"The most important thing I've learned is this: The fact that we all believe in different things is nowhere near as important as the fact that we all believe."

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Singapore Trip!

Following orientation week, I booked a last-minute trip to Singapore for four days with a few other foreign exchange students. It was so amazing! I found the airline tickets online for only about $170 USD and booked my first hostel with my friends Steven and Natalie. Shown here is a picture of Steven and I before takeoff. (Planes are still exciting to me because I'm still not used to riding them!)

When we arrived it was so hot--and it was winter there!! It was approximately 93 degrees Fahrenheit every day! Singapore actually only consists of a city even though it's its own country. The city is attached to Malaysia by a couple of bridges, however. In case you didn't know, Singapore is actually known as the strictest city in the world. Bringing chewing gum into the country is considered drug trafficking and results in hefty fines! Anyways, since I can't describe everything from the trip, here are some picture to show you the fun I had.




In Singapore, my group met up with two different backpackers: Boris from Boston and Bruno from Mexico. It was incredible how a group of strangers can truly feel like family after only a couple of days. I asked them both a lot of questions about their travels. Both of them had given up great job opportunities to travel the world. It really inspired me. I've wanted to travel the world since I was 12, but I had never before considered buying a backpack and just going! To the horror of all the people back home already worried about me, it's something I'm seriously considering doing in the future.


Just to highlight a few key points... while in Singapore, I visited the beach, much of the city, the mall (Orchard Road), the Night Safari, the Chinese and Japanese Gardens, and a place dedicated to Chinese mythology. My favorite part about Singapore was the diversity you find there. There was a "little" India, "little" China, and even an Arab section of the city! When you ride the (very clean) metro, there are people from India, China, the Philippines, Australia, South America, Africa, North America... you name it, they have it! It was the most international place I have ever been, and everyone seemed to respect everyone else (as far as I could tell).




I really can't put into words how amazing this trip was and how much it meant to me. When it was all over, I almost felt I had lived an entirely different life in just four days!