch to watch the scenery is quite relaxing. Another special characteristic of dragon back is that the shape of the rocks in the mountain resembles the shape of the dragon. In addition, from the top of the dragon back, one can see the tiny houses, people playing golf and the beaches. After climbing up to the top of the dragon peak, my friends and I did jump shots there because of the beautiful scenery there. Following that, we took a long time to get to the foot of the mountain and proceed to the big wave bay beach for picnic as well as watching the beautiful waves at the beach. It is really a relaxing experience to enjoy the waves while eating sandwiches by the beach. This is another side of Hong Kong away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

28/9/2013 Saturday

One of the highlights of my exchange is the Macau Trip. We took a fast ferry there which took about half an hour. The first stop of Macau, we took a shuttle bus to Senado square. After lunch at one of the restaurants there, we proceed to the Ruins of St.Pauls’s which is one of the main attractions in Macau. I found the buildings of the church interesting because of the historic value. This is the photo taken by my friend of my jump shot in front of the church to capture the essence of the magnificence of the church. Following that , we proceed to try out the snacks at the snack stores which is quite famous here.The hotel that we are staying is at the venetian which is quite a beautiful hotel because the structure of the hotel resembles that of the Venice. In the night, my friends decided to go to watch fireworks by the river bank of Macau. For the last day, we accompany our friend to the Macau tower for the bungee jump. It is the highest bungee jump of the world. Hence, it is quite brave of her to jump from such a height.