Daily Reflection - 29th May 2013

Daily Reflection - 3rd Day in Taiwan

  I felt that today’s experience was very special and through this experience, I did learn more about Taiwan’s education system. Firstly, when we reached the school, the secretary of the school welcomed us warmly and introduced their school by showing us a video and I was impressed by their school’s achievements and big campus. He later took us to the room filled with the school’s history and background. Even the bricks and glass windowpanes are proofs of the school’s history. I think it is important to preserve the school’s history as students can know their school better and maintain the standard or do even better.

 Jian Guo High School (Front View)

 Looking at all the items on display.

 Following that, he introduced us to the school library and other facilities available in the school. Students in Jian Guo were given much freedom and one of the student leaders, who was with us all the time, mentioned that they would decorate the statue (in front of front gate) to something in the cemetery. It shocked many of us that they were allow to do such things. We also saw many students studying in the library or playing on the basketball court. I think that their students were both good in academic and sports, which our school also aims to achieve. I guessed they managed to do so due to their study attitude, which we should learn from them. During the two periods of lesson we had with the students, I had gained many learning points from them. For example, during the geography lesson, upon given the instructions, students would carry out immediately without the teacher repeating again. Unlike them, I felt that many students in my class always need teachers to repeat their instructions, which will probably annoys teachers a lot and also waste lesson time. Also, when the students were having their presentation during the next lesson, they were confident and the presentation was intriguing and easy to understand. Without any scripts, the students managed to explain to the audience clearly and fluently, which we can see that they understood the content. I think their presentation skill was something that we should learn and improve.

Books displayed at the front gate to allow students choose and read instead of going to the library.

One of the buildings in the school.

  During the whole time in Jian Guo, their students took initiative to talk to us and were very friendly. However, most of us were shy and only during lunchtime, we started chatting and also talked about their education system. All in all, we had fun in Jian Guo and also learnt a lot from them. However, what we had shown in the school had disappointed our teachers. After what the teachers had said, I felt ashamed of being a RVian who should have be able to show confidence and knowledge when I was in the Jian Guo. I had gained insight about being a good leader and hope we would have a chance to travel with the teachers again to show our improvements. We went to Ximending in the evening and we got to shop and buy souvenirs for our parents.

Art pieces displayed in the library. ( About global warming)

 Lunch Time! The food there is delicious! *Thumb Up* Especially the chicken cutlet. 

Daily reflection: 30 May

Today was a fruitful day. We woke up early so that we could finish our schedule on time but were disrupted as we made a mistake of not being punctual. Hence, we were delayed. Then, it was time for departure! We took the coach to Wulai and after an hour of driving, we finally reached the school which was located just outside Taipei and high up in the mountains.

When we went there, we were greeted by a friendly member of the school, probably a teacher. He welcomed us with warmth and introduced us to the school. The school is rather interesting as it is an aboriginal school. Next, we were led to a classroom consisting of 10 year olds. They introduced us to the culture and history of their race, called the "Tai Ya" (泰雅族）. The children were very adorable and one could easily tell that they practiced very hard for the presentation. They were also very polite as they agreed to take some photos with us and some would attempt to keep a conversation with us. 

Next, we learnt how to make bracelets according to the "Tai Ya"'s way of making it. When we finished it, the bracelet was extremely pretty and of course satisfactory.

Next, we had some performances and then we had lunch.

Lastly, we were taught some greetings in Tai Ya's language and then went back to the coach to go to the high-speed train station. When we reached there, we took the high speed train to Taichung. 

Then, after an hour, we were brought to Carton King, a place where paper models are made. We were also taught how to make a simple windmill paper model. 

After that, we bought several souvenirs and went for dinner!

After dinner, we visited Feng Jia night market. It was definitely not a disappointment! The night market was bustling with people and rows and rows of shops lined the streets. However, I was not really interested in buying things but rather in the food! One does not simply visit a night market without eating the food there. The foods in the night market were cheap and delicious. Oh the aroma! However, due to the time constraint, we only managed to buy a chicken cutlet but I was happy nonetheless. Finally, we returned to the hotel and retired to our rooms after debrief.

During the debrief, we talked about many stuff. Punctuality was emphasised during the debrief as some of us woke up late and had to delay the whole trip. It was as if we did not have any sense of urgency. Also, it was also mentioned that we should inform the teachers early when something is amiss. I believe that this is very important as it shows our sense of responsibility. We should always be alert and sense it immediately when something is wrong. Most of us would try to avoid being involved in such situations so that we will not be held responsible. I believe this is a common norm seen in RVians. From what I observe, many of us do not take initiative or help out one another, and I admit I do so sometimes as well. This is caused by not only the influence of friends but mainly parents. We should not just keep shut and ignore the situation if we know something is wrong. If not, this may cause a lot of problems such as the delay of the trip. Moreover, we were still not urgent even though we were already late. This made the teachers very disappointed and we seemed not to care. If we were a little quicker, we could solve the problem of being late, and yet we were not serious about it at all. This certainly reflects the morals of us students. 

We also discussed our thoughts on the visit to Wulai school. We talked about our first impressions before visiting and our impression after visiting. For me, I thought Wulai would be a very run down and backward as it is located deep in the mountains. Our tour guide also mentioned that students can take up to two hours to travel to school and most of them won't make it pass high school. This made me feel a little sympathetic for them. 

I also felt that I should appreciate my learning environment more instead of constantly complaining about unnecessary things. During the visit, I realised that actually the children weren't so unfortunate after all. They were content with what little they had and this made me feel very touched. I feel that if we were content with how much we had, our lives would be much more thrilling and happier. The children were also very polite and weren't as naughty as children I see in Singapore of the same age. This made me feel a little embarrassed as our society seemed to be more uncivilised. Then, we talked about our behaviour in Carton King. Though it wasn't very obvious that I did not notice it, our behaviour wasn't really good. We did not follow the group accordingly and left a lot of gaps in the middle, and we were also very slow in our movements. We also should give more respect to the teachers as most of us ignored their attempts to make us quicker. 

Then, we discussed about the night market. However, it was not about our behaviour but rather about the reasons why night markets in Taiwan are so successful. The teachers did not mention anything further and they left us to think about it. Personally, I think that Taiwan night markets are so successful because they provide more variety of things like all kinds of food, clothes and etc. the items are also very cheap and reasonable. Whereas in Singapore, the 'night markets' consist of common things, like burgers, phone covers, etc. Moreover, the prices are not far off cheaper. The Taiwan night markets are also more successful as the sales people are more active as they will try to attract people. 

All in all, I feel that our behaviour today was not really good and we could improve further. I think that we should be more alert, have a sense of urgency and listen to teachers seriously. We should also be more active such as taking initiatives instead of not caring about anything. Nevertheless, I think that we indeed have the potential to improve and do better.

Daily reflection 31 May

This would be our fourth day in Taiwan.

Firstly,we visited the Longshan temple(龍山寺) located in Lugang.It is also the most well-preserved Fujianese style building of the Qing Dynasty in Taiwan. 

One of the most amazing structure is Bagua caisson ceiling (八卦藻井) above outdoor stage.It was produced to have better sound traveling and the caisson ceiling has a function to suppress evils and bring peace to the town. Pillars, gates, and walls made by stone are elaborate, especially dragon pillars in the front hall.It featured a dragon heading up and another going down,there were also a pair of two guardian lion statues near the entrance,one resting its paws on a ball,a male,another,on a cub,a female.

The temple had statues of the bodhisattvas at the back.The monastery actually had shifted from its original position as a result of the earthquake and had to be shifted back.

Then we went to the old market street,where we actually saw some of the old architectures being preserved.They used to cover the ceiling,and the residents cannot see the sky so they say 看不見天,and because the road was bricked,不見泥土.We were also educated a lot about the culture and history.We also saw the folk arts museum.

We learnt to appreciate the culture of Chinese,and explore the different folk takes.We also understood more as to why Lukang decline after the nineteenth century when it was one of the most important commercial centre.

Next,we visited the 921 Earthquake Museum of Taiwan,which is dedicated to the 7.3 Earthquake that struck Taiwan in September 21 1999.This earthquake was one of the worst natural disaster in the century to have happened to Taiwan.

It is locate at the site of the former Guangfu Junior High School.There was a gallery which shows photos the destruction sites,the damage was high and devastating.There was also a part where it featured the soil mid-sectioned,where the tour guide explains to us the different parts of the soil.There were also booths set up that were interesting and includes diagrams and models to help us better understand the earthquake.

We also went past the destroyed classrooms and collapsed school building.We were also showed how Taiwan has taken measures to tackle against such issues in the future and to strengthened Taiwan's security.We also went to the room where we experienced a 5.0 virtual earthquake.One side of the room had safely measures and the other did not have any.We saw that the part with safety measures had all of the items still intact while the part with no safety measures had its items scattered.Before the 40 second there was a video showing the earthquake procedure and the aftermath.

Overall,we learnt from this trip that we should always be vigilant and prepared and ready in case this kind of disaster occurs.We also learnt from this that other countries had helped Taiwan when it was in need and that a country needed to have relations to depend on when things like this happens.We have learnt to be appreciative and grateful Singapore does not experience such earthquakes.

Then,we went to the Sun Yat Sen Memorial hall which was located at Taipei.There is a huge statue at the main entrance to the hall showcasing Sun Yat Sen.There is also a guard changing ceremony that is a popular tourist attraction.The memorial hall displays Sun Yat Sen's life and has a multi purpose centre for the public as well.

We learnt of how great he was and his family background.Sun's legacy also resides in his developing of the political philosophy known as the Three Principles of the People: nationalism, democracy, and the people's livelihood,where scholars study and teach his material.

There is a painting of him in the museum,where it was said that his eyes would follow you wherever you walk,according to the museum guide.Interestingly enough,his portrait was on the Taiwan note.

We have learnt not to take Singapore's independence for granted and how Sun Yat Sen was a great and to a point,legendary figure in helping China's revolution and helping Taiwan with its reforms.

Lastly,we went to Shilin market.It was a crowded night market selling a variety of items.It is one of the largest and most famous night market in Taipei,which consisted of a goods section and a food section.

We got to see many of Taiwan's famous food and it was a delightful place full of atmosphere.The night ended mostly on a happy note.We had a rather fruitful day,and afterwards,we headed back to the hotel for one last briefing.

Daily Reflection (01/06/13)

   I closed the door to my hotel room for the last time, with a quiet sigh and a heavy heart. Being the last day of our school trip to Taiwan, it was no wonder that everyone seemed forlorn at breakfast. Unlike previous days where I had dug in heartily, I could not eat a bite this particular morning.

   After a dreary start to the day, we proceeded to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Watching the guard changing ceremony, I am very impressed by their highly- maintained discipline and ability to stop fidgeting. Their behaviour and movement are akin to that of animated toy soldiers. Moving only to breathe and blink, they become live statues until the end of their shifts.

   Heading to Di Hua Street, the guide there took us walking back and forth down the street, introducing various shops selling a variety of traditional goods and building structures of the old shop houses. I have to admit, the hot weather had taken a toll on me and feeling as if I was about to melt into a puddle with all the perspiration, I did not pay much attention to the guide.

 

   When the guide led us to pose for a photo in front of a Chinese temple, it was greeted with much wild protests from some of my friends, who had different religious beliefs. If, say, you were a Christian, would you like to take a photo in front of a temple? This goes for any other religion. Empathizing with their feeling of having their religion disrespected, perhaps we should not intrude on such religious issues next time.

   All too soon, we were on the way to Taoyuan International Airport. On the bus, our tour guide of 6 days dropped tears saying her parting words. Each of us signed on two gigantic, pink and furry rabbit soft toys with permanent markers. It was then that I realized I would miss Taiwan. I would miss the picture-perfect landscape, the delectable food, the fine weather, the bustling night markets and most importantly, the affable people. However, just as Taiwan has left us with unforgettable memories, we have left our footsteps on the streets, our cheers heard and our raucous laughter ringing. It is not wrong to say that we have made a mark on Taiwan too.