Back Home.
Finally I'm home! After almost 10 months of trodding all over the world, I am finally home. Safe, warm, and relieved.
Between the last time I blogged (basically I wrote that on the floor in front of the sink in my hostel room) and now, I had gone to Disneyland, went up the Eiffel Tower, went to Versaille, and travelled from Paris to Cologne to Frankfurt and then finally Singapore. Certainly a lot for 3 days.
Reflections? Hmms. First thing: I am feeling rather proud that I have survived almost entirely without depending on my parents, and without much need for them to worry about me. Rather, I worry more about them sometimes...
I am pretty sure my parents are proud of me too. I guess this is the best way to repay them... that I can assure them that, when anything happens, they can depend on me.
Isn't it my role as the eldest in the family to support everyone when they need me? I am happy that I have proven to some extent that I am capable of taking the role completely one day...
Also, for the past 10 months I guess I have formulated a certain way of looking at the world, which is much clearer then before. It is one which often poses challenges to set institutions; and I also feel that I am getting too intolerant of people who insist that their viewpoints are the only right ones before they consider the same issue from another perspective. I basically lectured GCS on this subject as part of a looooong Facebook message which took me almost an hour to write.
I really sincerely think that the world can be a much better place if people can at least try to consider other perspectives before making a judgment. This will make life very difficult, because there will no longer be a clear-cut definition for what is right and what is wrong. Though isn't this reality? Often conflicts can only be resolved when we purposely blur the line between right and wrong...
Children need an education which tells them clearly what is right and what is wrong. Teenagers need to be guided to form a set of values that is based on their childhood education. Based on this adults can hence have vastly different ideas about life; but, the way to live in harmony with each other doesn't always involve listening, understanding, and either agreeing or accommodating to the differences?
This is forming the basis of my ideas relating to government, the relationships between medicine, science and society and the relationships between people.
Though, in all of us, there is definitely a line drawn somewhere... To us, right and wrong is determined by what we believe in. The need to blur the line when we deal with other people arises because these things are never absolute.
Chinese saying: 律己严，待人宽 (have high demands for yourself, but cut others some slack). I still have a lot a lot to learn... __________________________________________________
Nice things have been happening to me; both expected and unexpected.
1. I took an ICE train down from Cologne to Frankfurt Airport. There are 2 routes: the faster, more expensive one makes no stop; the slower one is cheaper and makes 3 to 4 stops. The thing I didn't expect is that the slower ICE I took passed through the Rhine Valley (apparently the faster one don't)! The view was simply GORGEOUS for the stretch between Koblenz and Mainz!
Some details for anyone planning a trip:
17:53 ab. Köln Hbf -ICE 927- 19:59 an. Frankfurt Flughafen.
And ICE trains are even nicer than Eurostar ones... at least they have wider aisles and brighter carriages. Really enjoyed that ride!
2. The lady at the check-in counter was really really nice.
> I have a total of 30.5kg of checked baggage (I can't believe it...). I kept quiet, the check-in lady kept quiet, and in the end we smiled very broadly at each other as I said thank you :)
> I got seat 44B randomly at check-in. I couldn't check-in online, and because I am already causing potential inconvenience I didn't want to request for any specific seat. 44B is a middle seat... and it turned out to be on the Emergency Exit Row!
3. Frankfurt was really fast. Got off the train at 8pm, and I was already in front of the B777-300ER at 8:40pm :)
Was really glad that I decided to take trains down to Frankfurt instead of the BA flight...!
4. After hearing so much about it, the first word I said when I stepped onto the plane was still 'woww'. The new SIA cabin design looks really nice... and the most amazing thing is the Krisflyer system. The screen was 1.5 times the size of the B747 ones; the system never lagged; the interface and control was much more user-friendly. Hence, despite my urge to sleep, I watched 3 movies (Mary Poppins, Breach, Charlotte's Web), one episode of House, played games for a while, and hence slept a total of less than 2 hours.
I don't know about the current A340-500 fleet but I am pretty sure that the new A380 fleet will get this cabin design. Everyone flying SIA should get this... it is really fantastic. I will try my best to book these flights in the future! For now, B777-300ER serves Frankfurt (SQ325/326 only), Paris, Zurich, and some other cities; A380 will serve Sydney and London from 2008 onwards I heard.
5. Since I was in Germany, I:
> Bought a huge bratwurst with mastard and bread for €1.99 and ate it in less than 3 minutes.
> Went to Nordsee to buy their delicious fish/seafood sandwiches for dinner.
> Bought a bottle of Mosel River Riesling for €6.90.
6. I learnt from Mary Poppins and Charlotte's Web:
> Believe in miracles (yeah I do... I really do!).
> Reality can be sweetcoated, making it easier to swallow. Sweetcoating reality is not the same as disregarding reality... I have failed to distinguish between the two :(
> All of us need fantasies... like Mary Poppins. They help us deal with reality, a lot in fact...
That is what I was thinking when I was watching the two shows; these are just some very very preliminary thoughts though.
Anyway, I love this song...
I Have A Dream - ABBA
I have a dream
A song to sing
To help me cope
With anything
If you see the wonder
Of a fairy tale
You can take the future
Even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in eveything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I'll cross the stream
I have a dream
I have a dream
A fantasy
To help me through
Reality
And my destination
Makes it worth the while
Pushing through the darkness
Still another mile
I believe in angels
Something good in eveything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I'll cross the stream
I have a dream
Anyone who has been nice to me, and anyone who has taught me something, is an angel God sent to me :)
