Encounters
From the imposing Great Wall of China to the undulating hills of New Zealand, discover an engaging world of colourfulcultu res and dazzling beauty!
When I was ten years old, I moved from the United States to Singapore with my family. Before coming to Singapore, most of my travels were limited to a few road trips and short flights along the east coast of the United States, where I was born.
After our move to Singapore, however, we began travelling a lot more. The whole region around Singapore was brand-new to us, so we spent our first few Christmases and year end holidays exploring the Asia Pacific. In our first year, we visited Beijing, China. There were many guided tours for viewing of all the major landmarks such as the Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven – exotic places we only saw on the pages of books previously. I immersed myself in the Chinese culture through their delicious food and infectious music. Naturally, no trip to Beijing would be complete without a visit to the Great Wall of China. This enormous structure was so captivating that we visited it twice! On our second visit, we hired a driver
to take us to a quieter section of the world wonder to witness the striking scenery at Huangayuan, in the northern region of the Great Wall. I still recall being pleasantly surprised when I could recognize some pieces of Chinese music the driver turned on in his car.
During Christmas, we took a trip to New Zealand. We did a tour of both the North and South Islands, and what I remember clearly was the spectacular scenery and the large flocks of sheep everywhere. In fact, there seemed to be more sheep than people in New Zealand! The days were bright and sunny, with majestic mountains, crystalclear waters that reflected landscapes, undulating green hills and breathtaking waterfalls. We enjoyed our trip so much that we went back to New Zealand the following Christmas.
This time we stayed on the South Island. My parents rented a car, and we had fun going back to familiar destinations and our favourite cafés. In our first few years living in Asia, the other places we visited include Sydney, Gold Coast of Australia, Bali in Indonesia, Bangkok and Phuket in Thailand.
Apart from travelling with my family, I also travelled with my schoolmates. When I was in secondary school, it was customary for the whole class to take a trip to Malacca, with teacher and parent chaperones. A few years later, I visited Kuala Lumpur for the first time on a choir exchange. Looking back on my school days in Singapore, I know I am very fortunate to have been enrolled in an international high school. Every year, there would be an “outside the classroom” programme for students. These programmes ranged from learning Asian cooking, sailing or apprentice teaching in Singapore, but the coveted programmes were overseas trips. Some trips were linked to Habitat for Humanity, where groups of students and teachers pitched in to build a house for local families in need. Some trips were adventure-based, such as camping in Tasmania, trekking in the Annapurna region of Nepal and whitewater rafting in New Zealand. Other
trips were more culturally orientated, giving students the chance to learn about people and traditions that were very different from their own. Many of the trips had a charity or school exchange component, so we could give back to the communities we were visiting and learn about the educational environments of students in different countries.
Travelling is one of my favourite hobbies. With sufficient planning and savings, any destination in the world can be yours. Singapore is very well placed for travels around the region. Besides saving money to go on trips, the biggest dilemma I sometimes face now is whether to visit new destinations or go back to old favourites.