Wow. The second week of classes is about to begin and it has been a whirlwind of excitement, entertainment, and enjoyment. From the second I landed on the plane I have been amazed with how clean and beautiful this place is.
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| Changi Ariport |
On my flight from Hong Kong to Singapore, more than half of the flight consisted of exchange students, which was a cool way to meet some people. I met up with some other UNC students and other exchangers who were also going to Residential College 4, our dormitory for the semester. When we finally landed and got to NUS, it was probably 3am and there was no one in sight, but we were in awe of how amazing the campus looked. It actually looked like I was at a resort, and it still does!
The next couple of
days consisted of meeting probably one thousand other exchange students (I’m
exaggerating, but still) and doing so many things at once. We met up with a
host buddy, Yong, who actually studied abroad at UNC a couple of years ago! So,
he showed us around, took us to the aquarium on Sentosa Island (for free) and
took us out for the night.
So far, I am in love with the city and its people. Everyone
is extremely nice here (although sometimes a bit to reserved). Singapore is
so diverse and many people have different kinds of English accents which is
cool. The main canteen that I eat in has different stalls of Indian, Japanese,
Korean, Thai, and Chinese food all in one place. What is hilarious is that they
have a “Western” stall as well, but none of the food is even remotely close to
what we eat! But anyway, even when I am walking around the city, I do not
really feel like a minority. Out of the 5 million people in Singapore, 2
million are foreign. There are so many international people in the city which I
find really cool; it is literally one of the most diverse hubs in the world.
The city is so clean. I feel like I can eat off of the
sidewalk and be fine…but not really. They really know how to create such hustle
and bustle without taking away the greenery of the country. For example, New
York, the “Concrete Jungle,” is amazing but really has no greenery save for
Central Park. In Singapore, there are just trees everywhere, even inside or on
top of buildings. You can be right in front of the tallest building in the city
but be next to a ton of trees.
The more I am here the more I hear how awesome Singapore is.
For example, apparently they have the best water filtration system in the
world? At first, they had to import their water from Malaysia because they had
none of it on their tiny island. Then, they realized that they needed to do
something about it so created a large
investment for clean water in the country. Now, which is extremely ironic to me,
they are shipping their clean water to Malaysia!
So far, I have been to Sentosa beach, Marina Bay, Chinatown and Vivo
City. On a city tour, we visited Arab Street, the Masjid Sultan Mosque at Arab Street, Bugis
Street, Haji Lane, the Hindu and Buddhist Temple at Waterloo Street, and St.
Andrew’s Cathedral, Singapore's Public Library, and the Esplanade.
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| 16-story public library |
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| Sri Krishnan Temple on Waterloo Street |
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| Inside the Hindu Temple |
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| Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple in Waterloo Street |
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| Inside the Buddhist Temple |
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| Haji Lane |
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| Masjid Sultan Mosque |
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| Part of Bugis Street |
It might sound like a lot, but it’s just a really small
portion of Singapore. Thankfully on all of these adventures I have yet to get
fined, caned, or arrested. Let’s hope that trend continues, eh? I am going to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia next week to celebrate Thaipusam, a Hindu festival where devotees undertake a pilgrimage to mark Pusam's (the name of a star) highest point throughout the year. Should be great!
