OSAMA IS DEAD!

Photo by the New York Times

But what does it all mean? With Osama bin Laden being nothing more than a symbolic leader of Al Qaeda more than a functional one, what meaning does his death hold for the world, other than allowing the U.S. to claim vengeance?

What I think about the General Elections.

5 years ago, I wrote an article about the political awakening of the youth of Singapore in my 'A' levels GP essay. I argued against the view that our youth are politically apathetic and indifferent to the way our country was run. With the increasing popularity of blogs then, wrote about the increasing importance for the Government to engage the youth in conversation, to listen to the opinions we had about our country.

For 2006, they did just that. A P-65 blog was set up for MPs who were born after our Independence to talk about government policies. I remember a youth forum where MM Lee Kuan Yew spoke to JC students. Look how far we have come!

Today, my Facebook newsfeed is rife with news and videos about political rallies from both the PAP and the Opposition with encouraging frequency. I say encouraging because for the first time ever, I finally feel like we do have a say in how our country is being run. Our voices are finally being heard. Indeed, this is a watershed in Singapore history and politics, a time where citizens are filling daring to speak their mind, to talk about the issues that have been at the back of our heads for the last 5 years -- all these are enabled by social media.

To me, the results of the elections are inconsequential. Something has already changed in the air, with or without the changing of government. The PAP should recognise by now that our youth are no longer silent lambs in the realm of political discourse. Serious efforts should be made in talking to the citizens, and understanding our concerns. That's what it truly means to be a democracy!

A recent check on the P65 blog shows a blog that was last updated in 2010. The footprint of candidates on social media is paltry at best, with those who are in it becoming the most popular despite their humble "track record". Therein lies the potential of social media. Any political party that wants to gain power or stay in power in a country would have to earnestly engage in conversation with its citizens, or risk becoming irrelevant and demonized by those who dominate the social media discourse.

The SDP understands that, and has uploaded their campaign videos on YouTube. The NSP's Nicole Seah has the most number of "Likes" on Facebook other than our MM Lee Kuan Yew. On the flip-side, PAP's Tin Pei Ling has drawn criticism for her Kate Spade bag. Conversation is less about facts and figures, than about talking about the things that the people are interested in. Can your party deliver? Are you competent as a candidate? Or are you just materialistic and off-base with common sentiments? In a world where Friday is the YouTube clip with the most views in history despite being possibly the worst song in the world, hard truths and track records are no longer as relevant.

The biggest question for all the parties out there now is: "Are you listening?"

The Land of Chocolates, Clocks and Cliffs!

It's been a few days since we have been back from Switzerland, but I feel that the beauty of the country deserves a post at least.

To be frank, we all had the consensus that Greece was more beautiful than Switzerland. I really think it has to do with proximity though. We were immersed in beautiful sunsets, lovely white houses and a volcanic island in Greece, but we only managed to witness far-off peaks in Switzerland. Granted, we made it to the highest mountain range in Europe (Jungfrau, if you do not know it), but the remainder of the trip played out like sitting in a cinema watching a video. Only that we were in a train, of course - The Glacier Express. But I get ahead of myself. I should talk about the trip bit by bit...

We made our way to Switzerland by going through the Dusseldorf International Airport in Germany. That meant that we had to leave 4 hours before our check-in time to train all the way to Dusseldorf. That was also the first time we were taking EasyJet instead of our usual Ryanair. Somehow it feels a tad posher albeit still budget. Anyways, there wasn't anything interesting there.

We landed in Basel and immediately started scouting out for the prices of the produce there. Ian had warned us beforehand that things were going to be expensive, so we basically brought 4 days worth of biscuits, bread, and instant noodles with us to last through the whole trip. We got some weird stares along the way for eating our bread though.. I wonder if they think that we were too poor to afford meals or something. I still can remember 2 old ladies on 2 separate trains giving us weird looks of contempt...

Back to Basel! It was already dark when we landed, so we lodged at the YMCA Hostel there, which was well-equipped and -decorated as compared to any other hostel we have been to so far. Of course, we didn't know at this time that the Backpacker's Villa Sonnenhof in Interlaken was going to pwn it for miles and miles! The villa was almost all equipped. With a kitchen for your cooking needs, a ping-pong table, computers enough to start a LAN shop, a pool table, a POOL. Amazing. Add a good breakfast and good service to that, and it's no wonder why they got themselves so many awards from Hostel World and Hostel Bookers.

We went straight to Zurich the next day, leaving the exploration of Basel for our very last day in Switzerland. It's a pity that we didn't really manage to go to the main city of Zurich though. We spent our time in Hardbrucke, where we visited the headquarters of Freitag. There was an accident that happened to Chew there. She fell off a bicycle that she was taking photographs on, and we were scared to death by that. Thankfully, the staff of Freitag were kind enough to buy here some sugar and drinks to calm her nerves. We had heard about the hospitality of Switzerland before we came, but that was our first real encounter with that.

By the time we finished looking at all the bags, and finding the outlet shop that was nearby, it was about time to head on to Interlaken.

For the two days in Interlaken, we visited Jungfrau and took the Glacier Express that gave a view of all the different mountains in the Swiss Alps.

Jungfrau was amazing without question. I have never experienced winds so strong before. I really thought when I was on the plateau that I was going to get blown away if I didn't lower myself or hold on to the ropes at the side. If I look happy in that picture above, it's because I was glad to be able to hold on to the flag pole for support!

The view was of course, magnificent. Hopefully you will be able to see them when I get more time to update my Tumblr! The winds were so cold though, that most of us almost got frostbite, and we had to head in..

There was also an Ice Palace at Jungfrau, but it wasn't anything special. Not after you have seen the ice sculptures from Harbin, at least. Maybe it was because it's still the start of the tourist season, and most of the sculptures haven't been completed yet.

For our second day, we went on the Glacier Express! What was supposed to be a great journey turned quite sour because the passengers beside us kept reaching over to our table to take photographs without giving a care about us. Their armpits were literally almost in our faces lah! Also, because we were in a train all the way through, it didn't really feel real to me. Like I said before, it was much more like watching a movie rather than being there.

The Glacier Express took us about more than half a day to complete, and we had some time to drop by Lucerne before going back to Basel. It was a beautiful city that was rich in history, and and got to see lots of swans! We even coaxed one out of the water by luring it with biscuits. LOL. It was also in Lucerne where we saw this whole bunch of people dressed up as rabbits for Easter. More on that on Facebook! Anyways, watch this cute swan in action!

Exploring Basel on our very last day was just a matter of visiting the Munster because we were too tired from the trip to do anything else. I guess there wasn't much to see there anyways other than the multitudes of museums. And with that, we flew home to good ole Maastricht. And that was that =) Switzerland in a post!

Remembering.

The song "My Immortal" came on in my iTunes, and I was reminded of a younger me in secondary school.

Back then, I was still figuring out what life meant. Do you remember yourself in a similar stage of life? Everything was deeper than it looks, and everything seemed layered with added meaning. My eyes opened to the world of interpersonal relationships. I found God.

On hindsight, I figured out what I wanted to do with my life right then too. I was involved in creative things such as the Chinese Drama Circle, and I was involved in things that built people up, like the Boys Brigade. These things continue to be what I want to do with my life. I want what I do in the future to build up others, to show others that there are better ways of looking at things beyond the mercenary earning of money and beyond the pessimistic thoughts about others. I want to create - to translate ideas in my head into concrete solutions. Maybe that's why I love marketing. It's conversation, and it's innovation to make lives better.

Thinking about those times puts a smile on my face - the naiveté I had, the funny little things I did. I thought I fell in love then, only to find now that true love takes a lot more than just having that warm feeling coursing down my veins. All relationships take effort and time and compromise. I see that now, clearer than ever. It's beyond holding hands and feeling nice. It's deciding to say sorry, or to admit that you are wrong, even if it's not the most comfortable thing to do.

Sometimes I wonder if I would have turned out the same way I am without knowing God. Now I know what James means when he said "Every good and perfect gift is from above". I need to remind myself of that more.

Greece!

I always find it difficult to aggregate all the experiences I've had in a country into one single post, yet too tedious to write daily journals of the trip. I learnt that when I tried to keep a travel journal in Italy. So I guess the best way to communicate how the trip was is to show you an email that I wrote to my mother. I just sent it, so it's totally possible that you are reading it before she does. Hahas.. But it's everything I want to say about Greece. Because words cannot express how awesome the place is...

Hello Mother!

I just came back from the Greek Islands and just started school today. Actually I am taking the 1 hour I have before class to write to you right now!

Greece was the best place we have been to so far in terms of the scenery, the food and the people. We planned to go to Athens, Santorini (an island) and Rhodes (another bigger island), but ended up spending only 3 hours in Athens because the ferry we wanted to take initially was cancelled. The trip ended up to be more about the islands than the main peninsular of Greece.

Of the two islands that we went to, I must say that Santorini wins hands down. It's supposed to be super touristy because it's the place where they filmed "Mamma Mia", but we went there before the actual peak season started. So everyone was just starting to open their stores, and the weather was rather cold.

There was the beautiful sunset at Ia, and the panoramic view that we saw at the top of a monastery on a hill. Also, there was the beautiful scenery of the different coloured beaches (ask Sis to show you Facebook when I upload the pictures!). What really struck me though, was how friendly everyone was on the island. They were genuinely willing to help us and answer us when we had questions, and didn't get annoyed at all in situations where I think someone else would flare up. We were really just waiting for something bad to happen to us in terms of service, but it never ever came.

We also managed to get lots of free stuff in Santorini! This bar called Yazz Bar we went to gave us free Vinsanto wine, which is the locally produced award winning wine there. I bought some back for you guys to try =) The very same bar also treated us to some Moet Hennesy champagne one night when we went over there for a party they were having because it was the bartender's birthday. There were also lots of other examples of how other shops just offered us free yoghurt to try or more food. Really really friendly people!

The food there was also great. They basically eat something that is similar to the kebab that we see in Singapore, but they call them "Gyros" and "Souvlakis". They are also big on salads, olive oil and pita bread. I TOTALLY LOVE PITA BREAD NOW! What they do is they toast the pita and eat it together with a dip, normally made of greek yoghurt and cucumber called "tzaziki". I think I can make some when I get back for you all =) Other than that, the meals are mainly meat. Either pork or beef in the kebabs..

The trip in Rhodes was also very nice mainly because of the people. I didn't exactly fancy the scenery there, and the beaches really couldn't compare with Santorini. But the general warmness of the Greeks came through. There was this small incident with a very bitchy lady boss in the hostel we stayed in, but other than that, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I managed to get myself a good tan in Greece too! I was starting to feel gao wei because of how white I was becoming in Maastricht. Hahas..

I was just very impressed with how the people there were so friendly despite all the economic problems we read about in the newspapers. Frankly, I was expecting riots and strikes in Athens, and that's why we didn't plan to stay more days there. What we got out of it was so different though.. People were genuinely happy and sincere, and glad that we were there to visit their country. They were also happy to share their culture with us in terms of how to make their food.

I think it's hard for any other place to match up to Greece le!

Anyways, I really miss everyone at home! Sent some postcards back home. Let me know if you received it! I'm going to Switzerland for 4 days this Wednesday because they are having Easter holidays here, so I probably will not be able to skype again. BUT I'M ALWAYS THINKING OF HOME!!

<3

Your Son,
Dezhi