It is almost the end of our bridging course now. I still remember that when I came here last year in December, I thought 6 months was going to be quite a long time. However, now more than 5 months have passed. The time left is still decreasing little by little. What seemed long and far away now seems short and around the corner and our last math class in bridging course was even finished. We are going to be separated in to different majors and halls, after which we may not see each other so often, which means that we are going to make new friends in a new world of life. To be honest, I did not quite cherish this opportunity to make more friends here at the beginning for I think this is just a short phase between me and the real college life; but now I found that I really made some good friends here and I already began to feel depressed because we may not have the chance to stay closely like now for we have determined to major in different fields in university. The faces of whom I am going to meet every day may be very unfamiliar when the new life starts. We have been accustomed to stay together but we all have our own dreams, which is the reason why we need to say goodbye to each other in a few days. Although it is not easy for me to do such things, I think I could adjust myself well from the past. One always needs to be mature for himself if he wants to be strong enough to be a grown-up. And I am already a adult according to the laws in China, so all the fears and untutored behaviors from the past will be eliminated and replaced by what a reasonable and qualified adult should possess. This is going to be my second time to enter a university and my first time to study in an oversea university. I often dreamed of studying abroad so I grabbed the chance half of a year ago. now my dream is to win myself a big success in my college life and then support my parents as well as my own family in the future. Ten years seems a long time now, but it will be just as short as one day when it passes. Moreover, to make the most of this period, I have determined to make a plan and stick to it no matter what happens to me. College life, I am ready!
Monday, May 30, 2011
Divorce?
Divorce?
Nowadays, divorce has become a controversial problem. It used to be unacceptable due to its serious influence. However, as the divorce rate climbing up, more and more people consider whether it is a reasonable way to solve an unsuccessful marriage. Though most people think divorce can have a serious impact on children, there are still some think it is better for them to have a new family, instead of suffering quarrels every day. Is divorce the best choice when there is problem?
This makes me remember a story written by a woman who met problem in her marriage and finally overcame it. She wrote, when it came to the fifth year of her marriage, things went wrong. There was no big problem, but life was just boring. She said both of them felt tired and even did not want to talk to each other. There was once a time they thought about divorce. But they tried other ways to solve the problem. They asked for a vacation and went to the places they used to go; they found out the photos they took and recalled their happy memories together. Things became better and better and, finally, they saved their marriage.
When divorce becomes more and more popular, people do not try to solve the problem but just give it up. Some people may think divorce has some benefit to some extent. But the problem is whether the circumstances are serious enough to break up. In ancient China, people’s marriages are decided by their parents and they even did not know each other before their wedding, but they can live together for their whole life. This does not mean they all lived a happy life, but because they did not have such a concept, divorce, in their mind. They tried to solve the problem instead of just giving it up.
Therefore, people should think twice before they get married. Once they decide, they’d better think out the proper ways to solve problems in the future. The result is more about the attitude, instead of the circumstances. There are many other ways to solve the problem, as long as you want to have a try, and divorce is the least good choice to consider.
Nowadays, divorce has become a controversial problem. It used to be unacceptable due to its serious influence. However, as the divorce rate climbing up, more and more people consider whether it is a reasonable way to solve an unsuccessful marriage. Though most people think divorce can have a serious impact on children, there are still some think it is better for them to have a new family, instead of suffering quarrels every day. Is divorce the best choice when there is problem?
This makes me remember a story written by a woman who met problem in her marriage and finally overcame it. She wrote, when it came to the fifth year of her marriage, things went wrong. There was no big problem, but life was just boring. She said both of them felt tired and even did not want to talk to each other. There was once a time they thought about divorce. But they tried other ways to solve the problem. They asked for a vacation and went to the places they used to go; they found out the photos they took and recalled their happy memories together. Things became better and better and, finally, they saved their marriage.
When divorce becomes more and more popular, people do not try to solve the problem but just give it up. Some people may think divorce has some benefit to some extent. But the problem is whether the circumstances are serious enough to break up. In ancient China, people’s marriages are decided by their parents and they even did not know each other before their wedding, but they can live together for their whole life. This does not mean they all lived a happy life, but because they did not have such a concept, divorce, in their mind. They tried to solve the problem instead of just giving it up.
Therefore, people should think twice before they get married. Once they decide, they’d better think out the proper ways to solve problems in the future. The result is more about the attitude, instead of the circumstances. There are many other ways to solve the problem, as long as you want to have a try, and divorce is the least good choice to consider.
Arts and affliction
Arts and affliction
This Wednesday, we had a visit to the Arts Museum of Singapore. I have to admit I could not understand most of them. I think the arts in China emphasize more on beauty, the visual enjoyment. However, the arts in Singapore, like those of western countries, pay more attention to the meaning. The works seem less pleasing, and people may not understand it at the first sight.
One thing about the works which left the deepest impression on me is same, that they are all relating to suffering. The ones shocked me most are several status of human figure which are stabbed by different kinds of sharp tools. Their struggling gesture and the painful expression really astonished me. The second is a piece of work drawn by Wu Guanzhong. The picture is about a painful, naked woman, who deeply buried her head down. The other one is a piece of video about something I did not understand but was very scary.
I think it is the same with life. Those painful experiences usually leave a deeper impression on us. It is also during these painful moments that we can develop. For instance, poets are always relating to suffering, so there are few poets come from modern, comfortable life. It is the same with the God. When Jesus was crucified on the crucifix, the god’s power was the highest. No pain, no gain. Affliction can be a great motivation, making us develop.
This Wednesday, we had a visit to the Arts Museum of Singapore. I have to admit I could not understand most of them. I think the arts in China emphasize more on beauty, the visual enjoyment. However, the arts in Singapore, like those of western countries, pay more attention to the meaning. The works seem less pleasing, and people may not understand it at the first sight.
One thing about the works which left the deepest impression on me is same, that they are all relating to suffering. The ones shocked me most are several status of human figure which are stabbed by different kinds of sharp tools. Their struggling gesture and the painful expression really astonished me. The second is a piece of work drawn by Wu Guanzhong. The picture is about a painful, naked woman, who deeply buried her head down. The other one is a piece of video about something I did not understand but was very scary.
I think it is the same with life. Those painful experiences usually leave a deeper impression on us. It is also during these painful moments that we can develop. For instance, poets are always relating to suffering, so there are few poets come from modern, comfortable life. It is the same with the God. When Jesus was crucified on the crucifix, the god’s power was the highest. No pain, no gain. Affliction can be a great motivation, making us develop.
Time to say goodbye
Time to say goodbye
Time flies. When I looked at our schedule, I suddenly realized we had almost finished our bridging course. A sense of sadness arose from the bottom of my heart, and the end of the oral presentation also strengthened my emptiness. The course is coming to an end. There was happiness, regret as well as expectation; anyway, it is almost the time to say goodbye.
When I looked at the photos of our group, memories came flooding back: our first Chinese new year in Singapore, our picnic attacked by monkeys as well as the oral presentation. I found out the letters you gave me on Valentines’ Day, and they really made me feel warm and happy. I am sorry for I could not reply to all of you, and I really want to say thank you. I feel lucky to be the monitor, for it gives me the chance to know all my classmates better. Though I know, we have few very touching activities together, and perhaps we are not the best friends, I still feel happy and content to be with you.
I remembered the first lesson of Ms. Wong. She suggested us learn three new words every day and she said we can see progress after three months if we carry on. It sounds quite simple. However, like many others, I feel guilty that I failed to continue. Perhaps most of us will feel a little bit disappointed when the bridging cause comes to an end, for we may not have learnt as much as we expected. To comfort myself, I think at least I have learnt the style of academic writing and the process of doing research.
As for the research, it really brings me a lot, not only about the technique, but also about my mind. Perhaps a person is stronger than he could imagine. Before the presentation, we spent a lot of time preparing the research that I even dare not to think about failure. But after that, I am glad I recovered soon enough. I think at least I know there is much for me to learn and how can I do better in the future. I am sorry about what I have done wrongly in my group and I am really grateful for the experience. I love one sentence: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” And it is important to do our best and learn as much as possible during the process. Only in this way, can we face the result calmly.
The bridging course almost comes to an end. There was happiness, regret as well as expectation; anyway, it is time to say goodbye. What we can do now is to treasure the left time being together and reduce the emptiness to the least. We can change the regret to the motivation for the future. Tomorrow is waiting for us. Best wishes for all of you, my dear classmates…
Time flies. When I looked at our schedule, I suddenly realized we had almost finished our bridging course. A sense of sadness arose from the bottom of my heart, and the end of the oral presentation also strengthened my emptiness. The course is coming to an end. There was happiness, regret as well as expectation; anyway, it is almost the time to say goodbye.
When I looked at the photos of our group, memories came flooding back: our first Chinese new year in Singapore, our picnic attacked by monkeys as well as the oral presentation. I found out the letters you gave me on Valentines’ Day, and they really made me feel warm and happy. I am sorry for I could not reply to all of you, and I really want to say thank you. I feel lucky to be the monitor, for it gives me the chance to know all my classmates better. Though I know, we have few very touching activities together, and perhaps we are not the best friends, I still feel happy and content to be with you.
I remembered the first lesson of Ms. Wong. She suggested us learn three new words every day and she said we can see progress after three months if we carry on. It sounds quite simple. However, like many others, I feel guilty that I failed to continue. Perhaps most of us will feel a little bit disappointed when the bridging cause comes to an end, for we may not have learnt as much as we expected. To comfort myself, I think at least I have learnt the style of academic writing and the process of doing research.
As for the research, it really brings me a lot, not only about the technique, but also about my mind. Perhaps a person is stronger than he could imagine. Before the presentation, we spent a lot of time preparing the research that I even dare not to think about failure. But after that, I am glad I recovered soon enough. I think at least I know there is much for me to learn and how can I do better in the future. I am sorry about what I have done wrongly in my group and I am really grateful for the experience. I love one sentence: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” And it is important to do our best and learn as much as possible during the process. Only in this way, can we face the result calmly.
The bridging course almost comes to an end. There was happiness, regret as well as expectation; anyway, it is time to say goodbye. What we can do now is to treasure the left time being together and reduce the emptiness to the least. We can change the regret to the motivation for the future. Tomorrow is waiting for us. Best wishes for all of you, my dear classmates…
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Precious experiences in the intensive English course
It might be my last chance to write my blog in the intensive English course. I have learnt a lot in this English course. There are 18 students in our group 7, so we can communicate with each other and make friends more easily. During the past few months, we sat in the same classroom and studied together. We also chatted and made jokes happily together. We discussed with each other about questions, from which we gained a lot of experience. I believe the friendship in our group 7 will last forever. Apart from the friendship, I also learnt to write standard academic essays and speak English more fluently. Thank to our tutors, we learnt a lot about Singapore as well.
I can’t forget my experiences of doing research project in group peace. In this group, I made three lovely friends. As the leader of our group, I feel lucky and honorable to be able to contribute my abilities. We worked together hardly, chatted together happily and got better understandings of each other. I believe we did a good job in our research project since all my group members worked hard for it and our mentor helped us a lot. I’m quite proud of all my members who devote themselves so much to the project. Though we had argument sometimes, I know everyone is trying to make everything better. The most important thing is that we have become intimate friends and the experiences and friendship will definitely help us to be successful in the future.
The intensive English course is quite a gift for me. I feel grateful and happy to gain much from it.
Bridging Course
After several days’ preparation, we made the oral presentation 2 on Wednesday. When classmates began to relax after the presentation, I realized that Bridging Course was coming to an end.
Several months ago, I wanted to skip the Bridging Course and to go to university immediately. However, after one week’s learning, I felt the course was interesting. I learnt a lot of customs and cultures which were difficult to understand by myself. Sometimes, tutors told us some experience in their lives. It somehow helped us to go further in the long run. I am also glad to make many friends in this course. They celebrated the nineteenth birthday for me. It was the first time that I had my birthday without my family, but I still felt very happy that day. Meanwhile, I really appreciated that Ms Wang prepared a cake for me.
In two weeks, all of us will say goodbye to the tutors and the classmates. I will never forget the experience in the bridging course and treasure the friendship.
Several months ago, I wanted to skip the Bridging Course and to go to university immediately. However, after one week’s learning, I felt the course was interesting. I learnt a lot of customs and cultures which were difficult to understand by myself. Sometimes, tutors told us some experience in their lives. It somehow helped us to go further in the long run. I am also glad to make many friends in this course. They celebrated the nineteenth birthday for me. It was the first time that I had my birthday without my family, but I still felt very happy that day. Meanwhile, I really appreciated that Ms Wang prepared a cake for me.
In two weeks, all of us will say goodbye to the tutors and the classmates. I will never forget the experience in the bridging course and treasure the friendship.
The End
As the English course is going to be over in two weeks, I feel quite complicated. On one hand, I am happy because I have been looking forward to a new life in NUS. However, on the other hand, I feel upset to leave all the things during the course.
Even though the English course is short, I really gain a lot from it. During the five months, I have learned how to do the reading comprehension and write an academic essay. Furthermore, my spoken English has an improvement. Actually, I was quite weak in speaking in my high school. I even could not read a short sentence fluently. I was afraid to speak English in any situation. Actually, at the beginning of the English course, I felt quite uncomfortable to speak English in class. Several weeks later, I was happy that I could have an English conversation with the tutors and classmates. In addition, being a chairperson in the debate and giving oral presentations are really unforgettable and valuable experiences to me.
During the English course, what I value most are friendships with group members. I still remember that we celebrated the first Chinese New Year in Singapore. We ate dumplings, played games and sang the song “we are the world”. That day was extremely beautiful. In class, we have laughed about interesting stories and argued about contentious ideas. When all of us got low marks in our reading comprehension, we discussed about causes and encouraged each other. I am proud of such a group. We beat the rival and won the debate; the tutor from the other group thinks highly of our presentations. Moreover, the five tutors help and teach us a lot. We really appreciate their kindness.
My seniors have told that the English course is our honeymoon. Thanks to this period, I not only learn a lot but also make lots of friends. Even though the English course will be over soon, I feel happy and lucky to have these valuable friendships. I hope all of us can lead a happy life in the university.
Even though the English course is short, I really gain a lot from it. During the five months, I have learned how to do the reading comprehension and write an academic essay. Furthermore, my spoken English has an improvement. Actually, I was quite weak in speaking in my high school. I even could not read a short sentence fluently. I was afraid to speak English in any situation. Actually, at the beginning of the English course, I felt quite uncomfortable to speak English in class. Several weeks later, I was happy that I could have an English conversation with the tutors and classmates. In addition, being a chairperson in the debate and giving oral presentations are really unforgettable and valuable experiences to me.
During the English course, what I value most are friendships with group members. I still remember that we celebrated the first Chinese New Year in Singapore. We ate dumplings, played games and sang the song “we are the world”. That day was extremely beautiful. In class, we have laughed about interesting stories and argued about contentious ideas. When all of us got low marks in our reading comprehension, we discussed about causes and encouraged each other. I am proud of such a group. We beat the rival and won the debate; the tutor from the other group thinks highly of our presentations. Moreover, the five tutors help and teach us a lot. We really appreciate their kindness.
My seniors have told that the English course is our honeymoon. Thanks to this period, I not only learn a lot but also make lots of friends. Even though the English course will be over soon, I feel happy and lucky to have these valuable friendships. I hope all of us can lead a happy life in the university.
Unforgettable Memory
Time flies by. We have been in Singapore for more than five months. It is really a sad thing that we will finish our English course. It is time for our group and our respectable tutors to be apart with each other. We have had a lot good memories together, which we will never forget.
In addition, this period is also a tough time for many students in China, because they are going to take the university entrance examination. We SM3 students have experienced it last year this time. Although it was tiring and tough, the life was substantial. It is a part of our lives. Moreover, I called one of my friends in China who is restudying in senior school. She now is very worried and embarrassed; she is afraid of failing again. However, she is so nervous that she cannot concentrate on her study. She is also not confident because she did not do well in her last tests. All in all, her mind is suffering now; it is really a tough time. I think we really experienced a lot last year: we took the university entrance examination; we entered the university and were chosen as SM3 students; and we came to Singapore for study. It has a great influence on our lives.
By the way, I want to give those students who are facing the university entrance examination my best wishes. I hope that they can enter their ideal universities.
In addition, this period is also a tough time for many students in China, because they are going to take the university entrance examination. We SM3 students have experienced it last year this time. Although it was tiring and tough, the life was substantial. It is a part of our lives. Moreover, I called one of my friends in China who is restudying in senior school. She now is very worried and embarrassed; she is afraid of failing again. However, she is so nervous that she cannot concentrate on her study. She is also not confident because she did not do well in her last tests. All in all, her mind is suffering now; it is really a tough time. I think we really experienced a lot last year: we took the university entrance examination; we entered the university and were chosen as SM3 students; and we came to Singapore for study. It has a great influence on our lives.
By the way, I want to give those students who are facing the university entrance examination my best wishes. I hope that they can enter their ideal universities.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Che Guevara
He remains both a revered and reviled historical figure, though many critics regard him as a thug and sociopathic killer. Even Zhou Enlai said that he was blind and idealistic. However, I referred to him as an inspiration for every person who loves freedom and he has encouraged the youth to struggle for dreams. He is Che Guevara who is a Marxist revolutionary, physician, guerrilla leader, and global insignia of popular culture. I think he has three merits that deserve emulation and respect as a young student, Guevara has an unalterable belief about what he should do in the future. In 1948, he entered the university to study medicine and all his families forced him to become a doctor. Then he travelled throughout Latin America and next year he tripped though the rural provinces of northern Argentina on a small motor. This experience and observations completely transformed him. The poverty and injustice led him to realize that it is the revolution that can bring peace and justice. As a result, he determined to become a guerrilla following Castro and began his life full of fighting for freedom. he never gave up and was not tempted by money. When he held the position of the president of National Bank in Cuba, he was very frugal. For example, he never went to nightclub, cinema and even beach. In addition, he refused more salay. After his visit to many socialism countries, he was worried about the prospect of socialism. The reason was that he noticed many revolutionaries drived luxurious cars and surrounded by beautiful ladies, and they gave up their original dreams. So he left Cuba, and chose to help Africans fight for freedom. he struggled not only for certain country but also the whole world. He had a worldwide view. After emancipating Cuba, he went to Congo and Bolivia. He passed on knowledge about wars to the local and led them to fight for freedom. He left his family and abandoned the high status, on the contrary, he returned to battle field and struggled for freedom until he was killed cruelly.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Mr. Bennet
Among all the characters in” Pride and Prejudice”, my favorite one is Mr Bennet. Mr. Bennet has a wife and five daughters, and seems to have accustomed himself to his fate. He dislikes the indecorous behaviors of his wife and three younger daughters. Though Mr. Bennet is not that responsible to his family, he really likes his daughters. He warns Elizabeth that she should not marry someone she doesn’t care for or respect, and he really does make an effort to secure his daughters’ futures. His sense of humor and his ability to make light of awful situations really impressed me. “Your mother insists upon you marrying Mr. Collins. From this day onward, you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.” He shows his support to his daughter and show his protest to his wife wisely.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
What we gain from the research report
I really appreciate the chance we have to carry out the research and do the report. I gained a lot from it.
The first one is my computer skills. Before I entered the PRC university, DUT, I had been determined to pick up how to use Microsoft Office. Due to delay and my laziness, however, I did not learn it before I came to Singapore. Fortunately, the research report gave us the chance. We have a lot of tasks to do which must be done with Office. I promised doing these tasks to my fellow members and forced myself to learn Office. Almost all the charts and figures were done by me, during which I learned a lot. And I also do better in PPT. Now I can make a PPT within much shorter time than before. As for Word Document, I also improved a lot. Moreover, I have learned how to do simple PS with a simple program Meituxiuxiu, since I do not have PS, and I had never used PS before. I also learned how to deal with poster, I have get some suggestions on the Internet, and I am still working on these nights. What must be mentioned is that I usually do not do something completely, so our group leader Jin Lin did a lot to complete it. I thank him for his hard work.
Besides the technical skills, I also learned many skills in presentation. Such as eye contact, body language, pitch, tones, pause, gesture, voice, etc. What is more, I gained more confidence during the process, which is the most important for a foreign speaker.
Thirdly, teamwork. As Chinese students, teamwork is exactly what we lack. We learned how to share our thoughts, how to exchange ideas, how to persuade other members to accepted our ideas. Conflicts cannot be avoided, but we all understand others, we know that we all sacrificed a lot. And our friendship grows much stronger.
In a word, a meaningful research report.
The first one is my computer skills. Before I entered the PRC university, DUT, I had been determined to pick up how to use Microsoft Office. Due to delay and my laziness, however, I did not learn it before I came to Singapore. Fortunately, the research report gave us the chance. We have a lot of tasks to do which must be done with Office. I promised doing these tasks to my fellow members and forced myself to learn Office. Almost all the charts and figures were done by me, during which I learned a lot. And I also do better in PPT. Now I can make a PPT within much shorter time than before. As for Word Document, I also improved a lot. Moreover, I have learned how to do simple PS with a simple program Meituxiuxiu, since I do not have PS, and I had never used PS before. I also learned how to deal with poster, I have get some suggestions on the Internet, and I am still working on these nights. What must be mentioned is that I usually do not do something completely, so our group leader Jin Lin did a lot to complete it. I thank him for his hard work.
Besides the technical skills, I also learned many skills in presentation. Such as eye contact, body language, pitch, tones, pause, gesture, voice, etc. What is more, I gained more confidence during the process, which is the most important for a foreign speaker.
Thirdly, teamwork. As Chinese students, teamwork is exactly what we lack. We learned how to share our thoughts, how to exchange ideas, how to persuade other members to accepted our ideas. Conflicts cannot be avoided, but we all understand others, we know that we all sacrificed a lot. And our friendship grows much stronger.
In a word, a meaningful research report.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Prison Break
Recently, I just finished watching the famous series Prison Break. It was a very long series, but the complex plots really made me absorbed in them. Actually, I did not start to watch Prison Break until I came to Singapore. With the glowing recommendation, I began to spend my spare time watching it. However, to my surprise, the characters and the logical plots were so attractive that I could not help falling in love with this series. Now, I finish watching it; I know the beginning, the whole progress and the ending. I think it is really worth watching. Here, I will introduce some of the characters. Perhaps through their personalities and stories, you may become interested and start to watch this excellent series.
First one is Michael Scofield. He is the most important character in this series. When we refer to Michael, the first two things that come to my mind are his wisdom and unflappability. He is an engineer, but he knows much more than an engineer is supposed to know. More surprisingly, he can come up with a plan at any time, no matter how emergency it is and usually, his plan will work out effectively. I even doubt whether he can read others’ mind. I really cannot believe he has this ability, but everything shows that he makes his plan according to what his enemies will do. It is so mystical. Moreover, there is another character impressing me a lot. It is Michael’s sense of responsibility. He always feels guilty for getting so many innocent people involved. He even imputes the death of others to his action of saving his innocent brother, Lincoln. More importantly, when he has the chance to get away from the police with Sarah and Lincoln, he chooses to stay to fight against the company in consideration of the whole country and the civilians. It is really admiring.
Second one is Alex Mahone. In my opinion, Alex is really an intelligent guy, even as intelligent as Michael. He is the only agent that can understand the tattooing on Michael’s body. Without Alex, Michael and Lincoln can go whatever they want. However, Alex becomes another prey. He joins Michael to destroy the company. Actually, Alex is an essential teammate of Michael. He is crueler than Michael, so he can make up Michael’s shortcoming in some aspects. Some audience do not like Alex, because it is Alex that kills Michael’s father and forces Michael and Lincoln run as fast as they can, but the fact is that Alex also loses his son, loses his family. Lincoln has forgiven him, why cannot we give him a second chance? I think Alex is also an admiring man. He manages to get rid of the drugs; he does not betray Michael, but helps him find Sylla and destroys the company; he even saved Michael’s life at a pinch in Sona. He did not expect too much, just to stay with his families. After the long fight with the company, he finally made it. It is quite a happy ending for him.
The last person that I want to talk about is Paul Kellerman. He used to be a federal agent. In order to help Caroline become the president of, he killed many innocent people secretly, even his partner, Danny. At that time, he was just a devil. Actually, I am very surprised to see him in the last few episodes. I thought he was killed by the company after he provided the evidence to release Michael, Sarah and Lincoln, but he does survived and becomes a member of UN. After he gives Sylla to the UN officials and destroys the company totally, he even becomes a senator of the parliament, who focuses on fighting against crimes. He is regarded as the angel by the US citizens. However, when Danny’s widow comes to Paul and spits on his face, he has to suffer from grievance and the condemnation from his conscience. As a matter of fact, the evil Kellerman has already been dead. The man standing in front of others is a really good guy. However, neither the people killed by the evil Kellerman, nor the people still alive understand him. The only thing he can do is to bury all the things deep in his heart and continue to act as an angel.
People who are familiar with Prison Break may ask why I choose these three persons to talk about, especially the last two persons, Alex and Paul. Indeed, Alex and Paul are not so important as Sarah and Lincoln, even Sucre. Nevertheless, what I think is that Alex and Paul are the two persons who experience a significant change in their lives. Moreover, it also somehow reflects on the intricate plots. Therefore, I think these two persons are quite typical.
My analysis about the characters in Prison Break comes to the end. I hope through my blog, you can get the interest to watch Prison Break. If you start to watch a few episodes, I am sure you will fall in love with it as I did before.
First one is Michael Scofield. He is the most important character in this series. When we refer to Michael, the first two things that come to my mind are his wisdom and unflappability. He is an engineer, but he knows much more than an engineer is supposed to know. More surprisingly, he can come up with a plan at any time, no matter how emergency it is and usually, his plan will work out effectively. I even doubt whether he can read others’ mind. I really cannot believe he has this ability, but everything shows that he makes his plan according to what his enemies will do. It is so mystical. Moreover, there is another character impressing me a lot. It is Michael’s sense of responsibility. He always feels guilty for getting so many innocent people involved. He even imputes the death of others to his action of saving his innocent brother, Lincoln. More importantly, when he has the chance to get away from the police with Sarah and Lincoln, he chooses to stay to fight against the company in consideration of the whole country and the civilians. It is really admiring.
Second one is Alex Mahone. In my opinion, Alex is really an intelligent guy, even as intelligent as Michael. He is the only agent that can understand the tattooing on Michael’s body. Without Alex, Michael and Lincoln can go whatever they want. However, Alex becomes another prey. He joins Michael to destroy the company. Actually, Alex is an essential teammate of Michael. He is crueler than Michael, so he can make up Michael’s shortcoming in some aspects. Some audience do not like Alex, because it is Alex that kills Michael’s father and forces Michael and Lincoln run as fast as they can, but the fact is that Alex also loses his son, loses his family. Lincoln has forgiven him, why cannot we give him a second chance? I think Alex is also an admiring man. He manages to get rid of the drugs; he does not betray Michael, but helps him find Sylla and destroys the company; he even saved Michael’s life at a pinch in Sona. He did not expect too much, just to stay with his families. After the long fight with the company, he finally made it. It is quite a happy ending for him.
The last person that I want to talk about is Paul Kellerman. He used to be a federal agent. In order to help Caroline become the president of, he killed many innocent people secretly, even his partner, Danny. At that time, he was just a devil. Actually, I am very surprised to see him in the last few episodes. I thought he was killed by the company after he provided the evidence to release Michael, Sarah and Lincoln, but he does survived and becomes a member of UN. After he gives Sylla to the UN officials and destroys the company totally, he even becomes a senator of the parliament, who focuses on fighting against crimes. He is regarded as the angel by the US citizens. However, when Danny’s widow comes to Paul and spits on his face, he has to suffer from grievance and the condemnation from his conscience. As a matter of fact, the evil Kellerman has already been dead. The man standing in front of others is a really good guy. However, neither the people killed by the evil Kellerman, nor the people still alive understand him. The only thing he can do is to bury all the things deep in his heart and continue to act as an angel.
People who are familiar with Prison Break may ask why I choose these three persons to talk about, especially the last two persons, Alex and Paul. Indeed, Alex and Paul are not so important as Sarah and Lincoln, even Sucre. Nevertheless, what I think is that Alex and Paul are the two persons who experience a significant change in their lives. Moreover, it also somehow reflects on the intricate plots. Therefore, I think these two persons are quite typical.
My analysis about the characters in Prison Break comes to the end. I hope through my blog, you can get the interest to watch Prison Break. If you start to watch a few episodes, I am sure you will fall in love with it as I did before.
Monday, May 23, 2011
the change
Have you ever found an interesting phenomenon that we have not watched TV for about four months. Yesterday, I read a passage that mentioned some common manners when watching TV.
One typical kind of people will scan or run through all the channels again and again even if there are no programs he or she really likes. In the past, I sometimes like to search for channels to see if the television station in my city has add up a new channel that I happen to be not known. One of my friends especially prefers to watch all kinds of advertisements.
I remember the days before, a TV set seems essential in the daily life. Every day parents will watch CCTV news at 7 o’clock which is followed by the weather forecast. Usually, the TV is occupied by my mother during the 8-10 pm because there are lots of TV series varying from Korean, Japanese to Taiwaness at that time. Last summer holiday, the liquid crystal television played a very important role in the world cup of football. We watched the competitive match. On the eve of Chinese new year, it has become a tradition that the whole family get together before the TV watching the spring festival gala. However, one of the disadvantages of watching TV is that we will sit in the sofa and eat a quantity of junk food unconsciously. It directly leads to obesity which means a lot of people will become fat.
Nowadays, it seems that computers have already taken the place of television in our daily life. People cannot live without computers, especially those can be used to surf the internet. It is very dangerous since we will be addicted to it and lose the interest of life. It is hard to get the opportunity when we can manage our own time. Why not do some meaningful activities in our spare time? Learn an instrument, growing small plants, jogging, and swimming or just try a delicious dish.
One typical kind of people will scan or run through all the channels again and again even if there are no programs he or she really likes. In the past, I sometimes like to search for channels to see if the television station in my city has add up a new channel that I happen to be not known. One of my friends especially prefers to watch all kinds of advertisements.
I remember the days before, a TV set seems essential in the daily life. Every day parents will watch CCTV news at 7 o’clock which is followed by the weather forecast. Usually, the TV is occupied by my mother during the 8-10 pm because there are lots of TV series varying from Korean, Japanese to Taiwaness at that time. Last summer holiday, the liquid crystal television played a very important role in the world cup of football. We watched the competitive match. On the eve of Chinese new year, it has become a tradition that the whole family get together before the TV watching the spring festival gala. However, one of the disadvantages of watching TV is that we will sit in the sofa and eat a quantity of junk food unconsciously. It directly leads to obesity which means a lot of people will become fat.
Nowadays, it seems that computers have already taken the place of television in our daily life. People cannot live without computers, especially those can be used to surf the internet. It is very dangerous since we will be addicted to it and lose the interest of life. It is hard to get the opportunity when we can manage our own time. Why not do some meaningful activities in our spare time? Learn an instrument, growing small plants, jogging, and swimming or just try a delicious dish.
Wonderful debate
Wonderful debate
At the beginning of our bridging course, I had already been informed that there would be an inter-class debate by the end. I was intrigued to know how an English debate is going to be. As I thought that debate itself is a very skillful and exciting competition even in Chinese. When I was in Nanjing University, I was one of the eight members in our faculty debate team. Now here in Singapore, I’m determined to have a try debating in English. Though I participated in the class-debate the previous week, I did not do well for my insufficient preparation. Luckily, I was trusted and encouraged by my classmates and got the chance to represent our class to compete against group 8. We tossed a coin to decide the proponent and opponent. We got the result to be opponents which was a bit more difficult for us. After eliminating several points of view, we confirmed our main point as celebrities are not automatic role models. However, we ran into difficulties in looking for the supporting ideas. Since not many statistics or examples can be found to take a stand, we began to complain about the unfairness of the motion. Nevertheless, Ms. Wong told us that a difficult topic could open up our mind and motivate us to learn more. With the help of teamwork, we finally got ready for our thesis and arguments. The night before the competition, each of us was in proper preparation for different jobs. We had our rehearsal and we five were all confident. The day finally came. We put on our formal suits to show the seriousness and our positive attitude. For most of us, it was the first time that we had the opportunity to dress so formal which made me especially excited. The competition proceeded well. I was the second speaker and soon it was my turn to speak. Our competitors got a little nervous, whereas, we turned out to be more calm and precise to state our standpoint. Just like my expectation, we won the debate successfully. In fact, the result is not so important by the end. what is more precious is the friendship we have harvested, the knowledge we have learned, and the importance of corporation and competition we have understood.
At the beginning of our bridging course, I had already been informed that there would be an inter-class debate by the end. I was intrigued to know how an English debate is going to be. As I thought that debate itself is a very skillful and exciting competition even in Chinese. When I was in Nanjing University, I was one of the eight members in our faculty debate team. Now here in Singapore, I’m determined to have a try debating in English. Though I participated in the class-debate the previous week, I did not do well for my insufficient preparation. Luckily, I was trusted and encouraged by my classmates and got the chance to represent our class to compete against group 8. We tossed a coin to decide the proponent and opponent. We got the result to be opponents which was a bit more difficult for us. After eliminating several points of view, we confirmed our main point as celebrities are not automatic role models. However, we ran into difficulties in looking for the supporting ideas. Since not many statistics or examples can be found to take a stand, we began to complain about the unfairness of the motion. Nevertheless, Ms. Wong told us that a difficult topic could open up our mind and motivate us to learn more. With the help of teamwork, we finally got ready for our thesis and arguments. The night before the competition, each of us was in proper preparation for different jobs. We had our rehearsal and we five were all confident. The day finally came. We put on our formal suits to show the seriousness and our positive attitude. For most of us, it was the first time that we had the opportunity to dress so formal which made me especially excited. The competition proceeded well. I was the second speaker and soon it was my turn to speak. Our competitors got a little nervous, whereas, we turned out to be more calm and precise to state our standpoint. Just like my expectation, we won the debate successfully. In fact, the result is not so important by the end. what is more precious is the friendship we have harvested, the knowledge we have learned, and the importance of corporation and competition we have understood.
Before the college entrance examination
Last night, when I made a phone call to my mother, it suddenly occurred to me that it is quite near to the college entrance examination. My brother is to take it in no more than ten days’ time. I was worried about him, so I asked how he had been prepared. However, the answer was not satisfying. He only scored three hundred plus for the latest test, the full mark being seven hundred and fifty. It was really not satisfying to any extend.
Also, I heard about how my aunty worried about my brother. She had been asking some teachers to help my brother for a long time, but it did not seem to work so much. She had been spending a lot of money, and of course, much of her energy. Every time she found my brother playing or absent-minded, she could not control herself to scold him. While maybe because of the pressure, my brother also could not hold himself. Most of time, it ended in a big quarrel or even a fight. That college entrance examination is too important for us that we can hardly bare the pressure. It is not only a test of knowledge, but also a test of psychological endurance. Unfortunately, lots of us lose in the second part even before the test starts.
Now I regret a lot. When I was having my summer holiday, I should have helped him more with his studies and tell him how to deal with the pressure. However, what I did was just thinking of myself. I wanted to be free and did not want to be bothered by him. How could I do that! If I paid more attention to him, maybe things could change a lot. Anyway, I cannot do anything now.
I thought of when I was taking the exam. Although I did not show any anxiety to anyone, actually, I did worried a lot. And I knew that my parents must be no less anxious than me, too. I can fully understand what my aunty and my uncle are thinking about. Perhaps, they did not pay enough attention to my brother’s study before. Perhaps, they are kind of worried and also kind of regretful. I think I am really lucky compared with my brother. At least I did not struggle that much. Moreover, I have managed to be here in Singapore, which I think is a really good choice. Thinking of this, I think I will not complain much.
Also, I heard about how my aunty worried about my brother. She had been asking some teachers to help my brother for a long time, but it did not seem to work so much. She had been spending a lot of money, and of course, much of her energy. Every time she found my brother playing or absent-minded, she could not control herself to scold him. While maybe because of the pressure, my brother also could not hold himself. Most of time, it ended in a big quarrel or even a fight. That college entrance examination is too important for us that we can hardly bare the pressure. It is not only a test of knowledge, but also a test of psychological endurance. Unfortunately, lots of us lose in the second part even before the test starts.
Now I regret a lot. When I was having my summer holiday, I should have helped him more with his studies and tell him how to deal with the pressure. However, what I did was just thinking of myself. I wanted to be free and did not want to be bothered by him. How could I do that! If I paid more attention to him, maybe things could change a lot. Anyway, I cannot do anything now.
I thought of when I was taking the exam. Although I did not show any anxiety to anyone, actually, I did worried a lot. And I knew that my parents must be no less anxious than me, too. I can fully understand what my aunty and my uncle are thinking about. Perhaps, they did not pay enough attention to my brother’s study before. Perhaps, they are kind of worried and also kind of regretful. I think I am really lucky compared with my brother. At least I did not struggle that much. Moreover, I have managed to be here in Singapore, which I think is a really good choice. Thinking of this, I think I will not complain much.
Memory
Last Friday, after our group had discussed how to revise our research project, Yummy, Huang Da and I stayed at the canteen to finish our job. Suddenly, Yummy sighed, “How time flies. We have been to Singapore for nearly half a year.” This kind of topic can always make people recall a lot of memory. Three of us began to think about things happened in the past half a year, the special half a year.
We thought about the people around us when taking the plane from China to Singapore. We may just know them and then we were separated, never had the chance to meet again, perhaps; although at that time I sat with Ai Heng. Compared to this, we are better. We will be separated soon, but at least we spent half a year together, at least we could see each other even the bridging course ends.
We thought about when we lived in the Parry Hall. Huang Da often played guitar in the canteen, which draw many people’s attention. Yummy included. At that time, most of us did not know each other. So it is rather interesting to think how we met a person the first time. I still remember the first lesson Ms. Lim taught us, I sat behind Yang Mo, and we played a little game. I got ice, and he got cream. Probably, we two will have a sincere talk, with ice-creams in hands.
We thought about the wonderful talent show. Yummy said she was in the group 3 and act the short play the plants vs. zombies. Huang Da, Jun zhe and I were in the same group, we played a comedy which told about the life of some SM3 students. Or I can call it a “tragedy”. I still remember when our monitor introduced their play, my be-friend said, “Oh, her English is rather good.” She wore a skirt at that time.
We thought about when we were asked to make the class rules, Jin Lin said, “no no talking”. And other funny thing about Jin Lin, such as you mean what? We thought about the time we spent in SOC. The first new year, the first oral report. We thought about our desk mates, I have sat with Yang Mo, Tian shi, Guo Yi, Jiang Zheng, and Serene. Now, I sit with Guo Yi again. It is a little pity.
Yummy said she often lived in this kind of situation, in which she just know a lot of friends and she will be separated from them soon. She will live in U-Town, having little chance to see us occasionally. She was sad. Hope she could adjust to it quickly.
In fact, we could think many things if time were possible. However, it was 11 o’clock in the evening. We had to go. It is like when the June 8th comes, we have to go. The good thing is we can see each other tomorrow.
We thought about the people around us when taking the plane from China to Singapore. We may just know them and then we were separated, never had the chance to meet again, perhaps; although at that time I sat with Ai Heng. Compared to this, we are better. We will be separated soon, but at least we spent half a year together, at least we could see each other even the bridging course ends.
We thought about when we lived in the Parry Hall. Huang Da often played guitar in the canteen, which draw many people’s attention. Yummy included. At that time, most of us did not know each other. So it is rather interesting to think how we met a person the first time. I still remember the first lesson Ms. Lim taught us, I sat behind Yang Mo, and we played a little game. I got ice, and he got cream. Probably, we two will have a sincere talk, with ice-creams in hands.
We thought about the wonderful talent show. Yummy said she was in the group 3 and act the short play the plants vs. zombies. Huang Da, Jun zhe and I were in the same group, we played a comedy which told about the life of some SM3 students. Or I can call it a “tragedy”. I still remember when our monitor introduced their play, my be-friend said, “Oh, her English is rather good.” She wore a skirt at that time.
We thought about when we were asked to make the class rules, Jin Lin said, “no no talking”. And other funny thing about Jin Lin, such as you mean what? We thought about the time we spent in SOC. The first new year, the first oral report. We thought about our desk mates, I have sat with Yang Mo, Tian shi, Guo Yi, Jiang Zheng, and Serene. Now, I sit with Guo Yi again. It is a little pity.
Yummy said she often lived in this kind of situation, in which she just know a lot of friends and she will be separated from them soon. She will live in U-Town, having little chance to see us occasionally. She was sad. Hope she could adjust to it quickly.
In fact, we could think many things if time were possible. However, it was 11 o’clock in the evening. We had to go. It is like when the June 8th comes, we have to go. The good thing is we can see each other tomorrow.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Thank You
Five months passed by since we started our English bridging course. Kind of sad, ah?
I still remember the first day we met. That cloudy and rainy afternoon, we were told that we were all in group 7. At that moment I did not realize the attachment and belongingness as I feel now…
Every Monday to Thursday we spent almost eight hours a day together. When Chinese Festival was coming, we were excited to celebrate it in our lovely class. When earthquake happened in Japan, we felt sorry for them. When Linda’s and Jiahao’s birthdays were coming, we celebrated together.
No matter what happened, we always felt delighted when we were together. And I suddenly realize we were happy together because we were united! That sense of unit makes us feel the belongingness.
However, we are going to finish our English bridging course. Even we want to stop time from moving on, we ourselves still need to move on and enter another new stage.
It may be a sad topic. But I believe everyone in our group will keep the friendship with us for the rest of our lives. Here, I really want to thank you all! Thank you for being my friends! Thank you for bringing joy to my life during my first time going abroad.
Keep in touch! And I love you all!
I still remember the first day we met. That cloudy and rainy afternoon, we were told that we were all in group 7. At that moment I did not realize the attachment and belongingness as I feel now…
Every Monday to Thursday we spent almost eight hours a day together. When Chinese Festival was coming, we were excited to celebrate it in our lovely class. When earthquake happened in Japan, we felt sorry for them. When Linda’s and Jiahao’s birthdays were coming, we celebrated together.
No matter what happened, we always felt delighted when we were together. And I suddenly realize we were happy together because we were united! That sense of unit makes us feel the belongingness.
However, we are going to finish our English bridging course. Even we want to stop time from moving on, we ourselves still need to move on and enter another new stage.
It may be a sad topic. But I believe everyone in our group will keep the friendship with us for the rest of our lives. Here, I really want to thank you all! Thank you for being my friends! Thank you for bringing joy to my life during my first time going abroad.
Keep in touch! And I love you all!
peerless
Peerless
Hello everyone today is my last turn to stand here. So if you do not listen carefully to me this time, you will get no other chance to listen to me again in spite of being the same faculty with me. On the other hand, if I do not perform well and cherish this opportunity, I will get no chance to show my almost perfect English to Ms Chritine and all of you.
I am joking, hehe. Ok, let us cut to my point today. Actually, what I mentioned previously is linked to my topic today, which is “if you wanna do something, do it now.”
Yes, I think most of us will have our own plan for what we will do today and others. But how many of you finish all your goals in your original plan? Or how many of you just delay something to another day. And again and again, finally you will regret that why don’t I do that in that day?
And also for many people say they want to be in charge of their life, but they just turn their initial schedules over to their television sets and computers. And delay to tomorrow. Yes, tomorrow is a new day for you to do many things, but do not forget tomorrow is also another day.
Life is like a boat in the ocean, you will never know what will happen to your boat next. So if you want to do something, do it now. Otherwise, you may regret for not having done it.
You never know what life could bring, because nothing can last forever.
But what you need to do is do not stop your goal and know that you could reach the top and be the one you wanna be.
Follow your heart and do not give up. When you are true to your goal and true to yourself, everything in the universe will work together to make sure you reach your destination. The journey may not be easy, but the rewards will be beyond your imagination.”
Finally, I want to borrow what Ms Christine has taught us, if you wanna be somebody, if you wanna go somewhere, you’d better wake up and pay attention imdiately.
Monday, May 16, 2011
My visit to Singapore Zoo
My visit to Singapore zoo
Since Singapore wild zoo is very famous, I went to visit it last Saturday with my roommate. It was really a different experience for me, and I will never forget it.
We prepared for the route a day before and got up early in the morning. The zoo was a little far away; we set up before 8 o’clock, but we arrived at 9:30 am. Then we started to walk around the zoo and see. To tell the truth, the wild zoo is very close to nature. There are monkeys, chimpanzees, birds, cats, rabbits, giraffes, zebras, butterflies, elephants, otters, sea lions, penguins, snakes, and others. Some animals really impressed me a lot.
The first one is penguin. It is the truth that penguins live in a very cold condition. However, what surprised me a lot was that the thin penguins were
enjoying the sun bath, and they were very cute. Then we were enjoyable when visiting the birds’ house. When we went into it, we could see many birds flying over our heads, and we could hear the sounds of birds all around us. We felt that we were walking in the forest. Another impressing thing is feeding the chimpanzees. When the staff was throwing the fruits, a mother monkey stretched out her arm asking for the food. It looked very cute, just like a real man.
Furthermore, we also saw four shows there, and I like the elephant’s show and the sea lion’s show most. The shows were interesting and the animals were very skillful.
All in all, the Singapore zoo is well worth visiting. It is very interesting and impressive. Finally, we spent almost eight hours visiting it. Although it is far from Eton Hall, someday you can go and visit it. You will not be regretful!
Since Singapore wild zoo is very famous, I went to visit it last Saturday with my roommate. It was really a different experience for me, and I will never forget it.
We prepared for the route a day before and got up early in the morning. The zoo was a little far away; we set up before 8 o’clock, but we arrived at 9:30 am. Then we started to walk around the zoo and see. To tell the truth, the wild zoo is very close to nature. There are monkeys, chimpanzees, birds, cats, rabbits, giraffes, zebras, butterflies, elephants, otters, sea lions, penguins, snakes, and others. Some animals really impressed me a lot.
The first one is penguin. It is the truth that penguins live in a very cold condition. However, what surprised me a lot was that the thin penguins were
enjoying the sun bath, and they were very cute. Then we were enjoyable when visiting the birds’ house. When we went into it, we could see many birds flying over our heads, and we could hear the sounds of birds all around us. We felt that we were walking in the forest. Another impressing thing is feeding the chimpanzees. When the staff was throwing the fruits, a mother monkey stretched out her arm asking for the food. It looked very cute, just like a real man.
Furthermore, we also saw four shows there, and I like the elephant’s show and the sea lion’s show most. The shows were interesting and the animals were very skillful.
All in all, the Singapore zoo is well worth visiting. It is very interesting and impressive. Finally, we spent almost eight hours visiting it. Although it is far from Eton Hall, someday you can go and visit it. You will not be regretful!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
A little thing
Recently, my parents told me they will come to see me with my grandparents on 22nd, July. When I heard the news, I come up with complicated feelings. Sometimes, I really miss home, but I can adjust myself well to focus on my life here. However, I can feel my parents and grandparents miss me much, even more than me. Since I told them I couldn’t return home this summer, they had been considering to come. It is already their second trip during half the year. One trip here is not cheap. For six people, it may cost about 40 thousand RMB. They told me they would like to see me as well as travel in Singapore. I hope they can play happily here. However, I’m also sure if I go back, it costs little, several thousand RMB. Although my parents asked me not to care about money for many times, I still feel strange, maybe happy and guilty, when they spend so much coming to see me.
Maybe it is my problem, also an old problem for me, I think too much and I need to put down something. I always remind myself to be responsible. So, I always care much; some are necessary, but some are unnecessary details. More than one of my friends has pointed it out for me. Every some weeks, I will feel a bit loss at how much I should care about things around me. I try to think carefully to avoid failure both for me and my friends. But at the same time, I have to be careful not to be so worried. Someone said that I know much and see much. Sometimes, I just want to know less. Maybe it is time for me to put down something and relax more…
Forest Gump
Forest Gump
Gump was in Jenny's dormitory and Jenny asked him "Do you have dreamed about who are you going to be?" Gump was in doubt for a while and said "aren't I going to be me?" Jenny said she wanted to be famous, and she wanted to be a singer like Joan Baez. Gump did not understand and he just wanted to be himself.
This sense touched my heart. Although Gump was a idiot, he knew what he really needed. Being famous and making money are not important for him at all. What is important is being yourself. What make us deserve other people's respect? Career, Social status, or property? If so, we will become accessory of these things. I should be myself and all I dream is being myself.
A normal person has the ability for choosing and he knows what is important. A normal person has many choices, so he is always waiting for the next one which he thinks is the best. A normal person does not concentrate on what he thinks is useless. However, Gump is not a normal person unluckily. His intelligence quotient is low. His girlfriend, joining school football team and army, playing table tennis, catching shrimps and running are not his own choices. It seems that others are always choosing things for him. Of course, he will never ask questions like "what is my life for" He just did it.
I think this movie tells us a truth: too many choices will mislead you. Facing our lives, we should get ready. It is because "life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get".
Changes
What can distance do to my life? What is its overall influence on me as well as my life? I have been asking this question to myself for quite a long time since I came here. It is May now and to be roughly calculated, over 5 months have passed by. That is nearly half a year! Time really flies. The day I made farewell to my parents seems like it was just yesterday. Then today I am here sitting with the final end approaching closer and closer.
I found many of us have already gotten used to the different life pace here and some even began to regret that they have not made most of the time past that they called “honeymoon before the real university work”. But for me, I was just doing what I was supposed to do to adapt myself better.
I used to make one call to my parents but now just one per week. I never thought about this but it is distance that gradually unknowingly changed me. I used to dream of the world outside but now the same dream of homeland repeats again and again. It is distance that redirected my mind and heart. I used to be less self-dependent but now I am pretty independent, and it is distance that forced me to become mature. I used to be shy of speaking English but now I am much more confident. I used to fear the hot weather in summer but now everyday is summer and I have somehow got used to it already. I used to feel alone when left home but now with lots of friends I have found another home.
With a long distance to my home, the long time during here witnessed my changes from the very first day. I miss home and I miss her, but to love them better, I know I must work hard and perform excellently in the formal university life. And in my mind, I already determined to fight!
Where To Study?
When looking at the Sign-In-and-Out book of Eton Hall, I find many people write down the reason, NUS. Suddenly, a question occurs to me. Is it very beneficial for us to study in NUS on weekends? I reflect on this question a lot through my experience. Hope it can make us think about our way of studying so that we can improve. By the way, I like what Prof. Tay said, “I want you to struggle. You struggle, you learn.”
As with many people, I regard NUS as a place where there are clean environment, comfortable and quiet atmosphere, and plenty of books. This especially stands out in respect to libraries. Let take an example of Central Library. Firstly, many cleaners keep the library tidy and neat, thus building a healthy environment for people to study. What is more, the air condition and battery charging place give much convenience to people there, which eliminates people’s worry a lot. Above all, it stores many books which people can refer to so that people could gain knowledge easily.
However, we should also take some facts into consideration to draw a clear conclusion of the benefits and disadvantages of studying in NUS. First of all, it really costs some time for us to get to NUS now. We will take about five to ten minutes to walk to the bus stop and then wait for the bus in an unknown time, after which we will take the bus to the NUS. If we choose to alight at the playground and then wait for the school bus or number ninety-five bus to Central Library, it will also waste some time. The worst thing is not that waste of time bus the tiredness caused by this travel. If one gets up at seven o’clock in the morning, then he or she could arrive at the Central Library at eight o’clock. This seems good since one have four hours to study. However, when thinking about the reality, we will find the trouble brought by the hunger and tiredness. (At least this is true for me.) Since we have the habit of having a rest in the noon, the time is the most difficult time for us to get through. So the time we can study efficiently is a little limited due to the tiredness. And the situation gets worse when it comes to Sunday when no libraries will be open.
To tell the truth, when I scan my essay now, I find it is a little like persuading people not go to NUS to study. Definitely, I didn’t mean this. I just list some thoughts of my own, hoping people can find the most suitable place for themselves to study.
As with many people, I regard NUS as a place where there are clean environment, comfortable and quiet atmosphere, and plenty of books. This especially stands out in respect to libraries. Let take an example of Central Library. Firstly, many cleaners keep the library tidy and neat, thus building a healthy environment for people to study. What is more, the air condition and battery charging place give much convenience to people there, which eliminates people’s worry a lot. Above all, it stores many books which people can refer to so that people could gain knowledge easily.
However, we should also take some facts into consideration to draw a clear conclusion of the benefits and disadvantages of studying in NUS. First of all, it really costs some time for us to get to NUS now. We will take about five to ten minutes to walk to the bus stop and then wait for the bus in an unknown time, after which we will take the bus to the NUS. If we choose to alight at the playground and then wait for the school bus or number ninety-five bus to Central Library, it will also waste some time. The worst thing is not that waste of time bus the tiredness caused by this travel. If one gets up at seven o’clock in the morning, then he or she could arrive at the Central Library at eight o’clock. This seems good since one have four hours to study. However, when thinking about the reality, we will find the trouble brought by the hunger and tiredness. (At least this is true for me.) Since we have the habit of having a rest in the noon, the time is the most difficult time for us to get through. So the time we can study efficiently is a little limited due to the tiredness. And the situation gets worse when it comes to Sunday when no libraries will be open.
To tell the truth, when I scan my essay now, I find it is a little like persuading people not go to NUS to study. Definitely, I didn’t mean this. I just list some thoughts of my own, hoping people can find the most suitable place for themselves to study.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Research report
Today, our group members got the feedback from our supervisor. Although there were many mistakes for us to change, we were happy with them because they were part of our constant efforts.
I still remember the days we were busy with the research report before submitting the first draft. We spent nearly 2 whole days in NUS to prepare the first draft. Although we finished every part of the research before those two days, we had to unify them and improve the report as a whole together. It was not an easy job despite every member’s hard work. During the discussions of the report, some disputes were inevitable, but we usually had some ideas after the disputes. They helped us to finish the report. The powerful soft wares also helped us save a lot of time. I often saw some teams process the data by handwork, which was slow and fallible. However, we used fallible software to solve thousands of numbers and got the results in several minutes.
Last week, we relaxed ourselves from the research report. Today, we got supervisor’s help and we were ready to be busy again with correction.
I still remember the days we were busy with the research report before submitting the first draft. We spent nearly 2 whole days in NUS to prepare the first draft. Although we finished every part of the research before those two days, we had to unify them and improve the report as a whole together. It was not an easy job despite every member’s hard work. During the discussions of the report, some disputes were inevitable, but we usually had some ideas after the disputes. They helped us to finish the report. The powerful soft wares also helped us save a lot of time. I often saw some teams process the data by handwork, which was slow and fallible. However, we used fallible software to solve thousands of numbers and got the results in several minutes.
Last week, we relaxed ourselves from the research report. Today, we got supervisor’s help and we were ready to be busy again with correction.
My Dreams
I have a lot of dreams throughout my life. These beautiful dreams make my life fruitful and fantastic.
When I was a little child, I dreamed being a great scientist one day. I believed that a scientist invented a lot of high-tech inventions. In this way, I can lead a more qualified life. I often imagined a scenario when I staying in a spaceship, drink a kind of liquid which keeps me energetic and young, and cross the universe very freely.
After reading several novels, I gradually wanted to be a great writer, which had millions of readers or fans. If my new book is published today, tens of thousands of books will be sold out by tomorrow. I had the power to attract people, and I also had the capability to explain their deep feelings. I few years later, I am awarded with the Nobel Prize due to my success.
When I entered middle school, I had more contact with society. I looked forward to money more. The dream of being a CEO of an international corporation rooted in my mind. Why do I only want to be a CEO rather than a boss? I have two primary reasons. First, I do not have enough fund to start my one business. Second, a CEO need not risk being bankrupt. Moreover, a CEO has the right to command, he also has the chance to manage staff, which is what exactly I want.
Now, as a young adult, I become quite realistic. Do I have a dream? Of course I have. But very simple, that is as long as I can have a happy life. “My greatest dream is that I have no great dream.” Sometime, a simple life is what we really need. But it does not mean we are passive. On the contrary, it is a positive and wise attitude towards our life.
When I was a little child, I dreamed being a great scientist one day. I believed that a scientist invented a lot of high-tech inventions. In this way, I can lead a more qualified life. I often imagined a scenario when I staying in a spaceship, drink a kind of liquid which keeps me energetic and young, and cross the universe very freely.
After reading several novels, I gradually wanted to be a great writer, which had millions of readers or fans. If my new book is published today, tens of thousands of books will be sold out by tomorrow. I had the power to attract people, and I also had the capability to explain their deep feelings. I few years later, I am awarded with the Nobel Prize due to my success.
When I entered middle school, I had more contact with society. I looked forward to money more. The dream of being a CEO of an international corporation rooted in my mind. Why do I only want to be a CEO rather than a boss? I have two primary reasons. First, I do not have enough fund to start my one business. Second, a CEO need not risk being bankrupt. Moreover, a CEO has the right to command, he also has the chance to manage staff, which is what exactly I want.
Now, as a young adult, I become quite realistic. Do I have a dream? Of course I have. But very simple, that is as long as I can have a happy life. “My greatest dream is that I have no great dream.” Sometime, a simple life is what we really need. But it does not mean we are passive. On the contrary, it is a positive and wise attitude towards our life.
Monday, May 9, 2011
Marley and Me
When it comes to a life with a dog, most of us may think that we can enjoy simple joy of walking side by side with our own dog out in the fresh air and throwing a stick. However, in the movie “Marley and Me”, the family cannot enjoy such a life because the dog, Marley, has too much energy.
Marley can hardly be quiet, running and eating all the time. Every time Grogan, the protagonist, walked Marley, he can only run after him. Furthermore, it has once eaten an answering machine and a necklace. Nevertheless, it is Marley that brings lots of laughter and happiness to the family. The dog is also the inspiration of Grogan’s columns. What impressed me most is that Grogan described Marley as a fighter at the end of the movie. Marley is a real fighter who guards the family. When the son, Conor, had colic, the dog sat up all night and did not move. It just stayed right there for nine hours, keeping an eye on him.
The love between Marley and the family touched me a lot and reminded me of a lovely dog as well. I named the dog Xiaohei because its fur was totally black. It was energetic and friendly. When I first saw Xiaohei, it did not bark at me but kept wagging the tail. Every time I came back home, it would happily run to me and lick my shoes. It was really like a friend of mine. I still remember that once I cried, Xiaohei just sat by me and looked at me. It kept quiet and licked my feet softly the whole afternoon. What moved me a lot was that when I rode to the school, Xiaohei would follow me till I got to the gate.
However, to our sorrow, Xiaohei disappeared one day. We have been looking for it until my mother found it in a river. It is said Xiaohei was killed by a man who sold the meat of dogs. We were quite upset and angry. Finally, we buried its clothes and blanket to memorize it.
Since dogs are the most loyal animal friends of human beings, please treat them kindly.
Marley can hardly be quiet, running and eating all the time. Every time Grogan, the protagonist, walked Marley, he can only run after him. Furthermore, it has once eaten an answering machine and a necklace. Nevertheless, it is Marley that brings lots of laughter and happiness to the family. The dog is also the inspiration of Grogan’s columns. What impressed me most is that Grogan described Marley as a fighter at the end of the movie. Marley is a real fighter who guards the family. When the son, Conor, had colic, the dog sat up all night and did not move. It just stayed right there for nine hours, keeping an eye on him.
The love between Marley and the family touched me a lot and reminded me of a lovely dog as well. I named the dog Xiaohei because its fur was totally black. It was energetic and friendly. When I first saw Xiaohei, it did not bark at me but kept wagging the tail. Every time I came back home, it would happily run to me and lick my shoes. It was really like a friend of mine. I still remember that once I cried, Xiaohei just sat by me and looked at me. It kept quiet and licked my feet softly the whole afternoon. What moved me a lot was that when I rode to the school, Xiaohei would follow me till I got to the gate.
However, to our sorrow, Xiaohei disappeared one day. We have been looking for it until my mother found it in a river. It is said Xiaohei was killed by a man who sold the meat of dogs. We were quite upset and angry. Finally, we buried its clothes and blanket to memorize it.
Since dogs are the most loyal animal friends of human beings, please treat them kindly.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Happy Mother's Day
If I had a singer flower for everytime I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden.
------to my love
Sometimes, I am wondering what if the one who left is you, not my father. I am sure my life would be totally different if it happened; and I definitely feel relieved and grateful to have your company in the past 19 years.
To give me a carefree childhood, you rejected every invitation by men. To give me better care, you refused every opportunity by companies which were far away from home. What’s more, to support me and my decision, you even built your strength and sent me here.
Today is Mother’s Day. And I just cannot hold those sincere feelings anymore---I want you to know how much I love you, mum!
I called you this morning and told you, “happy Mother’s Day!” You just laughed, and responded quickly, “it turned out that you remember!”
Without hesitation, I said,” it is the last thing I will forget in my life.”
You laughed again. This time, I could easily recognize it was from the bottom of your heart.
No matter where we are, when it is, or how often we connect with each other, there will always be something between us----the tie, since the day you gave me birth.
Just take care of yourself.
And, please remember how much I love you!
------to my love
Sometimes, I am wondering what if the one who left is you, not my father. I am sure my life would be totally different if it happened; and I definitely feel relieved and grateful to have your company in the past 19 years.
To give me a carefree childhood, you rejected every invitation by men. To give me better care, you refused every opportunity by companies which were far away from home. What’s more, to support me and my decision, you even built your strength and sent me here.
Today is Mother’s Day. And I just cannot hold those sincere feelings anymore---I want you to know how much I love you, mum!
I called you this morning and told you, “happy Mother’s Day!” You just laughed, and responded quickly, “it turned out that you remember!”
Without hesitation, I said,” it is the last thing I will forget in my life.”
You laughed again. This time, I could easily recognize it was from the bottom of your heart.
No matter where we are, when it is, or how often we connect with each other, there will always be something between us----the tie, since the day you gave me birth.
Just take care of yourself.
And, please remember how much I love you!
Saturday, May 7, 2011
My visit to Singapore Art Museum
My visit to Singapore Art Museum
Last Wednesday we went the Singapore Art Museum. It was the art garden. In the gallery of new contemporary art acquisition from Southeast Asia, we saw the Java's machine. There were 15 life size figures, and it seemed as a band. The figure could play the drum automatically. Then I put the emphases on a small room. Its size was 250*250*250 cm. Its name was He is Satisfied from Monday to Friday and on Sunday He loves to Cry. It was made by Chun Kaifeng. He won the Singapore Art Exhibition Prize in 2009. It was a typical room for working and there were just two colors in the room: white and black. I think this room conveys an anxiety that most people who live in the urban societies can relate to. Chun subverts the original purpose of a diorama to one that is almost discomforting to the viewer. Then I went to the Learning Gallery. The gallery is dedicated to presenting artwork from SAM's collection to young visitors. The show there made me understand the artists from Singapore and Southeast Asia. It made me reflect on the function of these objects and the relation to other objects. I think the objects in the learning gallery are specially selected to encourage lively discussion and develop creative and analytical thinking. I learned a lot from this visit and there are not so many difference between the museum in Singapore and in China.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Arts and Life
I always consider arts as a gift by gods, an attitude towards life and the melody of music. However, my impression on arts has been confirmed once more after the visit to Singapore Art Museum.
There was a portrait named “Mrs. Lee’s cake” which impressed me most. Standing in front of the painting, I could not help being attracted----not just by the creativity of the painter but the far-reaching meaning behind it. It consisted of two parts; one was concerned about a young lady while the other one was attached with an old lady. From my view towards the painting, I thought the two women were all Mrs. Lee. It was easy to find that Mrs. Lee was celebrating her birthday. With time went by, she was getting older even though she became rich during the past decades which could be seen from the shining jewels on her fingers. But jewels could not satisfy the eager of getting back to the old days; perhaps it was why Mrs. Lee chose to wear jewels---to fill loneliness and blank memories. Perhaps Mrs. Lee married with a merchant who provided her with everything she wanted, except the critical importance for a woman---spiritual comfort and care. Then Mrs. Lee found comfort in the world of material. However, reality was cruel---charming appearance was no more exited; the clock was ticking…
My thought was wandering. At this moment, I became a director in the movie, ”Mrs. Lee’s cake”. And I exerted Mrs. Lee’s personality while describing her whole life.
When she was young, she had beauty but not money to buy her jewel; when she could afford all these things, beautiful days just passed by---she was not young anymore. It is just like life. You have to give up something so you can obtain another one you want. Life is always imperfect.
Maybe that is why people are so attracted with arts----it shows you a different world just by a scene or a single word.
There was a portrait named “Mrs. Lee’s cake” which impressed me most. Standing in front of the painting, I could not help being attracted----not just by the creativity of the painter but the far-reaching meaning behind it. It consisted of two parts; one was concerned about a young lady while the other one was attached with an old lady. From my view towards the painting, I thought the two women were all Mrs. Lee. It was easy to find that Mrs. Lee was celebrating her birthday. With time went by, she was getting older even though she became rich during the past decades which could be seen from the shining jewels on her fingers. But jewels could not satisfy the eager of getting back to the old days; perhaps it was why Mrs. Lee chose to wear jewels---to fill loneliness and blank memories. Perhaps Mrs. Lee married with a merchant who provided her with everything she wanted, except the critical importance for a woman---spiritual comfort and care. Then Mrs. Lee found comfort in the world of material. However, reality was cruel---charming appearance was no more exited; the clock was ticking…
My thought was wandering. At this moment, I became a director in the movie, ”Mrs. Lee’s cake”. And I exerted Mrs. Lee’s personality while describing her whole life.
When she was young, she had beauty but not money to buy her jewel; when she could afford all these things, beautiful days just passed by---she was not young anymore. It is just like life. You have to give up something so you can obtain another one you want. Life is always imperfect.
Maybe that is why people are so attracted with arts----it shows you a different world just by a scene or a single word.
Learning Journey
After the long, exhausting Progress Test 2, our Learning Journey 2 came at last, which I was looking forward to for a long time. Because the first Learning Journey really impressed me a lot, I felt too impatient to wait this time. I was told that we would go to the National Museum and the Art Museum. In consideration that I would learn something about the history and the art of Singapore, I was really excited.
The first stop of my group was the National Museum. The building of the museum was so splendid that with the limited time, we can only visit a few parts of the whole museum. My group was arranged to visit the history exhibition which I thought was the largest part of the National Museum. It was also what I expected to visit. At the entrance of the history exhibition, one of the staff gave each of us an electronic machine. She told us that according to the number of the floor, we could use the machine to listen to the introduction of the items on display. With the great curiosity, we entered the history exhibition.
However, to my disappointment, the items on display were not exactly what I expected. Compared with the history of China, Singaporean history was so modern. The items here included the original television set, the original broadcast and even some decorations which could not be called “history” in China. They were really boring. In addition, the period when Singapore was controlled by England and Japan was also showed in this exhibition district. It did introduce the history of Singapore, but it did not interest me either. During the whole trip in the National Museum, no thrill, no excitement, everything seemed so ordinary.
After we finished visiting the National Museum, we came to the Art Museum, which was located nearby. We hoped to find some interesting works of art, but disappointment came for a second time. Except some Chinese paintings that we could recognize what was on, others were too abstract for us to understand. Even some terrifying things related to death appeared in the Art Museum. We even suspected whether it was the problem of our appreciation ability or not. All in all, it was a boring trip again.
After we got back to our dormitory, many of us directly went to bed. It was a really exhausted day, both mentally and physically. The annoying test and the disappointing journey destroyed the whole day.
The first stop of my group was the National Museum. The building of the museum was so splendid that with the limited time, we can only visit a few parts of the whole museum. My group was arranged to visit the history exhibition which I thought was the largest part of the National Museum. It was also what I expected to visit. At the entrance of the history exhibition, one of the staff gave each of us an electronic machine. She told us that according to the number of the floor, we could use the machine to listen to the introduction of the items on display. With the great curiosity, we entered the history exhibition.
However, to my disappointment, the items on display were not exactly what I expected. Compared with the history of China, Singaporean history was so modern. The items here included the original television set, the original broadcast and even some decorations which could not be called “history” in China. They were really boring. In addition, the period when Singapore was controlled by England and Japan was also showed in this exhibition district. It did introduce the history of Singapore, but it did not interest me either. During the whole trip in the National Museum, no thrill, no excitement, everything seemed so ordinary.
After we finished visiting the National Museum, we came to the Art Museum, which was located nearby. We hoped to find some interesting works of art, but disappointment came for a second time. Except some Chinese paintings that we could recognize what was on, others were too abstract for us to understand. Even some terrifying things related to death appeared in the Art Museum. We even suspected whether it was the problem of our appreciation ability or not. All in all, it was a boring trip again.
After we got back to our dormitory, many of us directly went to bed. It was a really exhausted day, both mentally and physically. The annoying test and the disappointing journey destroyed the whole day.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
leaening journey
Before the learning journey, I wondered what we would see in the national museum and what we would learn in the arts museum. At that time, I thought that there must be some famous abstract painting like Mona Lisa executed by Leonardo da Vinci and others.
After our progress test, we were all eager to have a rest in the journey, which turned out to be a more stressful experience, just in my opinion. Perhaps I just cannot understand that kind of arts. Moreover, I think some of the artworks are extreme, making me sad about the world. I knew they just want me to realize the true world. However, I just cannot stand it. For this reason, I even had a headache during the journey due to some terrible paintings.
Although I really did not like this journey as a whole, there is still some impressive artwork which told me a lot about the world.
The most impressive one is the painting in the national museum, which shows a person whose body was divided into three parts. And his face expression shows that he was tortured by something. I did not understand the meaning before I read the background of the picture, which says that the painting was drawn during the recession. I realized that it showed the person’s personality was split by the recession.
My visit to Singapore Art Museum
My visit to Singapore Art Museum
This Wednesday we had a learning journey to Singapore Art Museum and National Museum of Singapore after an English test. It was very interesting and we knew a lot of things from it. Singapore Art Museum especially impressed me a lot. It is a magical and dreamy museum, which really attracted me.
In the museum, there are many wonderful works made by famous artists, especially many beautiful and meaningful photographs and pictures. For example, “Fire of the Year” is a photograph reflecting the story of the Bukit Ho Swee Fire in 1961. “Butterfly” is a beautiful picture painted by Tan Oe Pang who is one of Singapore’s established ink artists. However, one photograph gave me much impression and made me think a lot about it. Its name is “Pink man”.
It reflects the political situation of Thailand at that time. It is about an incident in which many undergraduates were killed. In the photograph, a young man is cruelly hit by another man, nearly to die. The ironic thing is that there are many people watching this, but no one wants to hold it back; some people are even laughing at him. Moreover, there is a man in pink standing beside with a cart, looking at this scene. This seems to be a satire. What a ridiculous thing! Therefore, the politics in Thailand at that time was not good and brought so many miseries to its citizens. Of course, not just Thailand, but also many other countries have gone through similar periods. I am pity for those people who have suffered from these. At the same time, I have to say this can make a country develop.
All in all, this journey was really wonderful. It widened my horizon and I also learned a lot knowledge and history about Singapore. Thus, it was an unforgettable experience for me.
This Wednesday we had a learning journey to Singapore Art Museum and National Museum of Singapore after an English test. It was very interesting and we knew a lot of things from it. Singapore Art Museum especially impressed me a lot. It is a magical and dreamy museum, which really attracted me.
In the museum, there are many wonderful works made by famous artists, especially many beautiful and meaningful photographs and pictures. For example, “Fire of the Year” is a photograph reflecting the story of the Bukit Ho Swee Fire in 1961. “Butterfly” is a beautiful picture painted by Tan Oe Pang who is one of Singapore’s established ink artists. However, one photograph gave me much impression and made me think a lot about it. Its name is “Pink man”.
It reflects the political situation of Thailand at that time. It is about an incident in which many undergraduates were killed. In the photograph, a young man is cruelly hit by another man, nearly to die. The ironic thing is that there are many people watching this, but no one wants to hold it back; some people are even laughing at him. Moreover, there is a man in pink standing beside with a cart, looking at this scene. This seems to be a satire. What a ridiculous thing! Therefore, the politics in Thailand at that time was not good and brought so many miseries to its citizens. Of course, not just Thailand, but also many other countries have gone through similar periods. I am pity for those people who have suffered from these. At the same time, I have to say this can make a country develop.
All in all, this journey was really wonderful. It widened my horizon and I also learned a lot knowledge and history about Singapore. Thus, it was an unforgettable experience for me.
Monday, May 2, 2011
an experience at church
Last Sunday, a friend of mine invited me to his church for the musical which performed at his church. This is my first time to go to the church since I have been to Singapore. I think some of our Chinese may have strong aversion about the religion because of our culture background. On the contrary, I think we should learn from different religions though we are so-called free thinkers.
Before the musical started, people all started to sing the hymns and prayed. Hymns are the songs of praise to God and I found they really touching my heart. The most frequent word I heard during the hymns was the word “exalted”. I thought it is the best way for them to show their sincere respect to God.
The musical was all about Jesus Cries, the son of God, his story. How did Jesus Cries born. How he healed the blind, the dumb, the deaf when he grew up. In the end, how he was betrayed by his servant and how he was crucified. I learnt a lot about the history of Jesus Cries during the musical and I thought it was a valuable experience.
At the end of the show, the host showed us a photograph which was taken in Japan after the devastating earthquake and tsunami. It was a lone pine tree, standing uprightly in the bare ground. It used to be one of the trees of a whole forest. Alive is hope. That is what the host wanted to convey. Yes, it is true. When we are living in the world, there will always be a hope. We have no excuse to give up our life.
Before the musical started, people all started to sing the hymns and prayed. Hymns are the songs of praise to God and I found they really touching my heart. The most frequent word I heard during the hymns was the word “exalted”. I thought it is the best way for them to show their sincere respect to God.
The musical was all about Jesus Cries, the son of God, his story. How did Jesus Cries born. How he healed the blind, the dumb, the deaf when he grew up. In the end, how he was betrayed by his servant and how he was crucified. I learnt a lot about the history of Jesus Cries during the musical and I thought it was a valuable experience.
At the end of the show, the host showed us a photograph which was taken in Japan after the devastating earthquake and tsunami. It was a lone pine tree, standing uprightly in the bare ground. It used to be one of the trees of a whole forest. Alive is hope. That is what the host wanted to convey. Yes, it is true. When we are living in the world, there will always be a hope. We have no excuse to give up our life.
Art Museum
We were invited to the Singapore Art Museum on 27th, April, 2011. The theme of the Art Museum recently is “negotiating home history and nation”.
The galleries inside are full of imagination. We can hardly know what exactly the artist wants to express with our limited imagination. However, I was shocked by some exhibits a lot. They were really scary. One of the exhibits was made by the skins of squirrels and the other one was made by the skins of snakes. These two exhibits were shaped like shirts. I think the skins are real but how cruel it is. I was puzzled and traumatized. Perhaps, that is the way for artists to make more attention to his works and we can have a deep impression therefore.
People may feel horrified when they see the shirt which was made by the skins of real squirrels. It is because in their point of view, squirrels are so lovely and cute and thus we should treasure them. On the other hand, the skins of snakes may make a difference. Consciously, people think snakes are beast and they can be dangerous or even fatal. Consequently, people may show less mercy to the death of the snakes. Compared with these two situations, I think that is what the artist wants to convey. All the animals are the same. Though some of them may fiercer than others and some of them are cute and adorable, they are all living things. If we can show our mercy to the squirrels, why cannot we show our mercy to all the man-made death of other animals? Moreover, I think the artist also wants our human beings to protect the living creatures from poaching and shows his anger to the animal skins trader.
The galleries inside are full of imagination. We can hardly know what exactly the artist wants to express with our limited imagination. However, I was shocked by some exhibits a lot. They were really scary. One of the exhibits was made by the skins of squirrels and the other one was made by the skins of snakes. These two exhibits were shaped like shirts. I think the skins are real but how cruel it is. I was puzzled and traumatized. Perhaps, that is the way for artists to make more attention to his works and we can have a deep impression therefore.
People may feel horrified when they see the shirt which was made by the skins of real squirrels. It is because in their point of view, squirrels are so lovely and cute and thus we should treasure them. On the other hand, the skins of snakes may make a difference. Consciously, people think snakes are beast and they can be dangerous or even fatal. Consequently, people may show less mercy to the death of the snakes. Compared with these two situations, I think that is what the artist wants to convey. All the animals are the same. Though some of them may fiercer than others and some of them are cute and adorable, they are all living things. If we can show our mercy to the squirrels, why cannot we show our mercy to all the man-made death of other animals? Moreover, I think the artist also wants our human beings to protect the living creatures from poaching and shows his anger to the animal skins trader.
A Visit to SNM and SAM
On this Wednesday, I went to the Singapore National Museum as well as Singapore Arts Museum in the afternoon. I thought it was going to be a boring journey, but I was wrong. The experience there somehow impressed me. Actually I did not like visiting places like museums for I do not like history. However, this visit in a way changed my opinion. We first arrived at the national museum and after a short wait, we began to have a visit of the Singapore History Museum. To my surprise, everyone was given an electronic device which was specially made for visitors to listen to the introductions and explanations in each area. We put on the headphones and then respectively began our history journey. I followed the instructions to a big hall and there was a song being played and it was going like this “Singapore, Singapore… ”. A specially shot video was played around us on the wall. After that we went down to the 1st floor and then entered the old times of Singapore. Just after a few basic introductions, there were two ways before me, one is personal story and one is the event sequence. Although most people chose the latter, I decided to choose a different way to learn about the history. I learnt the foundation of Singapore and the development of its economy and even the life details of the ordinary people at that time. What impressed me most is the World War II in Singapore for I came from China, which was also suffering from the invasion of Japanese. I saw the pictures and heard the sound; I was shocked by the cruelty of war hoping that there will be no war at all in the future. At 3 o’clock, we went to our second destiny----SAM. At the second floor, we saw some strange but meaningful exhibitions, they are interesting but some of them are really difficult to understand its meaning. Then we enter a special exhibition at a corner and I was totally shocked and frightened by the exhibition there because it was all about the dark side of human society, including death and violence and some seemingly ridiculous things. We spent half an hour in that special exhibition area and finally could not bear the uncomfortable atmosphere there and then quickly left. Generally, SAM is a place for new ideas but also for old topics. Compared with SAM, I prefer SNM more because the visit there really dragged me into it. However, I did not have enough time to finish all of it. So maybe next time, when I am free and do not have to hurry, I will go through it again and look for more details!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
The visit to National Museum
It often puzzles me that what it is that can be stored in a museum. Is it a precious stone? Or it is an artwork by a famous painter. To tell the truth, I do not know. However, I am sure that history is something that can be stored in a museum, especially for the national museum, if it really can be kept there.
I did not visit many museums in the past nineteen years. Every time I enter a museum, I feel a kind of depression, which is probably due to the terrible history of modern China. When I got into the Singapore National Museum, I found that the lobby was bright and spacious with high ceiling, decorated with white. Huge glass was used as a wall which separates the museum from the outside world, giving the visitors a strange feeling. I knew that I only have forty minutes to walk around the museum, so I decided to visit the History Museum only. Equipment with a commentary device, I began my journey.
In the beginning, I saw a curved screen around me. Vividly, the screen showed Singaporeans’ daily life, the famous attractions in Singapore and so on. I knew that Singapore only has a history of about forty-five years, but it enjoys a boom in its economy during this short period. This indeed shocked me.
As I walked around, I began to know more about the history of Singapore. What impressed me most was that like China, Singapore also emerged from the aggression of Japan. During the World War II, Singapore was also occupied by Japanese and people suffered from it a lot. Nevertheless, Singaporeans kept resisting and struggling, at last, they won. As a Chinese, I can feel the painful history of Singapore in the past, so I felt depressed again. With this kind of feeling, I finish my journey.
Hope China and Singapore can become stronger and stronger.
I did not visit many museums in the past nineteen years. Every time I enter a museum, I feel a kind of depression, which is probably due to the terrible history of modern China. When I got into the Singapore National Museum, I found that the lobby was bright and spacious with high ceiling, decorated with white. Huge glass was used as a wall which separates the museum from the outside world, giving the visitors a strange feeling. I knew that I only have forty minutes to walk around the museum, so I decided to visit the History Museum only. Equipment with a commentary device, I began my journey.
In the beginning, I saw a curved screen around me. Vividly, the screen showed Singaporeans’ daily life, the famous attractions in Singapore and so on. I knew that Singapore only has a history of about forty-five years, but it enjoys a boom in its economy during this short period. This indeed shocked me.
As I walked around, I began to know more about the history of Singapore. What impressed me most was that like China, Singapore also emerged from the aggression of Japan. During the World War II, Singapore was also occupied by Japanese and people suffered from it a lot. Nevertheless, Singaporeans kept resisting and struggling, at last, they won. As a Chinese, I can feel the painful history of Singapore in the past, so I felt depressed again. With this kind of feeling, I finish my journey.
Hope China and Singapore can become stronger and stronger.
Why I love museums
Last Wednesday, we had our learning journey two, which was to visit national museum and art museum. Actually, before this trip, I myself had already visited both two museums in March. Yet just like a famous author once said, you will always find different new ideas every time you go to the same place. Museum is such a spot where I can harvest a lot whenever visiting.
After the intense progress test, learning journey can always get us relaxed. However, visiting museums has commonly been considered as a tiring work both in physical and mental. I admit that point but at the same time, I should say it really changed my opinions about history, made me build the concept of beauty, and helped me recognized the values of life.
With a history dating back to its inception in 1887, the national museum of Singapore is the nation’s oldest museum with a young soul. Designed to be the people’s museum, the national museum is custodian of the 11 national treasures, and its history and living galleries adopt cutting-edge and varied ways of presenting history and culture to redefine conventional museum experience. In addition, I really prefer the European-style appearance of the national museum. There is no doubt that it is the cultural and architectural landmark in Singapore. The Singapore history gallery explores 700years of eventful history from the 14th century to the modern period through a multi-layered, experiential story-telling approach. Visitors entering the gallery are first surrounded by a dramatic symphony with a montage of flashing scenes of contemporary Singapore projected on the 360°inner wall of the Glass Rotunda. This sets the atmosphere for a journey via a spiral pathway into the depths of the 2800 square-meter gallery. On the other hand, through the themes of film, photography, food and fashion, these living galleries also present the complexities of the country’s history, and the layered, multicultural identity of its people. Similarly, Singapore art museum provides us the fantastic world in the artists’ eyes from a different angle, which left me a deep impression.
On the way back to my hostel, I was just thinking about my previous attitude and views of this world. The past has been written into the history, while it does become the mirror for its descendants to learn.
After the intense progress test, learning journey can always get us relaxed. However, visiting museums has commonly been considered as a tiring work both in physical and mental. I admit that point but at the same time, I should say it really changed my opinions about history, made me build the concept of beauty, and helped me recognized the values of life.
With a history dating back to its inception in 1887, the national museum of Singapore is the nation’s oldest museum with a young soul. Designed to be the people’s museum, the national museum is custodian of the 11 national treasures, and its history and living galleries adopt cutting-edge and varied ways of presenting history and culture to redefine conventional museum experience. In addition, I really prefer the European-style appearance of the national museum. There is no doubt that it is the cultural and architectural landmark in Singapore. The Singapore history gallery explores 700years of eventful history from the 14th century to the modern period through a multi-layered, experiential story-telling approach. Visitors entering the gallery are first surrounded by a dramatic symphony with a montage of flashing scenes of contemporary Singapore projected on the 360°inner wall of the Glass Rotunda. This sets the atmosphere for a journey via a spiral pathway into the depths of the 2800 square-meter gallery. On the other hand, through the themes of film, photography, food and fashion, these living galleries also present the complexities of the country’s history, and the layered, multicultural identity of its people. Similarly, Singapore art museum provides us the fantastic world in the artists’ eyes from a different angle, which left me a deep impression.
On the way back to my hostel, I was just thinking about my previous attitude and views of this world. The past has been written into the history, while it does become the mirror for its descendants to learn.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)