OELP Overall Reflection- Chow Jiun Chyi

OELP Post-Trip Reflection

Overall Individual Reflection

After this fun filled learning trip to Shanghai and Hangzhou, I learned a lot more about China than I already had. Here are three things that I have learned about China during this trip.I have learned that the cost of living in China is lesser than that of Singapore’s, I also learned more about West Lake as well as Lei Feng Pagoda and lastly I learned about things that they do different or are different from that of Singapore.

I have learned that the cost of living in China is not as high as that of Singapore’s. We were brought to the supermarket to compare the prices of daily needs. There, we found out that most products sold at the supermarket were priced at lower price as compared to that of Singapore’s. For example, the Mentos sweet in China was only priced at around 30 cents in Singapore dollars. Moreover when we went shopping at the Chenghuangmiao, we observed that Starbucks in China were also lower priced than that of Starbucks in Singapore.

I have learned more about West Lake as well as Lei Feng Pagoda after my visit there. Before I went for this trip, I only knew West Lake as a lake located in Hangzhou and I did not even know that Lei Feng Pagoda is located near West Lake. But after I went there I learned a lot more. West Lake is a fresh water lake and there are islands located in the lake; natural and man-made islands. There is also a bridge built on the West Lake called the Broken Bridge. I learned that even though it is named Broken Bridge, the bridge is not broken at all. It is only named Broken Bridge because there was a family whose surname is Duan. They lived at the end of the bridge and thus they named the bridge as such. Lastly, I learned a lot of things at Lei Feng Pagoda. It was named Huangfei Pagoda at first as it was built to celebrate the birth of Huangfei’s son by King. However, the pagoda collapsed in September 25, 1924 and then it was rebuilt to what it is today. There is a display of how the collapsed Lei Feng Pagoda look like there too. These two tourist attractions can allow me to further understand the rich history of China.

In Singapore, rice and sugar are sold in packets and we have limited choices. And meat is either frozen or in designated stalls with someone to give you the amount you wanted. For example rice is sold in either 1kg, 2.5kg, 5kg or 10kg. However when we were at the supermarket in China, I saw that the rice, sugar and raw meat was placed in a large and shallow wooden crate and you could take any amount that you liked. I think that it is quite unhygienic but it is rather an interesting idea as it does not restrict you to buy only a certain amount. Another difference is that they have a separate lane for motorcycles and bicycles unlike Singapore. I think this is a great way to reduce traffic accidents as most accidents involve motorcycles.

Proposal to suggest improvements to preserve Singapore’s natural environment in the face of urbanisation:

 

One improvement I would like to suggest is that we should adapt China’s idea of providing bicycles for the public to use at a cheap price. The bicycles in China can be used once they swipe the card and it will end the time of use after they swipe the card once more and park it by a bicycle stand. I think that this will help preserve Singapore’s natural environment as providing bicycle use at a low cost enables us to decrease the use of cars and thus decreasing the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere which would harm the natural environment. So I think we should use China’s method of providing bicycles to the public at a low cost to preserve Singapore’s natural environment.

 

Another improvement I would like to suggest is to build more parks instead of more commercial buildings. Even though commercial buildings are important I think that we should also build more parks. In China, we went for a morning run at the park near the hotel, we also went to the West Lake and viewed the flora and fauna there. I felt that this was also a way to preserve the national environment as in the lake an entire eco-system exists, and the plants and trees provide oxygen in exchange of carbon dioxide which aids the preservation of the natural environment. Moreover the park can also become a tourist attraction for them to view the scenery at the park; killing two birds with one stone. Thus, I feel that building more parks in Singapore will help to preserve Singapore’s natural environment in the face of urbanisation.

 

In conclusion, I think that we should implement China’s method of providing bicycles to the public at a low cost as well as building more parks in Singapore to preserve the natural environment.

 

RV Trip Advisor

Location: SSAW Hotel Boyang Shanghai

Rating: 4/5

I loved the ambience of the hotel. There were a lot of wooden sculptures as well as paintings and vases which decorated the lobby of the hotel. The lounge at the lobby is very comfortable as there are couches for us to sit and it was good for us as we could use the lounge area as our debrief area. The hotel room had was brightly lit however it was not sound proof and there was not enough space to move around. The stair way was also quite dark. And thus I rate it 4 out of 5.

Location: Fudan University

Rating: 5/5

It was very insightful as we were shown a different kind of environment. There were different departments for different classes. We also learned that the university was very huge that the students had to ride scooters and bicycles to travel from one place to another. I was very surprised to realise that the RV senior at Fudan University was my Wushu senior and thus we had more to talk about. She also told us that the students there were very hardworking and competitive showing us that in order to do well in this society, we need to work harder. And although the facilities there are not very high-tech, they are still able to nuture outstanding students.  I think that the future trips should include this university as this shows to us a different kind of environment and it tells us that we should work hard.

Location: Chenghuangmiao（城隍庙）

Rating: 4.5/5

Chenghuangmiao is a temple located in Shanghai, within the old walled city.  There was a big long shopping street beside the temple.The prices of the items sold there are relatively reasonable, and we are able to bargain with the shop owners for cheaper prices.  There was also a wide variety of items sold.  However, we think that the streets were too busy and people were pushing us about.  It was quite uncomfortable to look at the shops when we were walking along the streets.  Furthermore, some of the people were smoking despite the fact that there were signs showing not to smoke. Therefore, we had a hard time breathing.

Location: Hangzhou Vina Hotel （杭州维纳假日酒店）

Rating: 3/5

We stayed at Hangzhou Vina Hotel for 2 nights.  The hotel's room is big and comfy.  There was enough space for us to walk around.  The toilet is also up to standard.  However, there wasn't wifi in the room.  We had to go to the lobby for wifi in order to contact our parents.  The lobby was quiet and it was rather scary to go down alone.  The chambermaids did not vacuum the floor as well.  There was soon dust accumulating on the floor after a night.  We even received prostitute cards every night so we thought that was pretty weird as well.

Yue Fei Mausoleum 

Rating: 3.5/5

A trip to the Yue Fei Mausoleum will leave you feeling accomplished as a Chinese. The place of worship depicts the contributions of Yue Fei and two of his loyal followers.The mausoleum is the place where General Yue Fei and his son got buried, hence making it more meaningful. Along the walk to the tombs, you can also appreciate the works of traditional Chinese calligraphy as well as the beautiful flowers. This is definitely a must-go place in Hangzhou.

Bund and Lujiazui

Rating: 5/5

The scenery from the Bund of the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone was picturesque. According to Max's trip from a long time ago, the view from the bund seemed different. Back then, the city wasn't that bustling and crowded like what it is now. The river that can be seen from the bund was relatively empty back then compared to the river now which is filled with boats for tourism and trade. This is mainly due to urbanization of china and the fact that china is opening up more of itself to the world.

Lei Feng Pagoda

Rating: 4/5

because it consists of rich history. There is a legend about 白娘子 being trapped under the Leifeng pagoda by Fa Hai the evil monk. The people in the past took one brick from the pagoda day by day in order to free 白娘子. I fell in love with the Leifeng pagoda as the story of the white snake legend really appealed to me. In the pagoda, I felt the legendary love deeply and it left a deep impression on me. From the peak of it, the scenery of West Lake loomed into our eyes as we breathed in the fresh air.  However, there were too many people on the top level and it was hard to move around freely as there were limited spaces. 

West Lake 

Rating 5/5

The most famous attraction in Hangzhou is West Lake. Hangzhou's West Lake Scenic Area, in the southwest of the city, covers 60 square kilometers, of which West Lake itself occupies 5.6 square kilometers. We were all amazed the beautiful scenery of West lake even just by looking at it from the bus window. When we reached there we took a ferry ride across west lake. I felt that it's the most amazing site that we visited in China. On the ferry ride, our tour guide told us some interesting facts about the lake. He mentioned that the lake was extremely muddy and dangerous, there was a guy who accidentally fell in to West lake and was never to be found again. Besides this, we could also see the broken bridge. According to legend, Broken Bridge, which is not really broken, but is a traditional arched stone bridge, is the site where two lovers, Xu Xian and a beautiful maiden, who is actually a white snake, met and fell madly in love. In early spring, when the snow begins to melt, it melts on one side of the bridge first, due the fact that the other side is in shade, which gives the bridge a split image. Viewed from a distance, it looks as if one half of the bridge has been ripped off, since the snowy side blends perfectly in with the surrounding landscape, hence the bridge's name.