Post-departure Tips for SMU

By Emma Phillips, Singapore Management University, Singapore.

Since I have now been in Singapore for over six months, here are some of the things you should be aware of when you arrive.

The view from LeVeL 33.
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The End of the Beginning

By Emma Phillips, Singapore Management University, Singapore.

With exams and the first semester coming to a close, one of the main things on my mind was the fact that after spending every day with new friends from all over the world I would have to say goodbye to a large majority of them.

Here is how we spent one final week together on the most spoken about Indonesian island, Bali.

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A New Chapter

By Emma Phillips, Singapore Management University, Singapore

I have been in Singapore for just over a month now and time truly has flown. August and the start of September have brought many opportunities. Here is what I’ve done, how I met people and my highlights of Southeast Asia so far.

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End of one adventure

When I began this adventure in January, this was not at all how I envisioned it ending. Coronavirus and government recall meant that I had to leave sunny Singapore very quickly. Whilst the government recall, the pain of getting a new plane ticket and, leaving all my new friends behind was not how I envisioned it ending, I can’t say it hasn’t been memorable.

My time abroad has not only allowed me the opportunity to travel and have amazing new adventures, but stretch and challenge myself. I will never forget the amazing views of sunrises in Surabaya, rainforests in Laos, and lanterns in Taiwan. However, for me it was the people who made my experience so amazing. I never thought I would make such important friendships so quickly, and yet we’ve already planned our New Years celebration together! People often joke that you “find yourself in Southeast Asia”, and I definitely found the best group of friends. People who I would quite literally jump off a cliff after, and people who immediately agreed to finish my checklist with me on my very sudden last days in Singapore. I feel extremely lucky to have shared amazing memories with these people, and I know this is the first of many adventures for us!

I also feel that Singapore has made a lasting impact on me. I am more spontaneous and willing to take risks, to plan a trip on Thursday night and leave Friday morning. It has broadened my horizons by allowing me to take risks and grow. I know I can travel alone and live on the other side of the world and it not end in mass disaster. Living abroad has made me more independent and self-sufficient. From organising my own VISA, to navigating boarder crossings at night, it’s safe to say that I definitely learnt a variety of life skills!

Whilst my time in Southeast Asia was cut short, I wouldn’t trade my experience, or the friendships I made! (And don’t worry I’ll be back there next summer for a new adventure!)

Five things I wish I knew before studying abroad

FROM A STUDENT WHO ALMOST DIDN’T GO


To those students going abroad in Semester 2 just as I did, the long wait between receiving your placement offer and that eventual flight out can feel endless. There were many times I found myself frantically trying to recount why I’d wanted to go abroad in the first place – the initial excitement now wearing off and the reality of the wait ahead sinking in.

But as a student who DID go, and who found herself lying awake on one of her last nights at the National University of Singapore, thinking – almost alarmed – about the fact she’d nearly cancelled her placement; here are the five things I wish I knew before studying abroad, which would have made that wait easier.

1. There really is nothing quite like studying abroad

There’s summer travel, sure, but being in a foreign place and living like a local with a stream of new friends at your disposal, and plenty of pastoral and financial support? Now that’s something I could do with more often! While abroad I became so aware of how unique this experience was. Having the support from a university (particularly in a pandemic) in this process was invaluable, and knowing I had assistance should I have run into difficulty mean’t I was able to enjoy the experience so much more fully. It’s an opportunity I would recommend to anyone, and one I feel sad I won’t be able to replicate again.

2. Your university friends won’t move on without you

This is the hard part. Many students worry about this! Although you’ll be gone a long time and life can get busy, stay in touch with your uni friends. Find out what’s happening back home and share with them what new things you’re trying. When you come back, if you find you’re not as close to some people as when you left – that’s okay! It’s a normal part of life! But those core people really do stay with you. My study abroad came as a time where I felt my social life was peaking, I was growing closer to new friends, and I couldn’t see why I’d ‘ruin’ a good thing. All I can say is: take the plunge! It feels crazy in the moment, but a second semester in Manchester, although fun, never really could have challenged and enriched me like a semester abroad did.

3. A little bit of uncertainty does you good

Studying in a foreign country can seem incredible daunting. New people, new routines, new food – but if anything, being abroad made me so much calmer and far more adaptable to unfamiliar situations – without me even realising it! There are moments you feel homesick, or caught unawares, or out of your depth – but they pass, and leave you a little bit more resilient each time. There’s no growth without a bit of challenge.

4. You’ll learn to become a tourist in your own city

It really did take spending three months studying 10,841km away from home to remind me how thrilling it is to be a tourist. When I returned that summer that feeling stayed, and I found myself really taking in the places I grew up in, but seeing all the usual details I’d usually miss. Even the most mundane things fascinated me whilst abroad – all those little cultural differences we aren’t even aware of. Coming home, I paid more attention to them and more so in my final year at Manchester.

5. You really won’t stop talking about it when you come home

Everyone always jokes about the gap year students who talk non-stop about the time they spent abroad – but that’s for a reason, and it’s going to become you! Your friends might roll their eyes, but so many little things back home home will remind you of what you miss about your time abroad. It could be an inside joke no one understands, or an insatiable craving for those amazing paratha in the uni canteen you now need to replicate, or being able to sit outside on warm evenings with friends now scattered across the globe. These things stay with you, and although sometimes missing them hits hard, I really do feel so lucky to have something to miss!

Things I wish I knew before moving to Singapore

Prior to moving to Singapore for the year, I had never even travelled beyond Europe. What lay ahead of me was a mystery, aside from the wild assumptions strangers told me and the random bits of information I got off google…

If I could go back to a year ago today, this is what I would tell 2019 Poppy.

Continue reading “Things I wish I knew before moving to Singapore”

Tips on Trips

Harry Forster, National University of Singapore

A brief overview of the trips I took and if I think they’re worth the buck…

Indonesia

  • Bali 
  • Lombok (a more undeveloped Bali, yet it offers a lot of the same opportunities)

Overall highlights:

  • Amazing food – a vegans dream, cheap cheap… make sure you try the Nasi Goreng & Mei Goreng!
  • Activities, activities and more activities: white water rafting, scuba diving (manta rays, shipwrecks), sunrise hikes and of course surfing all year around – are just some of the things you could get up to!
  • If you like dancing into the night, Bali is home to Asia’s best beach parties … Oldmans & Sandbar is where to be (every night).

**Stay in Canggu, Lay Day Surf Hostel (avoid Seminyak & Kuta)!

Bitchin’ – Canggu, Bali
This view is summit – Mount Batur

Malaysia

  • Kuala Lumpur (the cliché exchangers first getaway)

Overall, it was one the most modern and clean cities I’ve been to in SE Asia outside of Singapore. The Batu Caves are worth going to, most likely for that Instagram post, be ready to be sweaty.

This will most likely be your first escape from Singapore and its prices… However, be aware that Kuala Lumpur isn’t as cheap as you’d anticipate!

  • Tioman island (a divers dream, not much attraction to the island besides its waters)
  • Langkawi (a great short trip)

Langkawi was one of my favourite islands during my time, a great weekend trip. Lots of water sports, cheap motorbikes and white beaches.

*would recommend staying at ‘bed altitude’ hostel!

Overall:

  • Easy to get to/ fast transport – can get the bus from Singapore. 
  • Can be done on the cheap – £20 return bus.
  • The worse food in SE Asia (for me).
Yes, we did crash! – Langkawi

The Philippines

  • Cebu

I only have positive things to say about this island… extremely cheap, filled with some great adventures, beaches and day trips to other nearby islands.

Cliff jumping at Kawasan falls was great – only if you’re prepared for a 15m jump off a waterfall!

Great for diving – Malapascua for the Thresher Sharks, Oslob for the Whale Sharks and Moalboal for the famous Sardine Run.

  • PalawanEl Nido & Coron 
Sunset on Coron – Palawan

Both of these islands are known for their day trips… do you think you’ve got what it takes to hack a full day of lagoon and beach hopping?

It’s a hard life!

Beachin’ – El Nido
A typical day in the Philippines – Siargao

*I’d highly recommend catching the 5 day boat trip from el Nido to Coron (if you’ve still got enough cash to keep you afloat)!

  • Siargao 

This is a little surf island located in the southeast region of the Philippines -making it super hard to get to!

But if you do, it’s home to some of the worlds’ best breaks (recently held the world surf championship).

Like the rest of the Philippines it’s plagued with palm trees and white sands, however it is one of the more expensive spots due to the wave-seekers

Also surfing brings a more bohemian crowd (one that does not only break a sweat over the waves, but also over how instagram-able their smoothie bowl is)!

A Boat Trip from El Nido – Palawan
Cconut Trees View Deck – Siargao

Thailand

  • Bangkok (the shorter stay the better)
  • Koh Tao (a personal fav but an extremely difficult place to get to)
  • Phuket (a means to an end – Phi Phi)
  • Phi Phi islands (beautiful beaches but there isn’t much to do beside party or dive)

Sorry to sound like your mother but… be careful. I’ve experienced a lot of bad things happen in this country:

  • NYE my phone as well as my friends wallet were pickpocketed.
  • Another trip, a friends phone was stolen in the airport and never found.
  • A close friend was assaulted on his way home after a night out.

**I would not recommend visiting the Phi Phi islands out of season, everything from the clubs to the restaurants were closed for renovations. 

  • Goes without saying the food is phenomenal here!

Overall, in my opinion there’s better ways to spend your time and money in this region.

Taking a tour around an exchange student’s home university – Bangkok
In Chinatown with my Korean flatmate – Bangkok

Top Tips

  • Don’t plan before arriving, circumstances change i.e. monsoons, typhoons…
  • Remember low season usually means no nightlife!
  • A trip always costs more than expected.
  • Book last minute as Southeast Asia’s the weather is extremely volatile.

Hope this helps!