What Hsien Liang's group says...

30 Jun

Today was the day where we visited the universities of New South Wales and Macquarie. All of us took back many lessons worth learning, such as the importance of being serious in our work and the number of options open for us in our everyday lives. All of us also discovered where our strengths lie, and what future studies to pursue in the years to come. Throughout the day, we met a lot of people and we are warmed by their welcoming and greetings. We were inspired by the learning environment of the universities and were very excited with the wide variety of subjects available for study overseas. The talks by students and professors of the 2 universities were enriching, as they displayed their own institution's strengths in their own rights and their significance in Australia. My group and I were thankful for these talks as they helped prepare us for the future.

31 Jun

Today we the visited one of the largest fish markets in the world,the Sydney Fish Market, only second to Japan. However, having the second largest fish market in the world, the irony is that Australians do not fancy seafood as much as other meat they take.

Being at the SFM was really an eye opener for all of us, we were introduced to the many different kinds of fish sold as well as the unique system that the Australians' adopt when selling our marine friends. How many of us actually have to bid for our seafood?

After that we made a trip to the Blue Mountains, it certainly was an enriching and all the more breath-taking experience. We tracked through the temperate rainforest at the same time admiring the awesome scenery.

The third highlight of the day was the dialogue session with an aboriginal lady. Though she being integrated into the modern society, taught us much about the aboriginals lifestyles, their beliefs and the mutual relationship they have with the land. During reflection time we compared this relationship with that which the westerners have with the environment, we drew useful lessons from that. One could in fact take two stances towards a certain situation one, adapt to the situation or environment and or two, make it work for you.

1 June

On the 1st day of June, we moved off early this morning to an Aboriginal art gallery near the city area to learn more about Aboriginal culture. We were allowed to paint our own boomerangs as a souvenir back to Singapore. The colours of paint we were allowed to use were only black, white and yellow, the 'natural' colours to the Aborigines. This demonstrated the uniqueness of their artform as their pieces of art were equally professional as modern art, although they were more restricted in terms of materials used.

After that, we went to take a tour at the Sydney Opera House. It consisted of 6 performance theatres, each of them being constructed for a different purpose. Also, we learnt that the roof of the Sydney Opera House was in fact designed by a Danish architect, not an Australian. This proved that Australia is indeed a diverse place, and that people of different race and culture are more than welcome to settle in the country.

Following the opera house, there was the NSW art gallery where we encountered many beautiful artpieces. The guide there led us through the gallery and told us the many different forms of art and their probable meanings. Throughout the trip, one can notice that most of the artpieces are those which reflects their lifestyles or experiences, just like those that we learnt about in the Aboriginal art gallery, amplifying the idea that our identity shapes our art and likewise art affects our thoughts and identity, with an example being that of the decoration of the room affecting our views on the artpieces. Therefore, everyone is actually a social construct with things around us affecting our lifestyles. We then also have to learn to adapt to the environment, just like how the artists make use of the different materials and skills (eg. brushstrokes) to create the kind of effects they wish to get.

Aside from the art in the art gallery, one thing we learnt from the trip was the importantance of taking care and looking after one another, especially when we are out of our own comfort zone. VIP had always tried to control the class's environment so as to ensure that Rhoda is okay with it. However, now that we are out in the open, we cannot control the situation. For example, the art gallery had deionised air so as to protect the artpieces. At the same time, it made Rhoda uncomfortable. Thus, since we cannot control the environment, the only thing we can do is to ensure that our friend is okay and looked after so that no one would be left unattended. As they say, "Two is always better than one, for when one falls down, the other can help him up", hence we should always take care of one another, especially if we do go for studies overseas in the future.

We visited the Migrant Centre after lunch, where the speaker gave a presentation about the refugees and unemployed migrants in Australia whom were in need of our help. This talk backs up our previous notion of unity within a group of people as each of us depend on one another in a way. Hence, it is up to us to adopt a caring attitude towards whatever we do.

2 June

We got off to a great start to the day by visiting the Hunter Valley Zoo this morning, after a 170km journey along the roads of Australia in the bus. Everyone was practically tired from yesterday's events, and as a result, most of us ended up sleeping on the coach. However, this sleepy mentality took a 180 degree turn when we set foot into the zoo and saw animals such as the koalas and the kangaroos up-close. All of us found a sudden burst of energy, with excitement and laughter brewing almost every other minute. This goes to show that each of us has a certain area of great interest where we can exploit our potential to the maximum. Although all of us are different as individuals, we are united by the common interests that all of us may share. Throughout the trip, we saw many different animals and how they have many features to adapt to the environment, and also how the zookeepers ensure that the environment is suitable for the animals, emphasing on the interrelationship of the environment and animals, and how it is vital for people to learn to be flexible and adapt to survive.

With our hearts all satisfied with the cute and cuddly animals, we washed our hands and left for the cheese factory for part of our lunch, where we were introduced and allowed to try different cheese. Through the cheese tasting session, we realised that everyone has different tastes, likes and dislikes. Then, we realise that it is crucial that we cannot take our views to be universal and learning to compromise and find a balance would be a wise thing to do.