LET'S KICK SOME BLEEP

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

littlest things.

Day 2: [Editor’s note >>> Random thoughts regarding the day’s work therefore nothing is really in chronological order. Sorry. :( ]

We did more shoveling and carrying of soil and sand to and fro. Occasionally we would interact with the kids [who were all very shy] by waving to them from a distance. Everytime we tried to approach them, they would run away. So much for interaction. =/ The debrief that took place the night before highlighted certain issues such as monitoring the safety of our fellow teammates and appointing a safety IC [Angus - Log Comm]. Anws at the worksite, we entertained ourselves with much jokes regarding Evelyn [our mentor] being a future CHAI DAO KUEH/CARROT CAKE hawker, Tom [our Vietnamese classmate] being THE MAN and JOSIE/Lollipop Girl and “SHE’S THE MAN”. The few of us working at the back of the kindergarten taught Tom some popular Hokkien phrases – about GEI KIANG [acting smart]. :P I enjoyed that day’s work and time passes faster when you are having fun and working hard simultaneously. ;) Tiger also showed us this magic trick at lunch time and it involved a cup and a string. I thought I got the hang of it by watching him demonstrate it SLOWLY for us to see, but sometimes you must try/DIY before you truly understand. :O

Day 3: OH NOW I REMEMBER ! Today was the most unproductive day of all, but everyday I learn something new so what really defines productivity? =/ [Something to think about.] It rained heavily after lunch and some team members returned to our homestay first, thus not much work was done. Furthermore the weather was so cold [it was foggy and misty most of the time] that my fingers turned numb even though I wore gloves. We used the time to play some hand games and group games which was fun and helped in team bonding. We sat inside the kindergarten and warmed ourselves around this crackling fire that Tiger made in a basin. YEAH – a couple of branches that he broke off from trees. He probably thought we were bored and [possible problem we should have pre-empted regarding the weather?] cold as well, so he quizzed us on some math questions and told us stories regarding the Vietnamese culture. [Cock fighting, slaughtering of buffaloes because of an age old myth regarding water monsters abducting young girls, ETC.] I like the part where we sat around the fire and he increased my knowledge regarding the Vietnamese tradition/customs. :)

Day 4: [I don’t record my thoughts all the time and now I kind of regret it when I try to recall certain events. But how do I put it in words? Every situation that I have been through is meaningful in life, no matter how insignificant they seem.] Thursday – we took a half day off to be present at another kindergarten for Vietnam’s Teacher’s Day. We learnt how to say Happy Teacher’s Day in Vietnamese which was "Chuk Meng Nai Nha Zhao Vietnam". :D We went to 2 schools and we performed our friendship dance at the kindergarten. The Vietnamese teachers gave really long speeches about their schools, their love for teaching and thanking us Singaporeans. :O

Well, um, we don’t understand Vietnamese very well and occasionally I hear/catch snippets of familiar phrases like GAHMEN/Thank You and Singapore and KO ZHAO/Teacher. Most of the time the other members were asking Tom to translate what the teachers were saying. We watched the performances of the little kids and were all cooing over how adorable/cute they were in so many ways. I would like to say that honestly, I DID NOT have any favouritism/biasness for any kid. I think they were ALL cute. ;) And this point proved to be something worth discussing about when we had debrief at night.

THE HOMESTAY FOOD: is damn good and definitely very oily but HECK. :P After days 2 and 3, the weather got colder and thus people are more prone to eat more food. EXACTLY MY CASE and I started eating TWO bowls of rice and piling food onto my bowl. AND WE ALL LOVE VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS, PANCAKES, BANANAS, STIR-FRIED CABBAGE/VEG, STEWED PORK AND CURRY, ETC. Everything tastes better when you are having chills. :D A practice we cultivated during the trip is that we will wait for everyone to be at the dinner table, count strength and then someone will be appointed to say grace before we DIVED into MY favourite business of the day. Some days we get soup, which led to VAL XIE [my buddy] and I praising the Lord [HAHAHA :P ] for we craved for soup MUCH MUCH. Dinnertime always made me feel like our OCIP team was a big happy family. :)

Day 5: I learnt many Vietnamese words and the main theme was animals. :P

1. Kon Vit – Duck
2. Kon Ho – Tiger
3. Kon Chor – Dog
4. Kon Gah – Chicken
5. Kon Ngua – Horse
6. Kon Ngua Van – Zebra
7. Kon Meow – Cat :D

Thought I would just expand your knowledge about languages. I love to learn a new language. ;) In the morning I had to remain behind with some Log Comm people to help with the cooking. OR SO I THOUGHT; how naïve of me. We helped to wash the breakfast dishes in cold water [IN COLD WEATHER !!!] and I began realizing how LOUSY I was at household chores. The dishes were fine but when it came to prepping for the massive COOKING SHOW DOWN, I was a downright epic failure. :( I removed the skin for small onions with Gen Gui [Log Comm Head] and only I ended up tearing. :( That stinging feeling in my eyes and my fingers containing that repulsive stench is enough to make me HATE onions forever. BUT THAT WASN’T THE BEST PART OF THE STORY.

I PEELED POMELO [dessert/FRUIT of the day] AND CUT MYSELF TWICE. (-.-")

MOVING ON [argh argh argh], we left for the worksite with lunch for our fellow team mates whom were all [supposedly] hard at work building the kindergarten. The bus/van got stuck in the soil/sand TWICE [something wrong with the number 2 that day - jinxed] and they had to push the bus/van. ALL THESE WHILE TOTTERING DANGEROUSLY AT THE AGE OF THE MOUNTAIN PATH. [Another sidenote: I was getting used to the bumpy road. Perfect for rocking one into deep slumber. ;) ] Did not do much work at the worksite – went down the mountains and to the market for a walk. Went into a shop and we MASS bought BEANIES for the team. I think I was probably the only one who didn’t get any. The beanies were [no C word here to offend anyone] rather affordable.

That was probably the day I decided that I was living in a dream. The weather is cooling, the sun is out, the scenery is breath-taking – WHAT MORE CAN ONE ASK FOR? It is the simple life that can make one content. Also glanced through my notebook and realized I wrote down something which struck me as [IDK how to describe it].

“I can hardly remember how Yun Ho [DBSK guy that I was highly infatuated with before the trip – and still am, although much lesser now :P ] looks like and what are his mannerisms.” Either my memory is failing me or I feel that I can forget things of less importance. *SHRUGS*

Day 6: Work progress was somewhat slow and unproductive, in my opinion. 2 coats of white base paint went up and 1 coat of yellow paint. The paint mixture was strange and many of us complained of its quality. It was in powdered form and when dumped into water, fizzed and bubbled. I would say it was like some chemical reaction taking place [yes, effervescence.] Watched a little bit of TV [they had that gambling show with Zoe Tay and Lee Nan Xing] and played with Tu Ding Nam Ai. :D [FINALLY !] At least I think that is his name when I asked him. I forgot to mention that he is the only child [and a very pampered one for fact] of the homestay owner. He is a mischevious imp [WE CANT BULLY HIM BUT HE CAN BULLY US!] and throws his temper about. Still, he can be such a charmer with his rosy complexion and impish ways.

kids can really be evil little beings at times. TSK. :P

We learnt that he goes to a kindergarten in the city area and his school fees are atrocious! USD 250 PER MONTH! :O And that the teachers at the village kindergarten are paid only USD 200 per month to teach. AND AND AND the Vietnamese are practical people – they have children according to how much help they need at home. Perhaps 4/5 children for different tasks such as working on the farm, taking care of the buffalo/rearing animals, doing household chores, selling the handicrafts they make, ETC. Not all the children get to attend public school; only the privileged ones. [ARE WE ULTRA-PRIVILEDGED THEN?] :(

[TBC.]

PS: i forgot to mention that there were construction workers at the work site and 2 of them were Tiger's brothers. we were all joking that maybe his brothers' names were PUMA or LEOPARD or LION or relatives of the BIG CAT families. :P

5:08 PM