Coming Home =)

As I sit in this freezing coldness of Central Library procrastinating, I have decided that it would be a good time to do a before exam reflection on some of my thoughts during this trip!

This trip was great. The best part by far was being able to travel so much. Having stayed in Canada for most of my life, until living in Boston for my last work term, I have lived a very safe and sheltered life.

I guess it was time for me to see how other people in this world live, to learn and also appreciate what I have more.

I think one of my favourite parts of traveling is visiting ancient civilizations. Seeing the remnants of a fallen civilization is a constant reminder that this is life, that we leave behind is all that future generations have left of us. I also really enjoy seeing places where my parents grew up.

Living in Canada, I have so many opportunities that I don't realize the hardships and challenges my parents had to overcome on a daily basis.
I also saw a lot of poverty, especially in Cambodia. I think Cambodia was the poorest country I had visited. It was really sad that this is how children live in some parts of the world.

At the same time, it was very humbling to see that the people of Cambodia did not feel sorry for themselves, but struggled to live their lives everyday.
Even though the country was torn apart by war not too long ago -- the Khmer Rouge genocide occurred only in 1970's -- people learn to pick themselves up, persevere and work towards a better future. Visiting these places has made me want to learn more about them, learn from the history, and become a better person.

Seeing and visiting relatives in Vietnam was also another eye opener. I really don't realize how much I take for granted, living in a country such as Canada.

For instance, I never really think twice about leaving the country, there is never really a problem, as long as we have our passports and proper visas. The people of Vietnam can't really leave, and if they do, even for a visit, it is very difficult.

Here, I am on exchange in Singapore, and visiting another country about every other weekend. It's just a huge difference in the amount of freedom. I guess since Canada is so huge, it's not too big of a deal to not be able to leave the country, but Vietnam is quite small, I almost feel claustrophobic thinking about that. Ok, maybe not claustrophobic, but it is very limiting.
It's so weird, this will be my first birthday without my close family and friends around. It doesn't really feel like it. I can't believe that I'm 23 already. I hope I don't look it. I know one of the perks of being Asian is that you don't look your age. So as long as I look younger, then I'm happy.

Besides, no one has really mistaken me for older than I am, usually I'm told I look a few years younger, I've been told that I look 19 - 20. Except this one time, when one of my sister's friends thought that I was her mom!!! I will choose to ignore that one!

Anyway, I won't feel like its really my birthday until I have celebrate it with my friends and family! So I cant wait to go home!
I really miss home! I'm so glad that this exchange is only 4 months. I love traveling, but I'm ready to go home. I miss being with the people I love and care about. As a UW coop student, I have had learned from most of my work terms, and most of the time, I learn about what I don't want to be doing.

Applying the same theory here, I have learned from this exchange what is really important to me.

Even though I will definitely love to travel more, and see more places, and even go back to the places I've seen to visit them again, the most important part of the journey is going home. And home is where my family, friends and where my heart is. Having lived in a few cities, I appreciate Toronto even more, and love it even more.

I can't really picture myself living anywhere else, maybe Boston, but other then my family won't be there.

I really love the atmosphere of Toronto, it really is a beautiful city, and I never realized what a beautiful city is until I've visited some other cities. Toronto is home sweet home, and I can't wait to be back. I'm gonna appreciate it so much more when I'm back, me and some of the exchange students were joking around how we would buy a lonely planet travel guide to T.O. and just travel within TO.

Thanks to everyone who has supported me so much during this exchange term. It's the thoughts of you, that make me feel like I'm home, even though I'm half way around the world. And, I can't wait to get back home... I think this song sums up how I feel

Feels Like Home -- Chantal Kreviazuk

It feels like home to me
It feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I come from
It feels like home to me
It feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I belong

All At Once - The Fray

There are certain people you just keep coming back to
She is right in front of you
You begin to wonder could you find a better one
Compared to her now she's in question

And all at once the crowd begins to sing
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same

Maybe you want her maybe you need her
Maybe you started to compare to someone not there

Looking for the right one you line up the world to find
Where no questions cross your mind
But she won't keep on waiting for you without a doubt
Much longer for you to sort it out

And all at once the crowd begins to sing
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same

Maybe you want her maybe you need her
Maybe you started to compare to someone not there
Maybe you want it maybe you need it,
Maybe it's all you're running from,
Perfection will not come

Lyrics
And all at once the crowd begins to sing
Sometimes
We'd never know what's wrong without the pain
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same

Maybe you want her maybe you need her
Maybe you've started to compare to someone not there
Maybe you want it maybe you need it
Maybe it's all you're running from
Perfection will not come

Maybe you want her maybe you need her
Maybe you had her maybe you lost her to another
To another

Taman Negara, Malaysia

It looks like this was my last trip for the exchange term -- Taman Negara! I'm quite sure that I've hit my travel limit, now. This last trip was an experience in itself. I finished some laundry very last minute and basically took clothes out of my laundry bag, folded them, and put them into my backpack.

When we got to the train station, the last tickets to get to the rain forest was sold out! So, we had to decide to bus it, or not go. We decided to try busing it. It was funny when some of us admitted afterward that we weren't totally into going for this trip until we had finally booked our ticket to KL, Malaysia. Up until that point, there was always the option of going back to Singapore, since we were basically stuck there for a while.

This is a view of the city from the metro at 7am.

So, we end up taking the night bus departing 12AM from Jahru Bahru (JB), Malaysia to get to Kuala Lampur (KL), Malaysia. On this trip, the crew was: Akhil, Phil, Eugene, Gary, B. and me. Gary came a bit later, and we killed time by playing cards and chilling at McD's. We arrived in KL, at 6 30am.

The bus was really cold (due to the ridiculously high AC)! BUT I was prepared, after taking so many buses. It's funny, the bus we went on was called the "Super VIP bus". The normal buses are called "worker buses" and are basically school buses, or those trucks with people crowded. The "Super VIP Bus" are basically a little more comfortable than our Greyhound or coach buses.

In KL, we had some trouble initially finding a bus that left early for Taman Negara. After stumbling around the city for a bit, we end up with a travel agency Gary had originally booked with (but then canceled -- they didn't get the cancellation).

We are provided transportation to and from the jungle (from the travel agency package), accommodations for 2 nights and breakfast, and a bus back to JB for about 200RM.

The bus ride to Kuala Tembeling was very bumpy, and I get pretty bus sick and slept for most of it. We run into a couple more Canadians (you know they are most likely Canadian when you see the "Roots" backpack!) ... and a few Americans on exchange from Hong Kong also heading to Taman Negara!

We need to take a little boat, called a Jetty (shown below), for about 3.5 hours to reach the park, Kuala Tahan. The boat ride was really beautiful, and relaxing. Our boat was made of wood, and reminded me of the long tail boats we took in Thailand.

After checking into our hostel, I take another "one-of-the-best-showers-I've-had-in-a-long-time" showers. LOL. This happens more than I could like in SE Asia. After washing up, we go for dinner and plan what we would like to do in our short time there.

We take a guided night tour of the jungle, which was pretty much just walking in the jungles at night. We saw quite a lot of bugs, and a really big spider (it ate birds..). Not too many animals, we did see the eyes of some deers from far away. Since this park has a lot of tourists, the food was definitely not the highlight of this trip, compared to our last trip to Malaysia.

This is the view for about 3.5 hours on the jetty. The water is quite shallow I believe, probably not more than 1m deep.

On our full day there, we take a morning trek into the jungles, with the first stop being the canopy walk. The canopy walk was actually really short. I was expecting something really really long and scary. I was ready to be scared for my life, since I am really afraid of heights. But, it actually wasn't that bad!

Not that it wasn't scary, I was still scared, I just thought that I'd be more scared! Just imagine walking across something really high up, so high you can't tell how high up, because all you see are the tree tops beneath you, on a plank of wood about the width of a small ladder and just sways with every step you take... Yea, its pretty scary stuff!! Or maybe I'm just a big chicken...

That's B. on the canopy walk.

After the relatively short canopy walk was complete, we follow some of the paths and trek around the more marked out trails. We end up making this huge loop around, and do a lot of climbing, sweating, almost falling, and more sweating.

It was quite the work out for all of us, and we did get to some really nice view points. Lots of bugs though, I'm surprised they didn't turn out more the in the pictures because they would swarm us in the clear areas whenever we tried to take pictures. Such as this one. Isn't the view breath taking?

We rushed back to the hostel place for 2pm to catch our 3pm bat cave tour with a guide. This tour was pretty interesting, and we got to crawl/climb our way through a bat cave surrounded by bats.

There was definitely lots of bat poo, and I got poo on my pants, shirt, cap, hands, arms, legs, socks and shoes. It was very cramped and rocky, so you had to keep grabbing onto rocks to support yourself and keep balance.

When you touch the rocks, they would be wet and felt "dirty". Only you know its not dirt, its poo -- bat poo. All in all, it was pretty good experience.

I remember one time, I was basically on my stomach trying to balance and slither forward because I didn't want to fall into the pool of water below. Yuck. Actually, it wasn't that bad because the people who went before me already go all the bat poo on their clothes. :)

After that trip, took another one of those "one-of-the-best-showers-I've-had-in-a-long-time" showers. LOL. Tried to tie up my boo covered clothes in the best way that I could without spreading the poo anywhere, or let the smell get to everything else in my backpack.

That night, we sign up for a night safari where we are taken into the jungles, in a 4x4, and a guide with a really strong strobe like flashlight points out animals, if he sees any. We saw some leopard cats, a silver cat, the eyes of a flying squirrel ( I couldn't pick out the rest), a kingfisher bird, a warthog, and some owls. Again, very touristy.

We leave 9am the next morning. The jetty takes us back Kuala Tembeling, and we take a bus back to KL. The bus ride was really shaky, and I end up falling asleep for most of it to prevent myself from getting sick. Our bus from KL to JB didnt leave until 12am, so we had some time to kill. We shop! :) I changed my remaining 50CND and we head over to a mall via the LRT (Light Rail Transit).

The shopping trip was a little disappointing, since most of the clothes wasn't what either B. or I had wanted. There were a lot of FOB clothes, and they weren't that cheap either! I end up getting a couple shirts, nothing extravagant.

We hop on the night bus, and arrive at JB a little earlier than expected. 3:45am, instead of 5 am. So we grab some breakfast at the McD's and play cards until the transit buses start running at 4 30 ish to take us back to Singapore.

We get back to the MRT station at 6 30ish after going through customs and walking through the Malaysia - Singapore border. I take a cab, and make it back on campus at 8 am. I shower and then go write my quiz at 9am.

It was quite the trip! I still haven't quite caught up on sleep yet!

I can't believe this term is almost over! It does seem to fly by on hindsight, but it was has been amazing. Despite this, I am so ready to go back to Canada. Walking through Pearson International will be an amazing experience on its own.

I've learned so much on this trip, and that will be another post. I've learned that even though I'm halfway around the world, my thoughts can still be with the people I care about.

Even though seeing so many places is amazing, it's not where you are that's the most important thing, to me, its the people share it with. These great memories wouldn't be half as great, if I didn't have people I care about to share them with :)

I've also been able to push myself in different ways, from living accommodations, to traveling, to school work, to trying different activities... and learned that I'm actually much more flexible and able to rough it out more than I had thought.

I thought that was really cool, since I still want to look decent in my pictures (yes, this is the vain Cat... LOL), and be able to live relatively cheaply, and travel with a bunch of guys (engineering guys, for that matter).

Anyway, I'll end off with one of favourite pics of myself and some of my favourite girls. Miss you! **hugs**