On 24 November 2011 ...

I slept like a baby! Regardless of how exhausted I were I was still on alert mode in waking up to my designated time at 5 am.

In the afternoon, my host parents took us to Taman Mini for a view of the traditional houses of Indonesia. One of my homestay buddies suggested the Bali theme since it's architecture designs are different from the rest.

We met a lot of PYs there with their host family! Happy we were!



Tidbits: Eh? How come I don't look impress? Most probably I was closing my eyes while taking this photo. HAHA.

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On 23 November 2011 ...

We reached home almost midnight. We were truly exhausted, and can't wait to retire for the night...

I on the other hand were wondering what kind of house we are going to stay for the next few days for the address reveals it's located in some kind of village.

A village indeed. The route to the house was sooooo in that I could just lose my way if I were to drive on my own.

And then O.M.G. was all the girls expression... because it looks like we just entered some WONDERLAND!! The house is decorated with lots of butterflies and lighting, thus making us feel like we are in some shopping mall gearing up for Christmas!

We entered the house excitedly. It's an old renovated wooden house with a theme antiquity meets modernisation. I felt like I was in some kind of eco-nature chalet.

When we enter one of the rooms, we saw four teddy bears sitting on the chair awaiting us! There was another round O.M.G from the girls. I could not resist its cuteness so I immediately hug one closely to my chest with a broad smile. It's a gift from our host father!

One of the girls placed her scarf around the teddy, and we all followed suit.



Guess which one is mine.

Spinoff: My host mum later also gave us pyjamas and slippers. I was so thrilled! Thank you god for giving me such wonderful host family!

Yes, we all brought scarf along because it's part of our uniform.

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On 16 November 2011 ...

My SG's institutional visit is to the Brunei Times. I had a great time exploring the centre. I can really feel the enthusiasm and the passion of the staff there as they talked through their roles and responsibilities to the PYs.

I found a very interesting picture. That is so ME.



What do you think? It is so ME, right? Hehe. Yes, I am indeed imposing my belief on you!

Later, the Brunei Times interviewed me and my SG team leader. I appeared in the paper! Check it out here.

Spinoff: No idea why I don't have the luck of appearing in local dailies. This is not the first time. It's always!!! ARGHH!!

Yes, renaye can be very vain at times. Please excuse her. At least she is happy that she found her name appearing on news articles (not Facebook and other social network places) when she googles. =)

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On 3 December 2011 ...

YES!!! I finally able to finish crafting a letter for my penfriend from Italy. That is after 2 attempts within one month. I kept on changing the content as I wrote according to the events happened on the ship. But it is still an accomplished mission since she has already been waiting for my reply for almost a year. I was determined to reply her using Japanese stamps because I promised her a surprise on Facebook.

I also thought writing to her on the ship and about the ship will be interesting apart from writing away our daily lives.

I really regret that I didn't capture a picture of myself penning the letter on the deck for her to see. That would be interesting and a moment to remember. Oh yes, I sat on the deck to write to her. The scene is beautiful ... but a little glaring so I was wearing my sunshades while writing. HAHA. I'm sure that would bring smile to Valentine.

The stamp cost me 110 Yen. I didn't bring 10 Yen, but the postmaster was kind enough to pay the balance for me.

I was in a hurry to attend the Vietnamese contingent's cultural performance tonight, so I just use my saliva to paste the stamp, despite of the postmaster's insistence of using water. The only thing I really forget to put on the envelope is Fuji Maru's chop!

Spinoff: My very action of dabbing the stamp on my tongue in front of the postmaster sent the administrator announcing the following morning in the assembly to USE WATER NOT SALIVA for pasting stamps.

Oops.

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On 12 November 2011 ...

My host mum took me and buddy shopping for provisions and food. We had lunch at a local's food chain called Jollibee. It is more popular than McDonald!



To be frank, the local cuisine in the Philippines is simply awesome! Luckily I lose weight before the program, so I was able to eat a little more than usual. =)

Tidbits: The truth is renaye had stomach indigestion upon returning to the ship due to overeating during her 3 days 2 nights homestay.

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On 10 November 2011 ...

I made a fashion statement. I was pretty surprised with my own bravado, because I usually have fashion crisis! And I rarely wear accessories despite being a collector.



Yes, I wore a bindi/pottu to match the organiser's tee. I had plenty of them lying around in my room, and was itching to put them on, but never had the opportunity. Bindi is usually matched with Punjabi costumes and saris, but given I was not wearing of those during this date, I carefully consider of wearing it with tees and jeans. After recalling how my Indian colleague wore her black bindi with normal clothes, I decided to put on a blue bindi to contrast the pink.

I was inundated with queries and comments when I walked into the assembly before we visit some institutions in the Philippines . My girlfriends were already enquiring. Luckily, I had a pack and I dutifully distributed to them.

There is no exact reason why I decided to put it on. It's just I wanna be creative that day.

Spinoff: I don't know what happened ... but somehow one of my friends labeled bindi as virgin marker. AHHH! NO!!

The common bindi comes in two colours: Black and red. The black is worn by the unmarried girls, while the red is by the married. The colourful ones like mine in the picture are used as accessory. But somehow I was asked several times if this is to indicate my availability. >.< Of course, I'm using it as accessory la!

Anyways, I'm pretty happy that I followed my instinct. If not, I would be either banging my head or doing something silly for regretting. The last time I did incredibly stupid was drinking sugar cane syrup. It was absolutely yummy but it landed me in bed for a week. HAHA.

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