More than Sand & Water

It was just a normal Saturday but this week we had 2 extra holidays, that is the Holi Festival and Good Friday, so we. around 20 of us, decided to head to the other beach which we have not explore yet - Kaup Beach! This beach is the second I have visited after the first one in Malpe Beach.

The tide of waves are moving fast here, unlike the calming sea in Malpe Beach. Most of my friends still insisted to dive in despite the strong current there. For me, I chose not to swim mainly due to the hydrophobic nature of mine~ =P

The only reason I came is to enjoy the stress-free beach and to feel the strong wind punching my face reminded me that life is not about struggling to do what you are doing, but appreciate the moment of struggling with people whom I called friends. Time management is crucial here especially when we have class tests & presentations every week. So to say that I will neglect my studies when I actually spent just merely 6 hours in this beach is bullshit~ =)

As you can see here, there is a lighthouse in this beach. This lighthouse is believed to be historical as it was built during the British ruling time. This is actually the first time I was standing in front of a real, REAL lighthouse! The sight where the big torch situated high up the lighthouse being thrown out towards the sea is incredibly amazing, shooting each and every particles hibernating in the sea~

We decided to climb up the lighthouse, to the very top. However, the process is not as easy as expected. We need to climb the never-ending spiral staircase within the lighthouse itself. Some of my friends (Siong Keat) even have vertigo - the fear of heights. The feeling of looking down while climbing up is quite scary too~

The bird-eye view on top of the lighthouse is superb. I realised I can actually see things from different perspective when I am high above everyone, the angle of vision is totally different. 'Think out of the box', this is what I have been hearing all this while from other people. One of the problem I have is the lack of creativity, that's what I am looking for all this while. Nevertheless, all of us are still learning day by day. As time passes, we are becoming better everyday~ =)

Starry starry night, strongy strongy wind~

Where Seniors meet Juniors

Time flies, people don't. I have been in Manipal for a semester. It is like a blink of eye but the blink requires much effort and sacrifice since studying here is never easy. Yet, another batch has enrolled in March - Batch 32, which comprised of 180 fresh medical students. Looking back at their innocent faces reminded me of the moment when I first came here, with nobody to depend on, except for the few of my friends who are always there with me. 

Preparations for the orientation programme is inevitable and my role is simple, to be the person incharge for the computer system in the orientation hall and one utmost holy task - the slideshow planner to add colours to the singing of Onion N Garlic (OnG), a team which consists of my 5 friends in the photo above. 

The video attached above is the 7 hours of hardwork by 2Not3 team (Chee Sian, Siong Keat, Chin Leong and I xD). We had days of sleepless nights because of this~ 

Besides the singing session by OnG, there are also sketch, solo singing, indian dance and much more programmes during the orientation. I am sure the juniors are well entertained that time. Above all I personally enjoyed watching the hilarious and creative sketch which depicts the life of medical student in Manipal itself. There are not a single moment that couldn't make me laugh. Thumbs up to the team of dedicated sketch members (Siong Keat, Chee Sian, Chin Leong, Jonathan, Samuel, etc) whose names are just too many to be mentioned. 

To be frank, the reactions by both the lecturers and students present in the hall are the most satisfying moment for me. After putting in countless efforts, the feeling of being able to make other people to laugh is golden. The video is attached above, credits to Wai Khang~ =)

Did I mention the indian dance too? Yea, the indian dance is the final programme for the day, which ended with a cool and amazing flash mobs who filled the entire hall. I am glad and proud to say that most of my close friends here, including me of course, were actively involved in making this orientation a success~ =D

Message to Benjamin: Thanks for being the 3-hour videographer, although something unfortunate happened to the video, but I still salute you for your effort and dedication which is something that not many people can demonstrate. Thanks for being there for everyone~ =)

Siong Keat's Bird Day

Question of the Day: Who is this smart guy?

Hint: This is not Siong Keat

On this auspicious day, my group of friends and I planned 2 surprises for Siong Keat (www.siongkeat93.blogspot.com). One of it was during the last class of the day, we were having biochemistry class with Miss Nagamma. We have informed her a few days prior to Siong Keat's birthday in order for her to play the video that we have specially prepared for him. This 2 minutes+ video took me approximately 7 hours to complete because I am an amateur in making video and this can be considered the first time I am making one.

'Before we end the class, I have one video for you guys to see, please concentrate', said Miss Nagamma. The video is shown above. It took the whole class by surprise and I am sure everyone was amazed since this is also the first time that a teacher and students cooperate to make the birthday boy special. For me, I felt that it is totally an unbelievably cool experience! My utmost appreciation and credits to one of my best buddies, 

Mr QUAH CHEE SIAN 

for sponsoring his creative ideas in making this video a success~ =D

We did not have any formal dinner that night. It was just a normal meal in the food court with the reason I gave to him was everyone was busy preparing for class tests. Right after that, I managed to lure him into KMC Greens which is just situated behind the food court. Each and everyone were already there to give him the 2nd surprise of the day. We have prepared a total of 5 sky lanterns and a cake~ 

Lastly, thank you, Siong Keat for giving me this opportunity to be one of the many tangent lines in your life. I appreciate each and every time spent here in Manipal with you~ =)

Credits to the 2 Ng's - Harry Ng & Ng Leong Jin for the photos above~

Kochi & Munnar

My friends and I went to Kochi and Munnar for a 4 days 3 nights trip after our short semester break in February. We arrived India late at night and stayed at Castle Rock Hotel on the same day. 

Day 1 of our trip started with the excitement of staying in a boat known as House Boat. YES! It is indeed a large boat being modified to be home-like with 3 rooms inside, totally corresponded to our group of 7 persons. 

It was a never-before experience as we spent the whole day on the boat, listening to the call of nature, the melody of waves and the soft wind which kisses our face. Such an enjoyable moment after our long struggle with the tight syllabus for the previous semester.

The next day we traveled by van to a place known as Munnar. It is situated uphill with a cold climate and resembles Cameron Highlands in Pahang, Malaysia. Tea plantations could be seen along the slopes and varieties of plants are beautifully displayed, welcoming us as we drove uphill. 

Before we reach the peak, our driver stopped halfway at an elephant park. It is managed by the locals and instead of riding the elephants for a round, the elephant bought us across the jungle, only for a short distance, but still the experience is vastly difference compared to what we have in Malaysia. 

The fun and relaxing time I had in Munnar is the one I appreciated the most. People said you only realised and enjoy the free time you have once you have experienced the busy schedule which could make you go mad anytime. This is incredibly true as I have been striving very hard for the past 6 months in order to achieve a good result for my studies. 

I have a few other friends who did not join us for the trip due to the reason that study is more important and this is not the time to play. However, I strongly believes that study is a never ending process and the few days of relaxing is actually crucial for our cramped brain as our studies will definitely not be affected by these few days of vacation that we spent.

Late at night around 6pm, we went for Kathakali cultural show for an hour. The show depicts a few god and goddess of the Hindus imitating actions as Kathakali means the God of Art. I am not a fan of all these show and I felt quite bored for this traditional cultural show.

After the show, we went to see Martial Arts just beside the podium for Kathakali. This time it is a completely different show from the one we watched just now. It involved true fighting scenes as all the skills demonstrated are real and one of the fighters actually got injured and there was bleeding on his shoulder. 

The next day we travelled along River Road and the beach of Kochi. One of the shop that gave me a deep impression was Saga Departmental Store. It is actually a mansion selling antiques, furnitures,  carpets and jewellery. Knowing that young students like us could not afford any of the above mentioned stuff which can cost up to 1,000,000 rupees, the promoter which is Mr Wani Mir still consistently explained each and every details of the goods there. 

He is from Kashmir and the shop is owned by his family. He explained to us that carpets actually have investment value and the longer you keep a good quality carpet, the higher will the price be. I salute his professionalism which I think is something I could not even encounter in Kuala Lumpur. 

Thank you friends who made my trip a memorable and wonderful one. It is definitely an eye-opening experience for a city boy like me~ =)

Phuah Sheng

Benjamin Gan

Jonathan Ngo

Jing Yang

Samuel Tiong

Siong Keat