oelp overall refection

1)  I chose to go on this trip as I believe that it will be very enriching and fun . Enriching in the sense that we are gaining new knowledge during this trip and fun because we are learning in the process of sightseeing .Furthermore, we are going as a class , which is something very rare as we don't usually see a class of 36 spending seven days together in a foreign land. This may also be the very last chance for us to bond and interact with other classmates we are not so familiar with ,before we split classes next year. Thus, we must cherish this opportunity.Moreover, hearing that there would be a school exchange programme, i felt very excited and this confirmed my decision of going for this trip.I'm a person who loves making new friends as i believe that friendship lasts for a lifetime and it would be very unique to make friends with people who are not from Singapore. I was not exactly scared of meeting them as this was not the first time i participated in a school exchange programme .A few years back, i also went to China for the school immersion programme so i more or less got the experience of interacting with someone around the same age as me in Chinese . Definitely, i would get a little afraid that my buddy would be the reserved and shy type and our conversations would be awkward but fortunately everything turned out well in the end .Of course, some decisions had to be made when i chose to go on this trip. For example, i made a choice to step out of my comfort zone. I knew that this wasn't a typical family trip and there would be no one there to remind me to pack my bag for tomorrow, no one to hurry me to sleep, no one to help me pack my luggage and no one to help me buy souvenirs i wanted. After this trip, i aspire to be a more independent and self-directed learner.Through the sightseeing , i hope i can learn more about China's culture, heritage eg. their language,costume, architecture and their way of living. This would hence increase my insights of the world and knowledge of China which would be very beneficial for me in the future.

2) During this trip , a traumatic incident happened to me on the first day.  I had a very bad stomachache and went to the toilet. I had informed a teacher before i left. However, as there were too much people moving about in that area , he thought that i had came out already and went ahead with the group. Thus , when i came out and realized that there was no one waiting, i was very shocked and scared. How afraid i felt, i never panicked for a moment , because i knew once i panicked , my mind would go frenzy and start breaking down. Furthermore , i believed that someone would be coming back for me and so i waited outside the toilet. True enough, the teacher came back for me soon and I returned to the group safely. From this lesson, i learnt that keeping calm in desperate situations is always the best solution. Never panic, and hold on to the last glimpse of hope that someone would be back for me.One person that i had seen that taught me more than what could be achieved in class would most probably my home visit buddy's mother. Firstly, she taught me how to treat our guests.She was very courteous and generous to us, and we could how feel how happy and honored she was to have us as guests.When we arrived at their home , there were snacks on the table and the house, as i observed, was very clean and neat. When we  came back for lunch, we saw a wide spread of food on the table . Furthermore, she kept asking us to eat more and at sometimes she would even pile food on our plates, even after we refused already . Thus,from this house visit, I've learnt that as a host , we need to be warm and courteous to the guests, and try to accede to the guests' request. Most importantly,the host should make the guest feel comfortable like as if they're at their own home.One fact that i had found out during this trip that impacted me the most was that the competition in Singapore is alot lesser than that in China.  From my observations through the school immersion programme, the class is relatively bigger (39 students) and there are about 1000 students in a level. This was really unexpected and rather shocking. As the number of students is higher, the competition would of course be tougher. Moreover, I've heard from my house visit buddy that they usually spend 3hrs daily on school homework and sleep only at 11pm+. After hearing that and telling them our side of the story, I felt very fortunate and blessed to live in Singapore and they felt very envious of us. However, after putting some thought into it, i really wonder whether lesser competition is actually better for us, because strong competition can actually spur us on to do better ,work harder and force out our true capabilities , instead of simply resting on our laurels. 

3) I hope that after embarking on this trip, i can be a more participative and focused student in class, and a patriotic Singaporean. During this trip, i've seen the burning passion in the students of 寿春中学 towards studying , eg. when the teacher asks a question, he gets a spontaneous reply from not only one or two person, but almost the entire class. During their recitation competition held on the second day i arrived at the school, i could then feel the love of the students and the sense of pride of being a Chinese beaming from them from the way they spoke. That really touched me and i pondered why didn't i have the same feeling towards my homeland. I could not find an answer, maybe because i had been living in Singapore my whole life, i have already took this for granted and never ever realised how fortunate i was to live in such a country. As i am also the group leader of Group 1, i have also gained some thoughts and feelings from being a group leader personally. As a group leader, to get your members to listen,you have to make them respect you first. But respect is not one-sided and you have to respect them too. Listen to their views and opinions, and make sure that everyone has a fair chance to speak .In my opinion, a leader does not necessarily need to be smart, but as long as he has good interpersonal skills,confidence and a positive attitude,he is fit to lead.