Study Abroad Diary: Hannah Burnett – Post 3
Student experience 21 October 2019
Settling In
It is already half way through the first semester, and it’s gone so quickly. I’ve gotten to experience a different style if teaching and a different culture. Since arriving I’ve joined the Muay Thai club, had mid-term exams and engaged in local festivities and events such as the mid-autumn festival and the Formula 1 Singapore night race!
One of the first things I did at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) was join the Muay Thai club with my friend. It has come with excitement, fun and big bruises. Taking the opportunity to learn a new skill was very important to me and has been immensely satisfying. Muay Thai club is like a big family; we have dinner together after training and have had a mini mid-autumn festival with Mooncakes (a traditional food eaten during the festival) and a barbeque. It has also been a great way to engage with locals and learn about the best places to visit and best foods to try.
From early to mid-September was the mid-autumn festival. Colourful and arty exhibits popped up all over Singapore. NTU even had its own mid-autumn festival celebration, with lanterns and games. Around mid-autumn, mooncakes are found everywhere! I learnt that their circular shape is symbolic of family coming together and that a mooncake is meant to be cut into pieces and shared; but that didn’t stop us from having a whole one! Originally, mooncakes were just made with lotus paste and had an egg yolk in the centre, but new flavours and variations are now common place.
A couple of weeks after the mid-autumn festival, the Marina Bay area of Singapore was transformed into a race track, ready for the arrival of Formula 1. There were 2 support races: the Ferrari Challenge and the Porsche Carrera Asia Cup. I was lucky enough to see a close-up of the cars in their respective paddocks when wondering around town a few days before the race. I also went to the F1 qualifying on Saturday to see the cars in action as well as seeing Gwen Stefani perform on the Padang Stage. The qualifying was at night and there was a stunning view across the bay, with all the lights of the towering bank buildings lighting up the skyline. It was a must have experience for any F1 fan in Singapore.
Despite all the fun, there is still a lot of work involved with studying abroad. This work comes in the form of labs, lectures, quizzes and mid-terms. Labs are similar to labs at home expect the first semester labs are only measurements experiments, much shorter than at home and are assessed by filling out proformas or writing a report and an exam worth 50% in December. Lectures are also very similar to at home, but the class size is often a lot smaller and tutorials are more like workshops. Mid-terms are the most significant difference. As the name suggests, they are mini exams sat in the middle of the term which ensure that you are up-to-date and understand the content covered. Mid-terms are a great motivator!
So far, I haven’t travelled outside of Singapore but with recess week coming up I am excited to travel around a bit more of south-east Asia and tick some places off my list.
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