Am I thinking too much?

I've not been working full time for quite awhile now, actually ive never worked full time, haha. but then i feel my brains not being put to work other than whenever I'm being put in a situation where i have to think on the spot whenever i have to lead dance class for students, last min. i don like that feeling. im a planner you see?
so at this point of my life, i feel like ive got a lot space in my head to think about a lot of things. about life, about the things happening around me and stuff, it's not very good to be honest.
in alot of my friendships that i haf so far i feel that i have always been the advisor, im not sayin tt its not a gd thing la cuz i like to be the giver, but then sometimes i want to be on the receiving end too. and having listened to soo many relationship and life problems from my frenz.. i feel that i learned alot of stuff and im very grateful of it. but the bad thing that i see to it is the fact tt i tend to 2nd guess myself whenever i face problems in life. like ill face a problem and then i somehow will noe the root of the problem but its juz tt it doesnt make it fun anymore tt u get to noe how to fix it in the first place, it makes it too easy. and u feel like u haf a longing to hear it from someone else other then urself, the feelin really sucks.
i feel very confused right now, i dun even understand wat im talkin abt anymore!
im so pissed at myself for being so fickle minded and trying to be righteous abt trying to help everyone else in their lives that i neglected my own. ive always tot to myself, 'who cares about wat other ppl think? the onli person i can trust and the only person tt loves me is myself'.
i duno wat my future holds for me , well i guess nobody does but then now i feel tt ive no direction at all. i need someone to just come up to me and just slap me now, to wake me up. i feel tt ppl have been giving me support and telling me i can be succesful in everything tt i try to do so much so that i tin ive become complacent man. i don feel the drive anymore that challenges face me i don even feel like trying to overcome it anymore. ive lost my DRIVE!
ive been tinking abt the way tt i was brought up, was it the right way? should i be implementing this on my own children if i ever haf any? i feel the MASSIVE lack of apparent love i feel from my family, directly and also indirectly i feel. tt's the reason why i guess i go to my peers for guidance and support, but really, no friend, no matter how close u are, is able to be there for u 24-7 man. and i noe tt too! and it really sucks the fact tt u noe everyone will grow up and become more distant from u as they start their own families and you start losing contact with all ur friends. will i have my own family? will i retire peacefully?
so many things in my mind right now, so many steps to take.. i'd tell myself to juz stop tinking now and do everythin rationally cuz i stil haf time to take everythin step by step. but, i feel tt im not takin the first step now. DAMN!
i want to say tt i need some reassurance now but come to tin of it, i feel tt it might not be reassurance but rather someone to juz tell me TO WAKE UP!
but i don want to be dependent, i noe the solution to that but.. wat should i do now?

YES. I SHALL STOP TINKING NOW.

Lantern Festival!

In the light of the recent mooncake and lantern festival , my dance troupe have organised an event for AMK Pri and we had so much stuff selling and face painting and all. We managed to reach our target of funds that we wanted to hit so we were overall satisfied. i never thot tt actually asking ppl to pay for face painting for their children could actually make money.. if only i can charge for every painting i do whenever i go for events, tin i can be rich la..anyways the event was really successful, tiring.. but realy worth it la ( there's this stupid flying ant which keeps on comin onto my comp table as i type this entry, so irritated)
More imptly, me and my other frens had our own lantern festival celebs. 1stly, me, taufiq, maria and haslinda had free tickets to chinese garden lantern display so we headed on down to chinese garden to look at huge lanterns, nothing much la but we did haf fun in each other's company. and finally the rest of them got to feel wat it feels like to travel sooooo far away to go hm from chinese garden. i tin i reached hm like in 15 mins after they left to took the train, haa..
other than tt, me rau and maria had our very own lantern festival at a corner of Fort Cannning Park. it was actually at the spur of the moment that we thot of doin this as i was lookin for some stuff for my mid-autumn festival at AMK Pri wen they said they wanted to play w lanterns, so we did. 'twas really great as we found a nice li'l to ourselves as we were lighting up all those lanterns and nobody was there to disturb us. (now then i noe they actually built a long escalator tt leads up to Fort Canning, might as well make all the way) we had so much fun and i missed hanging out with Raudhah! i miss that girl man.. since she got together w Yazid, we havent been able to meet up with her much so we really enjoyed her company tt night. i stil rmbr those times wen we used to hang out alot. we had all our creative juices that night and there was no holds barred kinda celebration that we had that night. we felt like we were in poly once again.
hope we can do it again sometime soon.. :)
and miss maria actually bought this tube of jelly thingy for me. it looks like hair gel and its called 'oobz toobz'. super sinful thing to eat and ure cautioned to try it only wen ure low on energy, if not ull be super hyperactive once u haf it (like me wen i had tons of it tt night. all thx to maria.. and we squeezed it into our mouth cuz i had this idea tt it looks like blood, haa. right? right?

Wat's been happening?

I've just quit my job as a graphic designer. Undesirable workplace i tell u.
ok i maybe complaining or a bit fussy but then really, u muz really go thru it to really noe wat i mean.
im kinda sick now to talk abt it so i shan't.
now its the 7th month so alot of burnin haf been taking place, even around my office.
i juz cant stand the fact tt they're burning all over the footpaths.
doesnt create air pollution and also vandalize public property.
i juz don understand.
i found this picture of underwear sizes, i tin its damn cute and funny.
it's true but i don tin its cuz of global warming. haha.
this is for doing research and getting my inspiration for my designs for the past month.
my company had this big, messy warehouse place where they stored all the stuff for events.
i went there once at night to unlaod some stuff and i tell u tt place it NOT a gd place to be at night all by urself.
gives me the creeps.
so now i shall go back into teaching dance and ive applied into NIE to become a teacher.
being in contact with all these people who are younger than me, i find tt i actually tin i haf the knack to handle them.
fulfilling one my biggest dreams tt is to become an educator of the lives of the future.
sounds big but i guess i haf to start somewhere right?
at least in the wkends ill be free and i can stil do my photog and videog weddings stuff.
extra income on the side $$.
lookin back, i feel tt wen i went overseas in the recent months to SEA was a really enriching experience for me.
really once in a lifetime.
at least i got to see a small fraction of how the education systems work in the other countries, and how the students and teachers in s'pore are faring compared to the region.
we arent tt bad after all and it actually has quite a slight destructive effect to the influence tt kids get nowadays.
being over stressed about getting gd grades, pleasing parents, and getting high paper qualifications,
tt we lose sight of doing wat we really like juz by trying to satisfy everybody around us.
well, i guess tt's the culture tt we've been brought up in s'pore.
therefore im grateful for everythin tt ive seen and experience in my life so far and awaiting for more adventures.
im also very grateful to all my close frens who haf been there for me all this while.
whether when i was overseas or they are.
nobody could replace them.
they'll always be in my prayers.
lemme leave you with a pop art of this particular fren of mine!

My new job..

I've been working as a graphic designer for the past 3 weeks, for an events company.
Yeah, finally i got a job and pending to go into full time.
Basically, kinda bao ka liao la my job, everything my boss needs, ill haf to do it.
Been thinking a lot about whether i wanna continue working there after 1 month, but then i really have a lot of doubts.
Just really not my cup of tea.
Originally i thought that my previous job in the production industry was not my cup of tea but then lemme tell u that this one is actually worse.
A lot of times i feel that my boss thinks i can do magic, asking me to do rather impossible stuff and then, blames me for everything.
Just within this one month of working there I've already experienced so many dislikes about him and how he runs the company.
Frankly, i tin i'd say there isnt much space and leeway given to me to let me learn and discover myself there.
Too fast-paced for me and he wants to take my dance away from me.
I think overall, that sucks the most.
I cant believe that at the previous event, he badmouthed me in front of everybody, making me look like some fool or some failure in front of people who I don't even know.
How often is it that an employer can just blame one person for everything that goes wrong?
Really bad working bad environment... Think after this one month of working there i'll be gg back to teaching part time at pri and sec sch students.
And then consider going back into production cuz even if im very busy with work during production, at least i feel that i stil have a life.
i guess tt's the thing abt me and living my life to the fullest, i cannot just be doing one thing in life, ive to really embrace and i feel doing this, im not able to embrace anything.
i cant even meet my frenz for heavens sake.
this is not the kind of life for me.
well some people may believe in working hard and making lots of money for their future but then i tin there's no point in torturing one's self to do that. really no point i think.
ive been thinking about a certain phenomemum tt's happening in s'pore.
u noe how older, more experienced people always say that young people nowadays dont seem to be contributing alot in terms of creativity or the expansion of s'pore in terms of development?
the conclusion i came up with was the fact tt THESE OLD PEOPLE and so-called more experienced people are not allowing us to take things into our own hands.
to let us run the show because their afraid they might lose face.
i don believe that they didnt make their own mistakes when they started off...
they juz want us to do everything their way and follow their direction, so young people like us juz follow suit and eventually juz stick to the old ways that things have always been done.
wat's gonna happen to us man?
and quoting from wat my boss says, HK seems to be so far ahead of singapore and he juz don understand why...
well here's ur explanation up there! haha

i guess im juz being bitter abt everythin la but i guess i just needed to get all of it out...
haiz... i miss dancing..

Had beens and has beens..

I've finally settled down back in mainland singapore... after sooo much of travelling and stuff. been a really gd experience and all but it's time now for mr appletoe to come back to reality.
since i was back i was painstakingly looking for a job for myself. and let me tell u tt it isn't really that easy to get a job even though u've a diploma. after so long of looking for one...
i've stumbled across one! all thx to maria. im workin now as a graphic designer at an events company called Sonamyang. been working there for a wk now and so far so gd. i juz don like the fact tt i haf to be sitting in front of a computer for the whole day. i jus like to be out there doin things. the tiredness pays off and i'll feel i'd had done somethin for the day. luckily i can stil take mornin dance lessons. at least i can stil see my wonderful cute kids on wed mornings before i go to work. my sec sch students on tue n thurs are diff though. but i tin its a just a teenagers phase of life tt everyone goes thru. i noe wat it feels like so i noe wat they're gg thru now. i tin really, everyone should juz act their age. nobody should try to grow up faster than they're s'posed to. u'll really regret it i feel.
as long and as far as i've lived my life i feel tt i've always been living at tt age of mine (and sometimes younger too) so i guess no regrets. i've lived a life of very few regrets and i feel tt everythin happens for a reason. ok im getting really philosophical now but then i guess tt's jus me. sometimes i get worried if ppl will eventually get bored of me. cuz i tell alot of ppl alot abt myself tt i feel there isnt much of a surprise anymore.. but anyhoe.. at least im doin wat i want to do in my life now. working stable, teaching, dancing and enjoying the company of my frenz (even tho most of them are overseas now) so ill juz make do with wat i have for now..

Myanmar 18th – 20thJune

We almost weren't able to enter into Myanmar cuz of Cyclone Nargis, furthermore with all our equipment, but we still managed to thanks to some higher power. In Myanmar we cant use our phones so we had an escort to follow us all around wherever we go. Mr Sim, from the Singapore Embassy. He didn't seem very happy that he was actually supposed to accompany us everywhere we go for the next 3 days we were there. Actually, he wasn't really happy with a lot of things actually. Well, no matter, we'll just have to entertain ourselves and pretend like we have no host, as what we've done at some of our previous countries. Got a hint from him that the people in Myanmar were quite shy, so it wasnt really good to hear for me and Damien actually.
The aftermath of the cyclone tragedy could actually be seen as we were traveling over to our hotel. Fallen trees, broken fences, abandoned homes. But more or less, as we learned from our driver, life Myanmar has somewhat gone back to normal, or rather, they're trying to work towards living life the same as before. Where we stayed at, our hotel, was really in the middle of nowhere. Everywhere surrounding us, was dilapidated houses and lots of rubbish piles. As expected, Damien went round taking pictures and he did come back with some great ones. Very good photo opportunity. Dinner that night was at the hotel's cafe itself as there wasnt really much places to go to eat where we stayed.
Next morning, back to work. The first school we went to held it in a very big school hall-ish kind of place. Then the school headmaster approached me and pointed out this big hole at the roof of the place. He said that that was caused by the cyclone. Imagine, part of the ceiling coming down towards you as you're sitting there. Scary. Halfway through the events, i realized that most of the children were very good at using paints for their art pieces, and some of them really awed me when i saw how skillful they were at their age. But one problem that arose was the fact that works couldn't dry fast enough. So after awhile you see the whole hall packed with people as you see the parents of the children coming in to help their children fan at their paintings. I really could sense the closeness of the family evident in the Myanmese families. Really inspiring.
We didn't really spend that long at in Myanmar as our Visas only lasted a week. In total, only 3 days that we spent there. We went to the Shweddagon Pagoda, apparently built about 2,500 yrs ago! But then thanks to cyclone, some of the tips of the temples were broken off and there was construction going on to rebuild the whole place again. I was telling Damien that we might never be able to capture the Pagoda in this state, so i told him to take more pictures. We then bumped into this cute little boy there. Apparently he was one of the students that attended one of our school sessions. So cute la he, such a coincidence. One thing i must mention is the fact tt our driver was really hospitable. He brought everywhere and told us everything. Even brought us to his house where his youngest daughter was actually celebrating her b'dae. And then Pete gave her crayons as a present and she was really happy. She wanted to pursue fashion design in the future, but i really dunno whether she was gonna be able to pursue that looking at the situation over there.
On the last day we paid a visit to a Myanmese Master Artist called U Lun Gywe. He was 78 yrs old and he was actually good friends with none other than our S'pore president. He had so many inspiring words to say about his many years as an artist. Imagine, 78 YEARS OLD! The interesting thing was the fact that actually his whole family was all artists. His son, daughter in law, wife, grand daughter and even his 3 yrs old grandson! This boy has the potential for great things to be able to start exploring his creative talent at such a young age. One of the things that is really worth mentioning is the fact that a big part of your life is influenced by his parents, because of the fact that they are the first people that you meet and you see them from birth. Therefore a lot of your life is influenced by them.
Finally we were waiting for the flight back to S'pore on our last day, and it got delayed for 2 hours. So we had to sit there doing nothing in the middle of Myanmar airport as it had no commodities in there. Only one makeshift table stall selling coffee, tea and some snacks, pathetic.
When i reached s'pore it was so late, ther was no more train anymore so i decided to stay overnight at the airport's viewing gallery and wait til the first train. Had to rush for dance training after that in a few hours so had to rush back on first train, shower, change, sleep for one hour and go for training. Was late, but i couldnt miss it. I miss dancing! Haha. Glad to be back..

Philippines 15th – 17thJune

We're back to the last leg of the tour and now we've arrived in The Philippines. Was actually really wondering what this country would look like and now I do. Kinda modernized actually. Overall i feel, kinda mixed up country. Mixed of rags and riches. As you travel along the streets of the phils, you'll see some old school buildings and then right beside you'll see a totally new building like a famous fast food restaurant or a branded retail store. Very mixed up ideas. Apparently there's a lot of Spanish influence here. The language and the names. Very Spanish-like.

On the 1^st day, we went to this 'Taka' kind of place, it's called 'Greenbelt'. Had 4 diff towers and branded outlets all around. Apparently it's newly-built. Most people in the phils are Catholic, so on arrival of the shopping center, we were greeted by this outdoor Sunday mass where there were a lot of people gathered to listen to this priest and offered prayers. What a sight. We then started mixing around with some locals and found out that they were such nice people. And then i also found out tt they take English as a 2^nd language here so language wasn't really a problem. Our dinner was at this place called, 'Teriyaki boyz' as we didn't know what local cuisine to try yet so we juz settled with Jap food. Cheap and nice i guess.

When we reached our hotel, i was amazed by the amount of good service that they showed us, very energetic, very cheerful. And we saw that the security over here is really tight. The shopping malls had guards at every exit even the 7-11 had one on duty there. Dunno what's up with this country also man. By far this was the hotel that was the most spacious compared to the rest of the countries. Luxurious. And because 'twas a sunday that we arrived there, because of the fact that our place was in the business district, it was like a desert town. Th families were all at home and nobody would be travelling at the business district on a sunday. When i asked reception whether it'd be the same the next morning, she said, 'Oh no'. Her point was proven the next morning.

We were greeted by this heavy flow of traffic on the road that was right in front of our place. At the school we were greeted by a very hyperactive group of students and teachers. In the phils, there's a saying that everyone there knows how to sing very well. So we were greeted by a doxology, a song of prayers and also dance items. Really interesting to see a touch of their culture. And you can really tell they tt they put in effort in preparing all these nice performances for us. In the 2^nd school we were actually brought to this model house. Apparently this house was made for their Home Economics lessons where the students are required to know the diff parts of the house and also know how to upkeep the house. It had the full package, toilet, living rm. Dining rm, kitchen and there was where we were served their local food. One of it looked like mee goreng and there was salad. And then this soft round thingy that was coated with coconut flakes. All tasted not bad, partly cause we were quite hungry actually, haha.

I was talking to this t'cher who was asking me whether so far anyone mistook me for Filipino, then i said yes. And i asked her another question, 'do i look like filipino cause of my skin color or do i haf the features too?'. Then she said i had all the features too. Haiz... when will it ever stop?

In thailand there is the tuk-tuk, in the phils there is the jeepney. Apparently modified from this very old military jeeps which were left in the phils a long time ago. Now they are very nicely decorated and they serve as a main source of public transport there, as mini buses, very widely utilized. We were then brought by Claire (translator from S'pore Embassy) and Mr Lum Bert (Arts and Dance representative of Philippines) to these few very old buildings. Old cathedrals and old spanish buildings which might crumble at any pt of time. It was really like a walk down history as we were walking in those places. They were really great tour guides and kept on saying that it was such a waste that we were there only for a short time if not they would have been able to show us more. Claire was sharing with me about the different types of dances that the different parts of the phils was practising. The north (stingy), central (rich and generous) and the south (stand-off). Their characters all showed in the way they dance with their hands. I'd definitely wanna come back and witness their traditional folk dances.

Philippines i felt was a country full of its culture and the arts. Even though their library was very old, their walls were liked with artworks and paintings that it didnt look very old at all. It looked beautiful. We were then treated to more local food that evening and then we were given a taste of their so-called delicacy, 'Balut Saputi'. It's actually a hard-boiled egg which had a one-day old embryo growing in it. I was forced to eat it with Claire but i was totally disgusted by the idea. The taste was ok but looking at it and knowing that this chick could have been born into a chicken if i hadnt eaten it, made me turned off.

Made our way to Baseco after that, a small built-up village for a big group of Filipinos who were made homeless due to a recent disaster. Their homes were actually funded by overseas Filipino workers who gave donations for them to have a home to live in. To just see the joy that we were able to bring to them in that evening makes one feel very warm inside. To know that even though they were living in such a harsh condition, there were grateful enough to welcome everythin that anyone was willing to share with them and they still lived a happy life with their families, neighbours and friends. Wished i could have done more to help them.

I'm definitely coming back to The Philippines.

This is wat happens when u haf nothing better to
do on a weekday afternoon.

Few things that's on my mind

Whilst writing my entries for the last 2 countries tt i went to, i've decided to write about some stuff tt ive been feelin for the past 2 months.

1stly, i was practically jobless even though i was travellin around SEA like a rich man but really, im broke, its not funny, really. come to realise, as much as u'd wasnt to deny it but i really tin tt ur income is somethin tt's very important in life. especially i tin in s'pore. everythin has a value on it. how shallow can we be. man.h

recently ive been thinking abt how i live my life and my personality. ive found out tt im actually quite good talking to people and giving a good first impression, whatever impressions thy get after tt i guess most of the time, might not be the same. which might not mean a gd thing actually. well tt's if the person cares to even listen to me in the first place la. which directs my attention to something tt i heard the other day on the radio, about being someone who tells everyone everything about yourself and sometimes i tin i tend to do tt. and sometimes u become so transparent to other people that you become boring cuz of the fact tt everyone knows everything about you oready. there's no more surprise, there's no more mystery in me.

which makes me conclude why i tin most people actually want to be my close friends but none of them ever wants to go over that line. like go to the next lvl. cuz maybe im juz not tt kinda material. im like the shoulder to cry on, the

one to go to if ur relaitionship goes wrong. or if u need help or advise about some mishap in your life. but never the one tt u can sit down next to and just be quiet and juz love me for who i am. here i am being emo in the middle of 2am in s'pore. this is what being jobless makes you. ok im not tt free but i juz feel like typing stuff tonight k? i keep talkin abt other countries, im kinda bored.

ive looked back at my life and i see that i fell i havent been receiving a lot of love coming from my family. the way i was brought up, everything was so disciplined and i grew up as a good boy who'd do everythin according to how my parents wanted it that i became such a nerd. i never knew how to talk about my feelings to anyone when i was younger and never got to practice at hm with my family. cuz of tt i took to telling my school frenz about wat was on my mind and my philosophies to life. tin i started wen i was in PJC. they even chose me to participate in the class debate. then i realised my gift of the gap, haha.

which makes me tin even more... should i really be looking at design as my full time job and the rest of my life? will i be able to compete or even keep in par with the rest of the designers? i duno. sometimes i really doubt myself. but me, juz being myself, most of the time i tend not to show that weak side of me. i always like to present myself

as very confident and very assuring, so that the people around me feel confident abt me too. well, i'd say most ppl who are like tt are actually amongst the most insecure ppl in the world. they use this as a cover so tt ppl are not able to see their true weaknesses. and these ppl actually always appear as arrogant at 1st impression.

tt's wat some ppl tin of me actually before they meet me. as long as i don smile, ppl will tend to haf the impression tt im kinda stand-offish. ive tried lookin at myself in the mirror before, and i agree. haha. but then i tin most ppl actually change their mind when they actually start talkin to me. having tt kinda look can actually work quite well also sometimes u noe.

so my purposeless life carries on as i try to convince ppl tt im the best they can find around and then suffer in silence by myself. well, having lived my life like tt for the past 22 years... i tin i should be able to handle myself.

this is wat having too much time on your hands does to you>>>>>>>>>>>

mebbe i should think about straightening my hair...

Cambodia 28th - 30th May

My 1^st impression of Cambodia was quite surprising for me. The airport was very modern and nicely furnished. I think it's just me not knowing about Cambodia well enough. There was this English-speaking Tuk-tuk driver waiting outside out hotel building who was telling us that Phnom Penh has become a tourist destination, I think mainly because of it's recent troubled past of the Khmer Rouge in 1975-1979. He was also saying about 10 years ago it'd be unsafe to be walking around in the night there but now its fine. Most things have stabled now and most locals have actually took advantage of the tourists coming to earn some money for their survival. You do see people who suffered during those violent times, how they have become handicapped coming out of the incident and also the children who were born handicapped who are trying to make a living out of selling things to tourists on the streets. In Cambodia, whenever crossing the streets, you have to brave. Don't look at oncoming traffic as you can never expect a stop to the flow of traffic over there. You just have to cross and then all the vehicles (bikes especially) will swerve around you as you cross the road. Wat I'll tell people is that if you took a picture of somebody whilst crossing the road, you'll see him surrounded by vehicles to his left, right, front and back.

One thing I realized about the hotel that we were staying at was the fact that it was right beside the Tonle Sap River. After looking at some local maps and history books, I realized that this river was connected to Mekong River, the exact river that we were staying beside in Laos. Apparently these 2 rivers play a very important role in the economy in Thailand, Laos and Cambodia for a long time, for the fishermen especially. And another thing was also the fact that along the bank of the Tonle Sap river was the varying flags of nations of the world. Every flag signifying the existence of that country's embassy in Cambodia. The hotel where we were staying at was call the FCC, Foreign Corespondents' Club. Therefore the presence of a lot of tourists walking all around us.

Good fate brought us to meet this Tuk-Tuk driver who knew how to speak English, Makarra. He brought us to this temple on a hill but on the way a bunch of children by the street caught our eyes. It was a group of children barely even the age of 5 playing amongst themselves by the roadside. Pete decided to let them try coloring with crayons. It seemed like this was the first they've ever used crayons to use to color on a piece of paper. The first girl that used it, was staring at it (crayon) for a short while wondering, before continuing to color. It is evident in their faces that they we were elated to have received the drawings from Pete. When they went back home. They were shouting and jumping for joy all the way in to their houses. I think it was quite meaningful for those children that a total stranger just came up to them, gave them things and also gave them an opportunity to use crayons, something they might not had the opportunity to experience.

Makarra served to be an inspiration to me as he had this analogy of life and his big dreams. He wanted to study hard the next year and finish his degree about culture, history and traditions and eventually become a tour guide in Cambodia. The thing that was so inspiring for him was the fact that he had to work so hard everyday to earn that little money to help support his family of 4 siblings. And then also to save up for his degree. Even though he was working so hard and was so tired everyday, he wasn't feeling down about it. He was very happy to be able to meet and learn from tourists everyday and be able to chase his own dreams. This showed that in no matter what kind of situation you're in, as you're passionate about something and are willing to work hard for it, anything is achievable.

I was being asked the magic question again, 1^st thing the next morning, 'Are you Cambodian?'. A little bit expected that eventually someone will ask me that over in this country. We were ending this leg of this trip soon so our spirits were up even though we were tired from all those working and traveling.

Either Phnom Penh was really small or it just so happens the school were close to our hotel but when we were in Cambodia, we took very little time to reach the places we were going to. The longest, 20 mins. Which was a very big difference, especially compared to Indonesia. Part of the fact could be thanks to the driver because he knew the roads very well and he was very helpful too. Even knew how to set-up our stuff on stage. Despite the fact that he couldn't speak much English, he still pulled through for us.

Overall Cambodia was a relaxed experience for us as lesser time was taken up for traveling. The people there were nice and the children there were very cute. Very responsive to cameras even though they could barely speak English. Very rewarding experience and a good ending country to this leg of our tour.

Vietnam 25th - 27th May

At this point of time it became kind of confusing on how many countries we've actually been to so far. On the brink of almost forgetting which country we are at almost. We just wanted a break and some rest from stuff. We heard that it was dangerous to go out at night in Hanoi at night. But to me, it is only dangerous if you think it is dangerous. It's very psychological how you scare yourself into thinking what is reality. I didn't really wanted to risk it because I had my camera equipment with me. Rather not risk it. This was the first country where most of the locals were fair-skinned so that was why Pete was mistaken to be local, finally not me. Which made me come to the conclusion that there wasn't a lot of sun in Vietnam, thus the majority of fair-skinned people.

We went to this non-profit school called 'Blue Dragon' which is supported by World Vision and opened by 2 Australian, Michael and some other person. The reason why it's called that is because actually Vietnam is shaped like a dragon, Hanoi being the tail and Saigon being the head. It was even interesting how they came up with the logo because how they came up with the logo was through the many drawings of dragons done by many different children of the school. The other person in charge on that day was called, Binh. These 2 people were I think one of the few most benevolent people in the people I knew as they have such good intentions of trying to help out these Vietnamese school drop-outs. Instead of just letting them waste their lives away at home, they offer knowledge and life skills for these young people so they learn something that might be useful for them in the future. You can really tell that these children are really happy to be there and that these children really treasure the things they learn there and they seem like one big happy family. I feel that its good that these children are given the opportunity to know what it feels like to have someone care about your growth in education and allow them to realise and pursue their dreams. I think it's really big of them to want to start up this school for the Vietnamese children and want to improve their lives. Makes you think that it is a much more worthwhile cause to spend your money on rather than just yourself. I might want to come back to visit them again and maybe share some of my knowledge because I've always enjoyed being a teacher and being able to share my my knowledge with the younger generations.

We had an interpreter following us, he was an English teacher in University, called Tuanh. He was a natural comedian and he was practically taking over the show from Pete as he was helping him translate. I think he was putting in his own jokes as the children were all laughing whilst he was talking. Tuanh shared us a lot of insight regarding the education system in Vietnam. How the teachers didn't have a system to improve the teaching standards and how teachers don't see the need to nurture the children to become good adults rather than just to input information into their brains. And he was comparing it to Singapore's education system where the teachers here would have bonding sessions and sharing sessions to learn from each other so that they will be able to improve their styles of teaching. Somehow I agree that some teachers, even in Singapore don't see the importance of their roles in making sure that instead of just planting facts into the heads of children, they have to nurture traits like discipline and respect for the elders. They play a significant part to what they eventually turn into as adults.

What I liked about the Viet schools was the places that we brought to in the schools. One was in a courtyard, where there were these humongous trees which provide shade for the children to sit around on small plastic stools and carry own with their activities. I'd love to study in that kind of environment. Next was actually the school canteen where rearranged all the tables and chairs so that all the students would face the front and neatly- arranged.

Thailand 22nd - 24th May

We arrived in 'The Land of a Thousand Smiles' and we had to go straight to work the next day. The 1^st meal we had in Thai was excellent and was very satisfying. It was a very good welcome for us to Thailand. Of all the countries which I didn't understand their languages I'd say I understand the most. Well, I could at least say, “Mai Kao Jai” which means 'Don't Understand'. Which I happily use on everyone that speak to me in Thai. It works wonders, everyone should try it some day. Thailand I'd say is a cross between Indonesia and Malaysia in terms of the buildings around and the environment. Evidence of modernization and street side stalls all around. And they thrive on this because Bangkok is quite a tourist destination. Once in a while people will suddenly come to you and show this piece of white card saying, 'sex DVD & VCD'. Well i guess tt's the only way that they're able to make a living in those parts.

Thai Traditional dance, something that I've always wanted to see up close my whole life I finally get a chance to see it, and done by young students. I really am envious of the fact that the culture in Thailand is so strong even up until now, and that it is being passed on from generation to generation. So rich in culture and tradition.

One of the nights in Bangkok, me and Pete decide to walk around and go shop at a very long row of roadside stalls. We were looking for toilets when we walked into this alley which was lined with a few pubs. Seemed quite happening until we realised that it was filled with guys. Gay pubs. We were in the wrong alley, funny experience that was, some more the 2 of us went in together.

Even the place that we went to the next day, River City, it was called. We were brought along this long boat to this very steep temple. It was scary to go up the steps and even scarier to go down the steps. We then came to a place where there boat shops, people selling stuff to visitors on small sampans. I felt that it was very interesting that the tour guide that was on the boat with us was speaking mandarin, the many ways that the people in Thailand improve themselves to be able to create a career for themselves. And then we realized that the whole boat was filled with Singaporeans.

Then we went to 'Wat Pho', Sleeping Buddha. That place is a major tourist attraction as you can observe by the many different nations that congregated in this magical place full of refined and intricately-built buildings. Structures of gold, with tiny, little colored mirrors attached to the pillars that they give you a glittery feel when the sun shines on it. It's fascinating how all the individual structures were made in their own special way. And there was a grand temple inside where all it's walls and ceilings were with paintings and art, nothing could describe the details and all the effort that was being put into making these structures. It almost felt like the price that was paid to go in there to look at these structures does not do the place justice.

Of all the countries we went to i think i'm the most biased to Thailand. I really like that place and the people there are really hospitable. No wonder they call it, the land of a thousand smiles'. I'm definitely gonna go back there within the next few years if ive the money. More sight seeing and shopping for me! Khop Khun Khrap!