Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010

The football focus last evening brought to my attention that we have lived through yet another decade.

2009 has been a year full of surprises, from school to travel to work and within my circle of family and friends.

As has been predicted right from the beginning of the year, 2009 is gonna be full of trials and tribunals for me. With 80% of my friends graduated from NUS and me left alone for my final semester with the HI-BYE friends, helpless is the word to describe. Fortunately, I made new friends in the course and the saying that old's always better than new apparently was proven wrong.

Going through the process of doing the thesis was indeed trying but the satisfaction attained upon the completion of the thesis and finally seeing the results were beyond my imagination. Looking back, I had always complained about how tough it is to survive in NUS with all the competition around me. Yet now that I am leaving the school, a sense of reluctance waves over me. I treasure the school holidays that accompanied the competition, the Exchange that would be made impossible without NUS, and the travelling and adventures that were non-existence if I had forgone my tertiary education in NUS.

Where travel is concerned, I have conquered 3 countries in Asia and the Oceanic region this year! Australia and Japan were out of my plans initially because it was America that I wanted to visit. I guess not going to America was a blessing in disguise. The money spent on America alone was sufficient to bring me to both Australia and Japan. Honestly, I had always wanted to visit Japan since young but it never crossed my mind that I would land my foot in the land of the rising sun this year. Perhaps the stories about the high standard of living had instilled fear in me such that if I do not have 50K in my bank account, Japan is not the place to go. :)

If Jules Verne had planned to travel around the world in 80 days, his 80 days is equivalent to my 30 years of life. His adventure began in London while mine originated from Bangkok. Landed my butt in Bangkok on my virgin trip in 2006 December and it has never stopped since. I do not deny that travelling can be really tiring and learning to travel with friends is an art to be mastered. But two is always better than one and I love having traveling companions. So I always count my blessings whenever I get to travel.

The decade adventure:

Bangkok, Thailand --> Various cities, Vietnam --> Genting, Malaysia --> Hong Kong --> Stockholm, Sweden --> Oslo, Norway --> London, Manchester, various cities, England --> Copenhagen, Denmark --> Amsterdam, Netherlands --> Brussels, Belgium --> Munich & Berlin, Germany --> Salzburg & Vienna, Austria --> Prague, Czech Republic --> Edinburgh, Scotland --> Rome, Pisa, Florence, Venice & Milan, Italy --> Athens & Corfu, Greece --> Madrid, Spain --> Porto & Lisbon, Portugal --> Marrakech, Morocco --> Barcelona, Spain --> Paris & Strasbourg, France --> Brisbane, Surfer's Paradise, Cairns & Sydney, Australia --> Osaka & Kyoto, Japan --> Taipei & various cities, Taiwan --> Tokyo & Nara, Japan --> ?????

With regards to handling family matters, I guess I have matured much over the years. Yes, communication bridges gaps between family members but trust is the word that can break down all barriers. The lack of trust entails dishonesty in communication. So when you communicate with someone yet deep in your heart, you do not trust the person entirely, you don't bridge gaps and differences in lives. :) I am glad within that small circle of my family members, the bond is strong and whenever we need to lend a ear to pour our sorrows or in times of need, no one is ever rejected.

The past decade has also seen me making friends who are bound to last a lifetime and also others who walk in and out too hastily. Whenever I talked to my students about their lifestyle, it brings me back to my own fond memories. Memories of the days when we idle at each other's house, roam the streets in Orchard and the town area, practically doing unproductive things like gossiping, ogling at eye-candies, window-shopping, etc. If I ever do such things these days, remorse will cloud over me for the whole day. As these habits grow out of my life, the friends who accompany these habits left me too. Nothing to cry over because I have learned the pain and struggles of having to say goodbye and that I will somehow get over it some day.

As I countdown to the new decade beginning 2010, I have mentally prepared myself for the transition from a student to a teacher. However, the little girl that I am lives in me and I am still the me that I was a decade ago. :)

Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010!