Class Spirit

Through the last 3 days, our class have definitely bonded much more than we probably have in the last few months. There's something about the many positive experiences rather than sitting down at a desk that helped us to bond more than ever.

Our class may not be the most bonded class but we definitely have bonded quite a lot through this trip, over the performance we had to put up at MOZAC, to the presentation during Malacca Evening and even this blog (our static product). Most of us have forgotten (and forgiven each other) about the feuds we have with our classmates that were there since the start of the year and managed to forge new friendships within our class.  

MOZAC Performance

At MOZAC, we had to prepare for our class performance after lunch. We all stood near a drain to practice our chosen song, 'One Singapore'. At first, it felt a tad uncoordinated and a bit unprepared, nevertheless, we practiced several times and kind of got the two-part to harmonise. At least, we were relatively satisfied with how our performance was thus far and hence ended our practice.

"Woah-ooh-woah-oh, Woah-ooh-woah-oh, together, together as one, we're so much more, One Singapore!"
"(Many faces, many voices), (Many stories, one heart)"
"I forgot we're supposed to sing the bracketed part!"

We now had some free time on hands. After some deliberation, we chose to play games such as Splat! and yelled for our "class photographer" to take snaps of monkeys that we spotted lingering nearby. As each minute ticked by, I felt myself warm ever so slightly towards my classmates.

After that, we filed into the hall to watch the performances. The MOZAC students had put in tons of effort into their heartfelt and enthusiastic performances. The Bollywood dancing group even performed twice after a technical problem with their music occurred the first time. This further motivated our class spirit to show how appreciative we were and we wanted to show them that we had tried our best.

While ascending the stage, we were extremely scared. Some parts of the song were fairly challenging for some of us and we didn't want to embarrass ourselves by singing very out of pitch. Though we were not part of the audience, we think that we were fairly audible (our teacher later informed us that we were indeed audible). After each chorus (where it sounded like the song had ended due to a slight pause on our part), the audience clapped and we were unsure whether to continue or not. Oops!

In the end, we completed the entire song. This was most likely one of the times in which the bonds between us strengthened. We were afraid together, we sang and had fun on stage together, and most of all, we all contributed to this performance together. We were scared that our performance wasn't satisfactory, but even after our performance we heard some MOZAC students hum the tune. :)

Big Day Out
During our Big Day Out, though the class was split up into 3 groups, we bonded within our groups and sometimes even with the entire class. We lots of fun together, getting lost, getting drenched in the sudden shower and withering under the heat from walking around.

There was one time towards the end of the trip when we were at the Baba and Nyonya House Museum and most of our class sat outside the five-foot-way and waved to the passing cars as a 'social experiment' and it was heartening to see that most people waved back! As a class, we laughed a lot at some people's reactions and bonded over this. For example, one driver put up both his hands and waved back at us! Safety first, sir!

Malacca Evening
Upon returning to the hotel, we had to quickly work on our presentation for Malacca Evening as we only had limited time. Since different groups had different pieces of information, we had to collaborate to put together the presentation.

We had to redo the presentation 7 times because the audience was split into smaller groups. It was tough, but we managed to do it! When we presented to 111 (our classmates), they clapped and cheered quite a number of times. This display of support, whether or not we won, was heartening to see. It was a pretty amazing experience and I'm glad to have had this opportunity to present in front of such a wonderful audience (including 111).

In the end, when the results were announced (we won), the general response was: "Huh? What? Really?" The presentation had been put together by our class and this was the fruit of our labour.

Winning was really unexpected, but that isn't the most important thing. From Malacca Evening, we learnt a lot from our peers and there was a lot of knowledge gained. 101 and 107, for example, both put up engaging skits of a Malacca legend which we learnt a lot from. We also enjoyed being able to share what we have learnt from our interviews and we are extremely delighted the audience took to it. :)

Kampong Visit

There were many small gestures during our kampong visit where we could feel our class spirit. For example, to cope with the hordes of mosquitoes, we shared the more "effective" mosquito repellents with others to ward off the bloodsuckers. Similarly, when there were streams, we helped each other to cross the river, clutching on desperately to each other so as not to tumble into the muddy water.

At one point in time, someone fell into the river and her shoe got stuck in the muddy paddy plantation. Many classmates rushed to her aid and to attempt to fish out the lost shoe. In the end, those present were driven away by the tour guide, who hastily took charge of the situation and successfully found the mud-caked shoe in the water. However, it was really touching to see all those who attempted to help our classmate! :D

1-11 Day!

After our visit to the kampong, we went on the tour bus for lunch. On 1st November (1/11), 1:11pm, we happened to be on the bus. We sang the birthday song (we could not think of any other song) followed by our class cheer. We did attempt to do an encore of the One Singapore song that had bonded us, but we got a little out of tune and ended up doubling over with laughter.

          North South East West
          Tell me tell me who's the best
          111 is the best
          111 beats the rest
          111 has most fun
          111 number one!

Celebrating this occasion with the entire class was very memorable, especially since we were on an overseas trip together, and we also marked the ocassion with a class photo back at the rice paddies.

Return

The return to Singapore was mostly made of games and lively chatter, and fewer naps than before. Most of us, if not everyone, was pleased with how the trip had turned out. As we neared Singapore we were aware that all good things would have to come to an end and some people did not even want to return to Singapore.

The Small Things That Matter

For the most part, there was no WiFi on the trip. Though we were upset about it (I suppose, in this technologically advanced world, we would feel disconnected from the world without it), the absence of WiFi meant that no one was glued to their phones scrolling through their social media apps and forced us to talk to those at our table and bond. So perhaps the lack of WiFi was a good thing!

Our hotel was not the best hotel we could have asked for. There was no kettle, some toilets were clogged and some pipes leaked. It may seem daft, but we "bonded" over complaining about all these, pleading for kettles (either to eat cup noodles or to sanitise things), spoilt room doors coming off its hinges and the disgusting state of the toilets.

By sharing rooms with our classmates, we also forged even closer friendships with each other. For some, some of the best memories were created in the hotel doing ridiculous dares or playing games. We also learnt more about one another by spending a couple of days in the same room and came to understand one another better.

I grew closer to my best friends, by rooming with them and traveling with them for a few days. Through this, I knew about more aspects of their lives, and their likes and dislikes. 

The class spirit we felt on this trip was nothing short of amazing. It is wonderful to have had this experience to bond with the entire class.

I also felt that our class has grown closer. Throughout this year, our class has gone through ups and downs together. This was the perfect time and instance to bond together as a class and end the year on a high note. We even celebrated 1-11 day! :D

Thank you, 111, for making this trip wonderful. 

♥ ∞ 111 ∞ ♥