Friday, October 31, 2008

This Week

There's so much I want to blog about that I don't know where to start. A lot has happened this past week. It seems that once into the second half of my time here, time flies and it's 2 months left before I touch home ground.

Some interesting stuff over the past week or so... Last Thu went for the North Carolina State Fair, an annual event that takes place in Raleigh. Went with the AO group (church college group) so it was pretty fun. It the usual kind of fun fair, with food, games, rides and also some exhibits of farm animals and farm produce of North Carolina, quite interesting. Tried quite a lot of different food, like funnel cake, candy apple, pecan pie etc. There was fireworks too for like 15 minutes, it goes off every night. Took the ferris wheel which was kinda too fast and it was cold but had a nice view of the whole fair.

Decided not to sleep on Thu night cos I had a flight to catch at 6am on Fri morning. It was really good to see the crusaders on webcam and talk to them on skype, and even book a GSR for them, so amusing!

Yeah I flew to Seattle with Andrea on Fri morning, and also took the Greyhound up to Vancouver on Fri afternoon and spent the night at Lijing's place in UBC. Went back to Seattle on Sat night then took the overnight flight back to Raleigh on Monday night.

Thank God that my test today is postponed to next Wed, and I had time to go for the usual stuff on Tue, Wed and Thu which I missed all last week. AO Bible study, Campus Crusade Homeless Outreach and Campus Crusade Prime Time.

Honestly, I'm a bit tired from all the travelling and then having to rush work during the weekdays. The marginial utility for each trip I take is decreasing and I just hope it doesn't go into negative. Leaving for Charlottesville in 3.5 hours' time. Will be going up to the mountains again :)

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

The Half-way Mark


Yesterday was the half-way mark of my time in the US. I realised that my time away from Singapore will be exactly 20 weeks short of a few hours. I left on 13 Aug 7.15 am and will return on 30 Dec 11.50 pm.

So, 10 weeks has passed since I arrived in the US, and these 10 weeks were nothing short of exciting and a great eye-opener. I still remember my first night here without my luggage! It was quite sad but I guess it's a chance to learn survival skills and how to adapt too. I've learnt more about myself, what I really value and enjoy. I've seen the beauty of God's creation in the mountains, lakes, streams, waterfalls, rivers and much more.

I've seen in real life what I learnt in Geography during my secondary school days - plains with meandering rivers from the plane before landing in St. Louis, the most beautiful skyline of the sunset on the 50-min flight from Chicago to Grand Rapids, great volumes of water flowing down the rapids and waterfalls at the Niagara Falls, the beautiful fall colours and spectacular view of the mountains at the Great Smoky Mountains.

I've visited museums and learnt about historical people and events that have impacted the world. The Gerald Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids was an unforgettable visit that gave an inspiration to all to live our lives for God and trusting God and His purposes. The Holocaust Museum in Washington DC gave a more elaborate account than what I had learnt in History in secondary school. What my history textbook didn't mention was how some people in different parts of Europe from different walks of life and positions attempted to protect the Jews by hiding them or assisted their escape, and it was really touching to read the stories. And the nation of Israel was created indirectly as a result of the Holocaust, showing God's sovereignty in all situations.

I've the opportunity to live in a temperate country, seeing the beautiful colours of fall. Although the erratic weather can be quite frustrating at times, in addition to still not knowing how much to wear at what temperature, it has been a good experience to live in this autumn season for the first time in my life.

I've got to know many people from different parts of the world, the other exchange students, as well as fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. It's encouraging to see how God is at work in the lives of people and how people are on fire for God.

I could go on and on about the good experiences I had these past 10 weeks. God's blessings overflow, what more can I ask for? He has given me more than what I have asked for, and beyond what I imagined, even things I didn't ask for. May I not forget His goodness in my life!

Looking forward to more adventures ahead in the next 10 weeks! :)

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Great Smoky Mountains (18 - 20 Oct)

This mountains trip was simply so great that I have to blog about this first even though it breaks the chronological order. It was such a last-minute opportunity that I’m still amazed by how it all happened.

Initially, I had many different plans for this weekend. The very original plan was to go Virginia to visit Shuang Ning, then the trip to the mountains with my other exchange friends was postponed from 2 weeks ago to this week, but we postponed it another 2 weeks cos the trees still haven’t changed colours. Then there was the option to go Washington DC again with UNC people for urban missions, but I would have to miss 2 days of class, including a test on Fri. There was also the football game on Thu and the special talk on Fri at the NCSU student fellowship. So I thought, I’ll just stay in Raleigh this weekend to study for my International Finance test, go to Southpoint Mall with Christina to buy some summer clothes that are on sale, spend some time clearing my table and reflecting. However, it seems that God had something else planned for me :)



After the NCSU student fellowship on Fri night, Luyan told me that she can’t give me a ride to church on Sunday cos some of them from the student fellowship were going to the Great Smoky Mountains. When she sent me home that night I asked her about the trip again. It’s just something that the few of them planned, to see fall colours in the mountains. Then she said actually I could go too. I had like 5 minutes to decide cos it only takes 5 minutes to reach my hall and they were leaving at 5.30am the next day. She called to confirm that there’s still space in the car for me to go then it was set that I am going to Great Smoky Mountains with the Chinese fellowship people. It’s indeed a God-given opportunity!

So 7 hours later, I was all set to go to the mountains! The Great Smoky Mountains National Park stretches over North Carolina State and Tennessee State, and is the largest wilderness area in the eastern US. It encompasses over 500, 000 acres of Appalachian peaks and is the most visited national park out of more than 390 parks in the USA National Park System, with over nine million visits per year! The peak season to see fall colours there is 15-31 Oct, so it was pretty crowded when we went.

There were 13 of us altogether, riding in 3 cars. I only talked to 2 of them before, so it took some time for me to warm up to get to know the rest. It takes about 6 hours to drive from Raleigh to the Great Smoky Mountains, but along the way we stopped for breakfast, toilet breaks and lunch. Along the highways, the trees are still mostly green and few have changed colours. But as we drove higher and higher up the mountains, the fall colours became more obvious. We stopped at visitor centres and scenic spots along the way to take pictures.







At one of the spots where we stopped to take pictures, one of the cars had some problems and the car company was called to bring a cooler for the car. While waiting, the rest of us went up to Clingmans Dome, the highest point of the mountains, at 6643 ft, or 2024m. We drove there and had to climb for about 20 minutes. It was a cloudy day, so there was so much mist that we couldn’t see much from the top and it was freezing cold!








When we went back to the spot where the car broke down, the view there changed because the sun came out from behind the clouds and the colours on the mountains were even more beautiful. How amazing that the car actually broke down at a place with such a nice view. Here, I fully understood the meaning of “breathtaking view” because it was indeed so! I had never seen such beauty in my life before. It was simply AWESOME! But my camera phone ran out of battery by then so I didn’t get to capture the view.

What happened next was super hilarious. It was already 6 pm plus by then so we decided that one car will go first to collect keys then check in to the bungalow house we are staying at and prepare food for steamboat. The other car will wait with the car that broke down, in case the car company didn’t come and they have to abandon the car. But there were so many cars that we were caught in the traffic for almost 2 hours, when it should have taken us just 30 minutes to get to the place to get our keys. From there we headed to our house and we got lost for a while cos the GPS gave unclear directions so we took a big round to get to the road that leads up to our house. At that time we called the people in the other car, only to realize that they were actually in front of us! They had expected us to be there much earlier and gotten everything ready for steamboat dinner when they arrived. Anyway, we set off to unload stuff and prepare food and in 45 minutes we were all ready for a great meal, of which I forgot to take pictures again!

The next morning we headed to Cades Cove, a popular area for biking, picnic and walking trails. The weather that day was excellent, clear skies and the sun was out, so it was pretty warm in the afternoon. We were caught in traffic again but the surrounding view was beautiful too. The elevation here is lower so there’s more greenery and fewer colours. We stopped for picnic lunch at an open area near the visitor center.







After lunch we walked through some of the houses of the Cherokee Indians, whose homelands were these mountains and looked at the way of life of these people. Then we went on a trail and our objective that day was to find a bear! We didn’t see any bears then but we saw some deer. And I managed to take this shot. We had to creep up quietly cos they will run away upon hearing us go towards them.




After the short trail we drove along and stopped occasionally to take pictures. And just as we were going to head back to the house, guess what? We saw four bears and quickly stopped the car to get down and take pictures. I couldn’t get any nice shots though.

That night we had steamboat dinner again cos there was so much food left over. Had a really good time that night just talking and getting to know more about them and the ministry. This trip is indeed more than what I expected! God surely made this trip very worth it!

The next morning I woke up early to catch the sunrise. However, the house is in the middle of a forest so there wasn’t a nice spot to see the sunrise. This was the best place we found.





After breakfast we checked out and went a few more scenic spots before heading back. We drove along the Blue Ridge Parkway, which run from North Carolina all the way up to Virginia. We stopped at so many places that we had to restrain or else we would never get back to Raleigh.



The words and pictures here are a far cry from the true beauty of the mountains. At the end of it, I really didn’t feel like leaving. But when it’s time to go back to Raleigh we all had to. Similarly, when it’s time to go back to Singapore I will have to. Also, when it’s time for us to return to our eternal home in heaven we will have to as well. So treasure the present!

The 3 days at the mountains were the best part of my time here (other than the Niagara Falls) and one of the best times of my life too. It’s certainly a very memorable trip that God has given me and I am simply in awe of God’s wonders. Besides the beauty of the mountains and fall colours, God brought me a step closer to one thing I’m seeking Him for. What a wonderful closure to the first half of my time in the US!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Fall Colours

It's been a long time since I last blogged and so much has happened that I want to blog about. Since my last post on Toronto, some interesting things that I want to share with you all (and hopefully will write about soon) are:

- Trip to Washington DC (7 - 9 Oct)
- Workshop on "Avoiding Procrastination" (13 Oct)
- Football Game (16 Oct)
- Trip to the Great Smoky Mountains ( 18 - 20 Oct)

Also want to post about:

- Campus Crusade Homeless Outreach (every Wed)
- School life at NCSU

Just writing these down so that I'll remember to blog about them soon. For now, enjoy these pictures of fall colours that I personally took at the Great Smoky Mountains. I'm usually not so fast in posting photos but these are simply so nice that I can't wait to share with all of you. So awesome and beautiful right? The actual colours look much better!






Well, just in case you didn't believe I really went there, here's a picture with me and the mountains.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Toronto (26 Sep - 1 Oct)

Time to talk about my Toronto trip before my next trip, which is... tomorrow, to Washington DC! This is a super overdue post.

So... my adventures in the USA has also brought me across the border to neighbouring Canada! Some photos are up on facebook already. There's too much I can write about but I guess the pictures will give you a better idea. Well I wasn't very keen on two consecutive weeks of travelling, but since Chia Ying's housemates were away that weekend it would be nice to accompany her. Thank God I recovered before I went and so was able to enjoy myself fully. And God really blessed me with special opportunities that weekend, like going to Midland on Saturday and seeing the street performances in Kensington Market on Sunday!
Anyway I arrived on Fri night and was received at the airport by Chia Ying and a couple who does the International Students Ministry, which Chia Ying is involved in. On Sat we got a ride from them to Midland, this place north of Toronto, about 2 hours away. They were going somewhere nearby to visit their son (they usually go on weekdays but this was an exception!) so they dropped us off at Midland, and we took the boat cruise there in the Georgian bay, which supposedly has 30 000 islands. Of course we didn't get to see all the islands, but it was quite beautiful, especially with some of the trees having fall colours already. There were many cottages on some of the islands as well, looks like a good getaway place. Also really thank God that the rained stopped in the afternoon when we were just boarding the boat!
At the Georgian Bay

On Sunday we went church in the morning then downtown in the afternoon. Had some chinese food in a Hong Kong restaurant in Chinatown, then walked to Kensington Market, where the street was closed to traffic for street performances and all. The street is closed to traffic for pedestrians on the last Sunday of the month in May to Oct, and we just happened to be there that day. Quite interesting. We walked further to Little Italy and Korean town too. I guess I was pretty surprised at the large proportion of Asians in Toronto. More than 50% maybe.
We had dinner at the CN Tower, the tallest structure in the world at 553 metres. The revolving restaurant is 350 metres above ground. Good view of Toronto and Lake Ontario, but it was quite cloudy and misty that day so couldn't see too far, and we also missed the sunset :( The food was good though, it's really fine dining! After dinner went to the open-air observation deck, which was super cold when the wind blew. The wind was so strong that it actually propelled us forward when we were walking! It was a happening day and we walked a lot. But more to come in the next 2 days.


At the Look Out Level in the CN Tower, 346 metres above ground.

Finally on Monday we went to the Niagara Falls, the place where you must go if you come to Toronto. It was really beautiful, but the sun wasn't out that day so we didn't get to see any rainbow :( Took the Maid of the Mist boat ride, which got us all wet from the falls and my camera phone nearly died! But thank God it survived after some drying, or else I would have lost a camera and a phone.
Then we did something adventurous - cross over to the US border to see the falls from there. It was much more beautiful at the US side, because we could only see the rapids from the US side. And it's so different in that US did it as a Niagara Falls State Park (which was quiet and serene), while at the Canadian side there were other attractions like museums, haunted house, ferris wheel, casinos etc.

There was just one (big) problem in crossing to the US. I didn't bring my I-20 form with me. This form is needed for me to re-enter US. We brought our passports because we needed it to take the tour bus from Toronto to Niagara falls but I didn't think I'll need the I-20 form so I left it at Chia Ying's place. Thought that if the US side didn't allow me in then I'll just come back. They did allow me in because from their custom system they could check and verify that I'm at student in US. But the problem is when I went back to Canada they didn't allow me in because I didn't have the I-20 form. The Canada immigration officer was very strict and didn't accept even though the US immigration side gave a written verification that I am a student at US. She insisted that I needed my I-20 form to enter Canada. So I had no choice, I stayed one night in US in a youth hostel near the Niagara falls, while Chia Ying went back to Toronto to take the form and came back to Niagara falls the next day and crossed over to the US side to pass it to me. Actually the next day when I crossed to Canada side with the I-20 form the immigration officer didn't really check the I-20 form. I folded the form and he didn't even open it to check that it was my name.

That day I walked the Rainbow bridge (the bridge that links US and Canada) 5 times! It so happens that every trip I go on, I have time alone myself though it's not planned beforehand, which is good I guess, I quite like it. But that day after looking for a place to stay a buying dinner, I missed seeing the sunset again :( Wanted to hang around a while more to see if the falls would get illuminated (as seen from the postcards) but thought that it wouldn't be on since it was already 7.30 pm then. It was getting cold to so I decided to check into the hostel instead of exploring more. Then I only found out when I arrived at the hostel that the falls were illuminated at 8.30 pm. It was deemed too dark and unsafe for me to go back there then, and the other girls there didn't want to go, so I didn't get to see it :(

So our supposedly one day at the Niagara falls became two days, because when Chia Ying came over the next day we spent the day exploring the US side again, and discovered more nice places to view the falls from! We walked so much those 2 days that my legs were actually aching when I came back to Raleigh. And because of this I-20 form I missed my flight from Toronto to Raleigh on Tues morning (as well as my classes on Tues and Wed, an additional 4 classes!). I booked the flight on Wed morning but because for Star Alliance redemption I have to book a round trip, so I booked another Raleigh to Toronto flight on 16 Dec. So the new plan is to go visit Chia Ying again after my exams. I really wanna come back to the Niagara Falls again, cos we didn't really walk much of the Canadian side (the place is simply too big!) and I must catch the sunset and the falls illumination then, which starts at 5pm during winter. Hopefully I will get to see a rainbow too. Chia Ying and I also talked about going Montreal and Quebec. More chance of seeing snow there :) Probably take the train down to New York City or Boston from there after that.

The American Falls


The Canadian Horseshoe Falls


On the rainbow bridge which links US and Canada.

On returning to Toronto on Tues night we realised that 1 Oct (Wed) is a public holiday in Singapore, so we decided to call Sarah that morning (Tues night for us). Haha we actually had "DG" for over an hour! It's so great catching up. And really glad to have been able to spend time with Chia Ying. The time spent those few days were probably more than 1 year's worth of DG time together.

What an adventure! Many more to come soon :)

Saturday, October 4, 2008

The most happening, crazy, dramatic, exciting and adventurous week

Yes, the past week since last Fri has been happening, crazy, dramatic, exciting and adventurous. It all began with the trip to Toronto to visit Chia Ying. I shall leave the details of this trip to another post; it's too much to write in one post. Chia Ying has posted some photos on facebook and I'll upload mine soon.


After coming back on Wed morning I was frantically studying for my tests on Thu and Fri, but I still decided to go to Crusade homeless outreach on Wed. I shall leave this to another post too.
On Fri night I had the choice to go for AO fellowship or to church for the mission conference in Chinese. I decided to go for the latter and I'm so glad I did. RCCC has its annual mission conference this weekend, with sessions on Fri, Sat and Sun. The speaker is Elder Yu Muh Chieh from Rutgers Community Christian Church in New Jersey. I was so blessed and inspired by the message and the speaker's testimony. It's also great to be back in RCCC after two weeks of "absence". I'm so looking forward to the next two sessions tonight and tomorrow morning :)


Then after coming back from church last night I went to watch Kungfu Panda at 11.59pm. The campus cinema has movies at $1.50. I think it's a really good movie, lots of food for thought. Hmm... what is my destiny?


It's 2 pm on a Saturday afternoon and I just had a lazy Saturday morning, eating brunch and making travel plans with my Korean friend at the dining hall for more than 2 hours. It's seems quite rare that I'm around on Saturday cos I've been out of Raleigh the past two weekends. I actually had plans to go up to the mountains with some friends this weekend, but we decided to postpone it to two weeks later because the trees haven't fully changed colours. Two weeks ago, at Grand Rapids, a few of the trees there had changed colours and when I returned to Raleigh, I saw this from my hall window.


Today, the colours still look the same. Hopefully two weeks later when we go up to the mountains there will be more colours. I realised this is the first time I'm experiencing fall and seeing all these fall colours. I probably won't get to see this again cos I won't be able to leave Singapore during fall (at least for the next 5 years). There were some very nice sights in Toronto of colourful trees too.

But anyway, I'm glad to be around this weekend. If I had gone up to the mountains, I would have missed the mission conference. Somehow I feel that there are so many events in my life that is arranged by God. Even for my travelling trips, dates just coincide and I get rare opportunities like going up north on the first day in Toronto.

Someone told me that the trees probably haven't changed colours nicely as the weather here suddenly dropped. Yes the weather the past 2 weeks here was so erratic. There were a few days where it rained and temperature suddenly dropped, like 14 degrees. Then the next few days when the sun was out I thought the weather would be back to normal but no, it remained cold. The sun is so deceiving. It's not like in Singapore where you can look out of the window and determine that the day is gonna be hot and sunny. Here it looks sunny from the window so I thought I could wear t-shirt and berms only to realise that it's too cold the moment I step out of the building. So now I have to check the weather everyday before I leave house. The weather is very good today. Sunny and 24 degrees. A good afternoon to just go out and instead of staying in the air-con room to blog. Haha. Anyway I'm going to play frisbee then go for a birthday party :)