Day 5: Ladyboys?!

A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

The last activity of the trip that was formally planned for us had significant meaning, as it was an amazing race designed to develop our leadership potential. During the race, our sub-group was tasked to complete different challenges as well as to figure out the locations of several landmarks without the use of technology.

It was rather interesting to see how different leadership styles were demonstrated by my group mates and how each style has their own strengths and weaknesses. I am quite glad to say that the whole group managed to complete the race early without getting into conflict with one another. To me, as important as leadership is, a leader cannot be somebody without the co-operation of the team.

Later that night, the freshmen of USP planned an outing to the nearby ladyboy cabaret. For the sake of new and exciting experiences, I tagged along. I was definitely not disappointed! Even though the music was tacky and the costumes were garish, I was struck by how much effort the ladyboys put in, in order to appear like females. It could not have been an easy process to lose so much weight and to practice so many dance routines in order to entertain their guests.

Additionally, the cabaret highlighted a major cultural difference between Singapore and Thailand. Transgender issues are still a sensitive topic in Singapore and deserve to receive more debate. In Thailand, while transgender individuals are more common, they are also similarly ostracized. With sexuality and gay rights being more openly discussed in Asian countries nowadays, it may not be long before cis/transgender rights are brought out for open discussion too.

Truly, the past week in Chiang Mai has been mind blowing. I have learnt so many different things about so many different topics. It was a pleasure to be able to converse with my fellow batch mates and exchange ideas with the faculty, as well. I hope that, in the semester to come, these lessons will continue to stick with me in my personal and academic journey and that I will continue to develop my friendships with my USP friends as we attend even more lessons together.

Cheers to a great semester ahead!