After we parted for our first day of home stay, we were excited to see each other in school again.
We had three special segments of the day awaiting for us. After a long bus ride, we finally reached our first destination of the day- Area 1 Vocational Rehabilitation Centre (AVRC).
Through the tours and talks at AVRC, we got to know more about about people with different special needs.
It is very nice to see them brimming with so much confidence from their performances. They had really put up a series of wonderful performances. We had really enjoyed ourselves until we would unknowingly wave and clap along to the beat of the music.
On our way to our second destination, there is a very clean and beautiful beach. That meant it was time for photo-taking session! We all felt very happy to be able to come to this beach. Because not only is the scenery picturesque, we also got to enjoy the sea breeze as we walked.
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| Look at how sweet this two buddies are |
However, our mood changed drastically as we reached our second venue- the dumpsite. In fact, our heart sank. It was so heart-wrenching for us to see the people to stay in such poor living conditions yet there is nothing much we can do for them.
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| At the dumpsite |
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| Children queuing up for food during feeding program |
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| House of the villagers there |
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All we could take away from this place is a lesson learnt- cherish everything we have now. With that, we packed our emotions and left the place for our last segment of our day- dinner at the captain's farm! It was such a grand and sumptuous meal at the Captain's farm. Really couldn't help but feel very thankful and heart warming for the hospitality provided by them. They had spent so much time, effort and resources for us. It was also an eye opening experience to see the animals in the farm.
After the dinner, it was time to proceed to our home stay area. Some of us were picked up by our family at the farm back to the house.
It was not long after we were separated, we met again. Many of us met again at a 18th year old girl's birthday party that day. It seems as though everyone in the village knows each other and very close to each other.
It is never easy for us to say goodbye. Tears can be seen in our Tatai, nanai and ah ding as we told them we are leaving. Some of us even cry with them!
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| Can't bear to leave each other |
This is why I love how closely-knitted this community is. I feel very grateful to them for showing us around their village for us such as birthday party, carnival and visitings in day 4. These experiences are so memorable that I doubt I will ever forget in my lifetime. Cheers to day 5!
-Jia Min
Special photo credits to Ellias and Yin King
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