I've had 14 days of camps over the past three weeks.
The first was the 2009 Pre-University Seminar Residential Stay. Participants from all JCs, Polys and IP Schools gathered at NUS for a five day seminar. Each institution was assigned a topic to present at the seminar. In between presentations, we had outdoor activities.
Team Singapore Polytechnic.
20 SPOT students represented SP. We started work as early as in March. We spent almost every week working on Pre-U Sem.
SP's Presentation.
We did put in alot of effort into our presentation. Our hard work did pay off- our presentation was well received. I would have people come up to me just to compliment our presentation : ) The credit, of course goes to the team, for, without them, nothing would be possible.
During the programme, we were broken up into different groups. I was in Seminar Group 20.
The second camp I had was the SP Photography Club Camp, followed by the St John's Ambulance Brigade's Officers Training Course Camp- that was a tough camp. The last camp I had was the SPARC-Comperes camp- this one was fun : )
Then after that, DAC 03 had a class outing- Cycling at Pulau Ubin.
To end this post, I'll post the SPOT LTC video I made.
I shalln't blog about this, it's old news anyway. What I will do however, is I'll publish the article the school wanted me to write. Visit my flickr for more photos, I've seperated my photos into 3 sets.
The Burj Al Arab.
I recently attended the 5th Biennial Education Without Borders International Student Conference. With me was Keith Tan, a graduate from the school of business.
Education Without Borders 2009 was organised by the Higher Colleges of Technology, an institute of higher education based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The conference, held in Dubai, UAE, spanned 3 days and saw the attendance of over 460 student delegates from all over the world.
This year, the conference’s theme was “innovative solutions to global challenges”, and selected students were given the opportunity to present their papers. In addition, guest speakers were invited to share their experiences. The list included: Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former president of India; Andrew Muir, Rolex Laureate 2008, from the Wilderness Foundation in South Africa, and; Jennifer Azzi, motivational speaker and wellness trainer, Olympic gold medalist, from USA, among others- those were people who had made a difference in the lives of others and the stories they had to tell were indeed inspiring.
Through the conference, I have gained a greater awareness of the problems the world faces, and learnt of the possible solutions that could overcome them. It was also an excellent opportunity to meet like-minded students from other countries. In all, this has been a great experience- I enjoyed the place, the food, the company, the program, and above all, the hospitality. If given the opportunity, I would love to be able to attend the next conference, in 2011.
My attendance in the conference was part of my involvement in the Singapore Polytechnic Outstanding Talent Program (SPOT). SPOT has provided me with many opportunities to participate in various events and it is an excellent platform to develop and enrich myself. I would definitely recommend the SPOT program to others.
The Singapore Polytechnic Outstanding Talent Programme held a Leaders Of Tomorrow camp on the 22- 27th March 2009. Over a hundred SPOT students attended the camp, spread a over two sessions. I went on the first session, during the 22nd to 24th march.
A group photo.
My group.
It was held at Telunas beach, an island off batam and the highlight of the camp was a trek and an overnight stay in the jungle.
To get to Telunas beach, we took a ferry from Harbourfront to Sekupang, and transferred to a small boat. The boat was pretty fast, and pretty fun too, and, if you sat at the front, you'll get sea water in your face. : )
On the boat.
Telunas was built on the shore of the beach, there was a central jetty-walkway which the buildings were connected to. The buildings at Telunas were mostly made of wood, built on stilts, sitting above the sea. The were gaps on the wodden floor, and you could see the sea below. Once, I dropped a pen... let's just say that I never saw it again.
Telunas beach.
Inside the dormitory.
The first day, we had an orienteering exercise, where they taught us to use a compass and to pace. Then, we had "Team initiatives" which was a learning activity on trust and teamwork. At night, we did "Telunas Olympics"- basically fun and games. And we ended off with a bonfire. The night sky at Telunas was beautuful, full of stars, unlike in singapore.
Orienteering exercise.
Team initiatives.
Telunas Olympics
Bonfire.
The second day, we started off with the "Telunas Amazing Race", which required us to make our way to challenges using a compass, and complete the challenges. My team came in second- out of three teams : P
Telunas Amazing race.
Then after lunch, we got ready to go for our trek. We had to spent a night in the jungle, so we had to carry our equipment and supplies with us.We took a boat to get to the trekking location. Once there, we started trekking, stopping occasionally for breaks. Along the way, they showed us termite nests, berries that could be eaten, and even taught us to drink water from a tree branch.
Drinking water from a branch.
After a long trek, we found ourselves at a waterfall. We took a rest there and they conducted a briefing on setting up a campsite. Along they way, some of the guys took a dip into the waters.
Next, we had to climb up the waterfall- if you thought the first part was difficult, think again, THIS is WAY harder. We had to scale rocks and climb up steep slopes, then we had to maneuver through rocks and along a stream.
The waterfall.
Climbing up- it's really steep.
At the end of that, we reached our campsite. The camp and its cooking area was located along the stream, and the sleeping area was on steep and uneven ground. No, we did not have tents. Instead, we slept in hammocks and had barshas over our heads. The hammock wasn't particularly comfortable, and, even for a not-so-tall guy like me, I could not extend my legs. We had a mosquito net, but I tied it too low and it got in the way- I eventually got rid of it.
During our stay, we had two meals. The guides were kind enough to set up a fire for us. Still, we had to cook ourselves. The first night, We collected water from the stream and we used it to cook rice. To that, we added chicken curry, sardines, and mushrooms. For breakfast, we had instant noodles and sausages. It certainly wasn't gourmet food, but it tasted espaecially great. The director of SAA was there too, and he had beena great help, giving guidance us and also helping to tend the fire.
The cooking area.
And... If you are wondering, there were no toilets. We went to the "toilet" at a designated area, and you had to burry whatever you left behind. There was a stream we used for washing up... But here's the problem, there was a camp upstream of us, whatever waste water they discharge, was our fresh water... so you see where I'm going with this.
After spending a night in the jungle, we had to trek out. And, of all things to happen, it rained. This made getting down the rocks and the waterfall difficult and dangerous. I fell a few times and almost got lost once. Past the waterfall, the pathback was muddy. I got mud up to my knees- however it got there, I do not know.
Trekking out- you can see how dangerous this is.
Back at telunas, some of the guys went for a jetty jump.
Jetty jump.
We washed up, packed and got ready to leave Telunas.
This has been a memorable experience and- I've had lots of fun, and learnt new things.
Telunas is a beautuful place, and I would love to go back.
I am in Doha International Airport now, the time is 0045 in Doha and 0545 in Singapore.
I am tired!
But...
Today's a great day!
Why?
Because I'm going home!
The conference has come to an end- I've learnt new things, gained wider perspectives and made many new friends.
And...
My application for Diploma Plus in Applied Psychology was successful.
See, on the 30th of march, I was able to gain access to a publc computer at the conference venue. I checked SAS, and found that my application was unsuccessful.
To say that I was DISSAPOINTED was an understatement- I was DEVASTATED.
To be honest, I always thought I'd make it.
So, at that time, I decided that I would make an appeal when I returned to Singapore.
Somehow, I had this feeling that I would be accepted even without needing to make an appeal- if anyone who was previously offered a place gave it up, it would go to the next person.
And, SPOT students have preferrential treatment- they would give us greater priority.
So, I kept my hopes high and checked my status whenever I could.
Finally...
At Dubai Airport, I struck gold.
I quickly accpepted the offer; my mind was at ease.
As the plane took off from Singapore, I was greeted by a surreal, magical view of Singaopore at night. There were lights everywhere, everything looked tiny, and you'd seem to lose all sense of scale.
The view of the night sky from the pane was fantastic, even better than in Telunas. The were so many stars, all so bright- how i wish the girl I love was beside me, we'd cuddle...
As I am writing this, its 1pm Singapore time, and 8am in Doha, Qatar. I've got 4 more hours in transit till my 1225 flight to Dubai. I've spent my free time writing a post on the SPOT LTC.
What's the worst thing that could happen?
A: No internet access : (
1430 hours, Singapore time, 0930 hours, Doha time:
OK, I got quite bored so I took some photos of aeroplanes.
Then I looked for an ATM, drew some Qatar Riyals and bought lunch at A & W.
2 hours to go.
1600 hours, Singapore time, 1100 hours, Doha time:
Good thing I've brought my own entertainment.
I'll be boarding the plane at 1140 hours.
And guess what! I've got an Internet connection : ) (It wasn't working just now)
I'll upload the SPOT LTC post later, I still need to add the photos, hopefully the hotel has an internet connection.
The second camp I had was the SP Photography Club Camp, followed by the St John's Ambulance Brigade's Officers Training Course Camp- that was a tough camp. The last camp I had was the SPARC-Comperes camp- this one was fun : )
To end this post, I'll post the SPOT LTC video I made.
The second camp I had was the SP Photography Club Camp, followed by the St John's Ambulance Brigade's Officers Training Course Camp- that was a tough camp. The last camp I had was the SPARC-Comperes camp- this one was fun : )
To end this post, I'll post the SPOT LTC video I made.
