In retrospect: post-trip reflections

It has only been a while since we got back, yet it feels like the 7 days in Chiang Mai were a distant dream. With school work piling up and course readings running after me to be read, how I wish I could teleport back to the days in Chiang Mai.

Although I knew that we could not possibly spend all our time doing work, the thought of “all work and no play” stuck around in my mind, making me dread the trip. It did not help that it was the last week of the holidays before Semester 2 starts and I did not want to spend it doing work ??. Luckily, the infectious atmosphere at Changi Airport chased all my pre-trip blues away. Hearing the chatter and laughter of fellow USP-ians lifted the dark cloud over my head, making me more willing to socialise and join in the fun. Surprisingly, it was the small things that made this trip better; the caring friends, the cheerful and bubbly group mates, cool professors and seniors.

Something that I did not mention in my pre-trip projections is how I would be able to know more people and make new friends during this trip. It had slipped my mind, but looking back now, I am able to say that I have seen everyone in my batch! Although we are a small group of 54 individuals, for the past semester, I have only known those from my orientation group, those in my USP classes, and a few others. When TOPs classes started, it opened my eyes to new faces who I never knew existed.

It was also interesting to hear stories from friends in other groups, what they did, their experiences and takeaways. These stories added colour to my experience of both Chiang Mai and of USP. Since each group had a different itinerary, different groups experienced different parts of Chiang Mai within the same span of 7 days. Collectively as USP, we would have a myriad of individual experiences, since each experience is shaped by individual perception. Looking at photographs while listening to everyone’s story allowed me to experience the places they visited in their shoes. Listening to their stories also brought us closer, not only between individuals but also as a whole. Since we experienced TOPS together, it is a common platform for us to connect with each other.

While reviewing my pre-trip expectations, I realised that I did not mention anything very specific, other than broadening my worldview, learning about the world around me, self-discovery, daring to do things outside my comfort zone, and experiencing Chiang Mai. Most of these expectations were met, except doing things outside of my comfort zone.

One expectation that was met was the ability to experience Chiang Mai like a local. This was possible with the help of Fye, the CMU student who was attached to our group. She brought us around the city area and spots that she frequents with her friends. She also took us to her favourite massage parlour which was in one of the small streets leading from Nimmanhaemin Road. According to Edward, this shop was much better than another shop along the main road. Thus, if it was not for Fye, we would not have been able to discover such a gem in the city.

Apart from that, she also introduced local street food to us. Everything we tried was really good, as though anything bought from the street stalls would be yummy. Despite how tiring it is to stand the whole time while cooking other people’s food, many hawkers kept a smile on their face. While they cook the food we ordered, other helpers at the stall quickly prepared the necessary ingredients. This display of teamwork is crucial to the success of their stall, making sure that each customer is able to get their food as quick as possible.

Although many common Thai street foods can be found in some restaurants in Singapore, it is not the same as eating it along the streets of Thailand. There is something about the atmosphere in Thailand that places serving Thai food here are unable to replicate.

I also noticed the strong influence of Japanese culture in the areas we visited. With Japanese-inspired supermarkets (Rimping supermarket) in MAYA mall, various street food stalls at different locations selling sushi at 5 baht(!) and even cat cafes. These are the effects of globalisation, where other cultures infiltrate the local culture with their products, food and even concepts. This influence is one I did not notice when I visited Krabi in December 2012. It might also be due to the difference in location then and now.

Since globalisation has been around in Singapore for a while, I have grown accustomed to the sightings of other culture’s products, food (restaurants) are not foreign. Yet when I saw those sushi sitting at a street food stall along the Chiang Mai Sunday Night Walking Street, I still experienced some degree of shock. It was as though I thought only Singapore was experiencing globalisation, ignorant to what was going on in countries in the region. Growing up alongside the effects of globalisation in Singapore, I have taken these to be part of our local culture. If so, what is our true culture without the influence of globalisation?

As mentioned in my post on Day 4, lectures given during this trip by the Mae Fah Luang University professor and the Chiang Mai University professor also highlighted certain things about Chiang Mai’s situation. Upon hearing them, I thought that they are very much like Singapore, but not at the same stage of development as us. One thing that struck me was how important context was in determining what action to take. Many a times, policies, laws and even the local culture is shaped by our context. Due to the fundamental attribution error, the tendency to overestimate the extent to which people’s behaviour is due to their internal dispositional factors (personality) and to underestimate the role of situational factors (context), people often neglect to recognise the context in which we are in. Hence, through these sharings I was better able to understand the links between certain contexts and resultant policies. I also gained greater insight into Singapore’s past and the current issues we face.

Stepping out of Singapore and experiencing life outside has helped me to look back in with new eyes. Seeing what other countries do not have that we do back here, helped me become more aware of we have and what I take for granted most of the time.

Another expectation that was met was self-discovery. This was most evident in my experience during the leadership amazing race, which happens to be one of my biggest takeaways and the most impactful activity during this trip. Most of the details have already been written in the daily post for day 5.

Throughout my schooling life, I do not recall any instance where I have had the chance to sit down with a group of people, who have been observing you and giving you feedback on how to be a leader. Teachers may do similar acts especially in subject classes, or at an art lesson or music lesson such as piano, where they take note of what was not well done and teach you to improve on it. However, no such structured curriculum is put in placed for something like leadership. Schools often engage external parties to hold leadership camps etc. for students, expecting that through such activities, they would be able to understand what leadership is and how to be a leader. Much worse, some just put students through ‘leadership talks’. Although I was a little reserved at the start of that day, I am glad I decided to put in the effort to participate more actively and thus I was able to benefit greatly from the activity. Thus, the leadership amazing race was a really refreshing experience, and the feedback given by professors and seniors will truly benefit me in becoming a more confident person and a better leader.

This fieldwork also gave me a real world situation for me to use the knowledge and skills from my statistic course in Psychology. Usage of psychology statistics knowledge to making sense of the data we collected allows me to practice what I learnt and to improve my skills. I am also learning to better organise the research data, in a way that will benefit us for the final essay and also for future projects. It is also a way for me to contribute to the group to make up for areas which I am still lacking, such as in writing and crafting literary masterpieces.

However, my expectation of trying out things outside of my comfort zone was not met. Well, doing things outside of our comfort zones is never an easy task, that’s why it is ‘outside’ of the comfort zone, right? I am referring to things outside of my comfort zone like extreme acts or activities that pose great danger and risk, such as jumping off a 18-metre high cliff into the seawater below at Grand Canyon Chiang Mai. After seeing the Heritage group’s videos and photos there, many from my group were interested in visiting the place. Although it looks really fun and thrilling, it was also risky, dangerous and scary. Having a fear of heights does not help too. My fear of heights is probably rooted in the fear of dying due to the level of risk in these activities and how unsafe it seems to me. At the same time, how willing I am to participate in such an activity would also depend on the company I am with. Only with my closest and most adventurous friends, would I join in on the spur of the moment.

Looking back, all was well with the correct attitude, I took things as they came. There might have been setbacks and obstacles, but they were nothing that we could not overcome. I am grateful for my group members who are forward looking and quick on their feet. Having a group that is considerably work-orientated, it contributed very much in gluing us together. With a common goal of the project and final report, we all contributed in whatever ways we could. Through the leadership amazing race, we got to learn each individual’s strengths and how we shine individually when we are all together. We also learnt of our weaknesses, which has given us the opportunity to work on it and improve from there. Putting all these new found knowledge about our team to use, we now delegate work according to each individual’s strengths.