Last day of OELP. Time really flies.
Firstly, we went to Tunxi Ancient Street (屯溪老街) to shop. This was also one of the most anticipated event, especially among the girls. We had 40 minutes of shopping time, but I think in the end we took more than that.
Tea was one of the famous must-buys in Anhui. Too bad I did not buy any home because I thought my family does not really drink tea. I thought this shopping trip at Tunxi would be quite exciting, but it turned out to be not as fun as I thought it would be. There were nothing much that was of use to me so I did not buy anything, except for a cup of bubble tea to satisfy my crave for it. It did not taste very nice though.
We took a long bus journey to Hangzhou for lunch and then enjoy a West Lake Cruise nearby the reastaurant. It rained on our way to Hangzhou, but luckily it pretty much stopped when we reached. One of the local Hangzhou dishes we ate was the pork belly (东坡肉). It was one of the most delicious dish I had in China. There was nothing much to see during our West Lake Cruise because everything appeared to be small from our boat. However, we did had fun chatting and joking with one another.
Scenery outside the boat
In the boat
We also visited the Yue Fei Mausoleum too.
After that, we took another long bus journey to the airport. There was a rest stop in between for us to go to the toilet or buy some snacks. I was waiting for some of my friends outside the toilet when I was taken aback after seeing the sign above the toilet for the disabled: "Deformed". It was rude and insulting. Definitely did not sound nice too. I do not know if they lacking in vocabulary or something, but I hope they would change the sign soon.
Finally, we reached the airport for dinner. We were told later that the flight was delayed by 1hr, and some food vouchers were distributed for compensation. I was very full after dinner and did not know what to use the vouchers for. However, I heard from Zhi Yan that we could get some Haagen-Dazs ice cream for dessert. I was quite satisfied to eat it for free as it was quite expensive.
This marked the end of our OELP trip in China. Although I was quite happy to return home and enjoy the June Holidays, I was also reluctant to leave China. After staying one week in Anhui, I got used to the environment here more or less. Thinking about how much fun we had, I hope time could rewind to the Day 1 of OELP. This OELP trip taught me not only more about the Chinese culture, but also many life lessons. Even though they were simple things like appreciation, it was only being in China that I saw the difference between Singapore and China. I also started to realise how I was fortunate to be born in Singapore. Our class 2E always thought that we were not bonded at all but after one week being together as a class, we all felt that our class have become more close knitted. Some of us made new friends while some of us learn more about one another. OELP really gave me profound lessons.
Even until now, I am missing OELP.
~ Kitty
No comments:
Post a Comment