A few of my favorite things

My passport has been sitting on my desk since I arrived, and it is now collecting dust, literally there are dust particles on it. I think that means I have been in this country for awhile. My time in Singapore has been a lot of fun. Although Dorothy spoke the truth when she said; "there is no place like home", I have grown to become rather fond of certain aspects of Singaporean culture. I know I complained a lot about the food in Singapore in some of my first posts, but I am happy to say that Singapore has redeemed itself (sort of). I feel like I owe it to the country to rave about some of the food here that I actually have come to...wait for it...love! Plus, I think my best friend Zack, would get great pleasure knowing that I dedicated a whole post to food.

1. Bubble Tea. This stuff is SO good, and you can find it just about everywhere. They have tons of different flavors, but I prefer the ones that are creamier. They serve the tea with "pearls" inside, which is where beverage gets its name. I have no idea what the pearls are, but I like them. They are gummy, and sometimes they are filled with some random substance, so when you bite down the bubble bursts.

2. Pastries. When I think of pastries I think of Europe, more specifically France, not some tiny country in South East Asia. However, Singapore has a severe sweet tooth. They have tons of bakeries all over this place, filled with croissants, muffins, cupcakes, tarts, and the list continues. All of the stores have their goodies on display and everything looks to die for! Green tea muffins are my current "go to". 

3. Dragon Fruit. Singapore has a wide variety of fruit, it is a very tropical place, so obviously the fruit here is very different than the standard apples and oranges in America. The dragon fruit is my favorite of the new fruit that I have tried while abroad. I don't really know how to explain the taste without using vague words like "refreshing" and "juicy", so just take my word for it.

4. Homemade Iced Lemon Tea. For those of you that know me pretty well, it is a common fact that I am addicted to diet drinks, specifically Diet Dr Pepper and Diet Coke. They are my drink of choice, and I choose to drink them all of the time. There is no Diet Dr Pepper in Singapore, and Coke Light(Diet Coke) is expensive, therefore I am learning to love other drinks. Iced lemon tea tastes just like it sounds, and honestly I feel better about guzzling that stuff than my artificially flavored diet drinks. I may even try to cut back on my diet sodas once I get back, but that's still up in the air.

5. Gelato. I was a big fan of gelato before coming to Singapore, but for some reason I think it's better over here. They seem to have a wider variety and I am always hot here, so maybe the fact that it helps cool me down has something to do with it. Speaking of ice cream, I tried corn, and yam flavored ice cream the other day with my host family, it was not that bad, it was no gelato though.

You may have notice that the foods I mentioned were all sweet foods, mainly because I am still not a fan of the "real" food, I have about had it with rice and noodles, and if another person asks me if I want to add "chili" to my meal I might punch them. Just kidding about the punching, but it's getting a bit old...

Hooked on phonics

At work for the past week or so I have been assigned to help a girl named Cindy during "study time". Cindy lives in the home for girls behind the school and is supposed to be in the 6th grade. However, due to unfortunate circumstances she was in and out of school for the duration of her elementary education, and was actually living on the streets of Singapore right before she came to live at the home. This being said, she is working out of a 1st grade workbook. Her work consists of filling in the missing words of very basic sentences. Everyday when I would check her work all of the answers would be wrong, every single one of them. I thought she was going through the assigned pages and marking whatever answer she felt like in order to finish her work so she could go play outside sooner. I was getting on to her late last week about rushing through the work and decided to make her read the sentences out loud so we could fix her mistakes together. Once she started reading it all made sense, she can't read. If the words were not "and", "the" or "she", she would stare at the page blankly, then look up at me, ashamed, and claim "she didn't know". My heart ached for her. She is almost 12 years old, and literally cannot do 1st grade work. Since I learned of her inability to read I have been trying to teach her, however it is much easier said then done. I don't even remember learning to read, I feel like I have always been able to do it. The words just sound "right" to me, but that logic does not work when you are teaching someone how to read. Today we came across the word "food", and I was fully expecting her to know it, however she shrugged her shoulders and looked up at me for help. I thought to myself that this was one of the most common words we use, and even though she is not reading books she should have at least picked up the meaning of this word in the cafeteria or something, right?  I am literally starting from scratch with this girl, and am so under qualified for this role. Sitting there with her today, I had another one of my "wow I am so lucky moments", for I have been reading since I was a little girl, in fact, my mom was reading to me before I could even talk. Today, I am thankful for the little things, like the fact that my parents were able to provide me with a bookshelf full of books. I have always loved reading, and I am sad that Cindy might not ever get to experience what it feels like to be caught up in a "page turner". More than that though, being able to read is essential to life, from following a map, to filling out a job application, my hope for her is that she is able to overcome this obstacle before it truly cripples her. I only have about two weeks left here, but I intend to use that time to help her reading skills in whatever way I can.

Another Singaporean weekend

I feel like I have been here forever. Another weekend as come and gone, and I can't believe tomorrow starts another work week. Sometimes I think my time here is flying, and then there are times when I feel like I will be here forever. I am trying to get the most I can out of this trip, which means I had another eventful weekend. On Saturday I went to Sentosa Island with the other Aggies. They call Sentosa "Asia's favorite playground", and it was pretty much exactly that. I was expecting a Six Flags-ish type of set up, but it was much more spread out and you had to take various shuttles to get around the island. We all really wanted to zip line, so that is what we did first. By nature I am a worrier, I knew I needed to commit to the group that I was for sure in to zip line, so they could keep me accountable, otherwise I knew I would bail once I saw how high up we were. Turns out, I was actually in the first group to go, and it was a blast. It seems to be a blur, but I definitely remember being up in the air and thinking how lucky I was to be soaring over Singaporean rain forests and beaches. Like everything in Singapore, Sentosa was very expensive, so every attraction was an additional cost. I decided that my wallet could only afford the zipline and I called it a day. While I was in a gift shop browsing, I came across a magnet about Singapore that was "Survivor" themed, and it said "Outshop, Outeat and Outplay", I laughed to myself because that silly theme is so overused, but also because that is so true of this country. I am growing weary of all the shopping and eating, which is something I never thought I would say. On Sunday I went to church with my host family again which is always so refreshing. After church, Dawn and I went to the Asian Civilizations Museum. There are a handful of museums I want to visit before I leave, and this was one of them. Museum hopping is seriously one of the only activities I feel like I have left to do that has nothing to do with shopping and eating. (Can you tell I am a little bitter about all of the malls and constant consumption of rice?) The museum had exhibits about the the different Asian cultures and featured a Terra Cotta warrior display as well. The history buff in me ate it all up, and it was nice to be in the "air con" for such a long period of time. After the museum Dawn and I went and got some bubble tea, and then made our way back home. Dawn's boyfriend came over for dinner, so we just hung out with him and the rest of the family until it was time to eat. We might watch a "Rom Com" later, but as for now I am just enjoying the last little bit of my weekend .

About to zipline!

 

 

 

Taken from the air. 

A chopsticks tutorial at the museum.

Asia 101 cont.

Eeek, I am have not updated my blog in awhile! The internet was down at my host family's house for awhile, and this week was pretty low key, which explains my lack of posts. I have been in Asia for over two weeks now, and am learning more and more, I'll share:

1. Toilet paper is considered a luxury. Thankfully, my host family believes in using it, but the other Aggies on the trip cannot say the same thing. In many public bathrooms you will find a hose instead of toilet paper...uncomfortable.

2. Instead of saying "text message", they refer to it as "SMS".

3.The moon is SO much brighter here than it is in the U.S. At night you can't see stars, but the sky still has faint tint of blue to it and the clouds are still visible. In my attic there are no curtains for the windows, so the moon literally wakes me up at night because it is shining so brightly.

4. I have decided that in Singapore you can spend your time doing one of 2 things; shopping or eating. No matter where my destination may be, I somehow always end up inside a mall, they are seriously everywhere.

5. Jaywalking is a form of survival here-everyone does it.

6. Air conditioning is called "air con", and it is also a luxury. My family does not use it, but thankfully they have a unit in the attic and allow me to turn it on at night. I am not sure if I could have made it without "air con" at night.

7.Singaporean education is much more intense than American education. Granted, I went to a public school,so I am sure I didn't a very rigorous side of American schooling, but either way, the kids here are learning a lot at a young age. Some of the math problems that the 4th graders give me to work out I have trouble solving (Sorry, Dad). 

8. Singapore uses the British English language, this being said, the words "queue and alight" threw me off at first. At school, I would hear the other teachers asking the girls to "queue up" and I had no idea what they were referring to, so I asked. Turns out, it means to form a line, or to line up. The other day I was looking up directions and the site I was using told me to "alight" at certain stops. I had no idea what it meant to alight, so again, I asked. Alight means to get off at a stop.  Singapore is expanding my vocabulary!

9. They don't use clothes dryers here, and some families don't even own a washing machine. Thankfully, my host family has a washing machine, however they do hang their clothes on sticks of bamboo to dry.

10. Singaporean's know a lot about the United States. The girls I work with can name different U.S presidents and they asked me how I spent my July 4th holiday. This makes me feel very ignorant because I can tell you a few prominent international leaders, but not many, and I definitely don't know any holidays that other nations celebrate outside of the few popular ones(i.e Christmas). Oops.

Last night I went to a mall and ate dinner(surprise, surprise) with one of my co-workers, Wanqui. It was a quiet, but fun Friday night. Today I am going with the other Aggies to Sentosa Island, which is an outdoor adventure land basically with zip-lining, beaches and Universal Studios. I am looking forward to a day in the sun!

Fine dining

As I have mentioned before, I work with some great people. On Sunday one of my co-workers Pearl, took me sightseeing around Singapore, we had a lovely day and even managed to stop at McDonald's for ice cream sundaes. Later that evening Pearl and I traveled to Selena's house for what I thought was just a simple dinner. Selena volunteers at the school I work for and was one of the ladies who took me out on Friday night. She has mentioned to me before that she is a "banana", meaning she has yellow skin on the outside, but white skin underneath-those words came straight from her mouth! This being said, she told me to get ready for a Western style meal prepared by her husband. Selena lives in a very upscale area and has a gigantic house-I was pretty impressed. Walking into the house we were greeted by a maid, and I quickly realized this was not a casual Sunday dinner. Lulu, another one of my co-workers arrived with her husband soon after we got there. The whole "having a maid wait on me thing", was very awkward, and honestly I didn't like it too much. Selena asked the maid to make sure that I had a full glass of champagne and a plate full of appetizers(Alaskan salmon and bruchetta) at all times. For the main course we had risotto, roasted chicken, lamb, steak and salad, I gorged the entire time. Dessert was my favorite though, her husband fixed us waffles, topped with maple syrup, ice cream, raspberries, kiwis and caramelized bananas. There was also chocolate fondue and strawberries. This meal seriously made up for all of the bad ones I have had here. After dinner we sipped on espresso and I could not help but think that this night would make a great pilot episode for The Real House Wives of South East Asia. The ladies swapped stories about their children and husbands, I tried to keep up with the conversation, but obviously I don't have any experience in either category, so I sat back and took cues from the other ladies as to when I should laugh or nod my head in agreement. It is very different having a group of friends who are in their 30s,40s and 50s, such a change from the crowd I surround myself with while living in a college town. This night again reminded me how lucky I am to have found such caring and generous people while living in Singapore. 

This story has nothing to do with my fine dining experience, but I figured it would make some of you laugh:  So, Singaporean's eat a ton of fatty meat(i.e pork) and a ton of carbs(i.e rice and noodles). You cannot have a meal without one of those 3 foods being present. This being said, I am afraid of putting on a few pounds, so I searched YouTube for some aerobics videos(very questionable quality), and I have been working out in my Singaporean attic. Between the lack of air conditioning, and lack of space, I am pretty sure my morning routine is a rather funny sight.

A whole new world

Apparently I have been living under a rock. My wonderful co-workers planned to take me out on Friday night to explore Singapore. Between the brief city tour we went on the day we arrived here, and my walks to work, I was pretty sure I had experienced Singapore, turns out I was way off. After work on Friday, Lulu, Selena, Wanqui and myself went to dinner. They took me to a Swiss restaurant called Marche's and it was honestly one of the coolest restaurants I had ever been to. I really can't explain how fascinating the restaurant was, you will just have to take my word for it. I tried to snap some pictures, but I was quickly informed that no cameras were allowed. I was convinced that I would not have a great meal until I returned to America, but Marche's proved me wrong. After dinner we went shopping on Orchard road. Orchard is the premiere place to shop in Singapore, designer stores line the streets and literally 4 different malls feed into the road. The malls were incredible, everything was so modern and well engineered. Orchard road is also lined with all sorts of restaurants and pastry shops. My first week here left me with the impression that Singapore cuisine started and ended with fish head and chicken rice, again I was mistaken. After talking to my co-workers, we determined that I live in "rural" Singapore, which would explain my naive view of the city. Friday night was a ton of fun and I am so glad I got to really experience Singapore.

On Saturday, I got to experience even more of this great city. I met up with the other Aggies and we went to Chinatown for some cheap shopping. I really enjoyed going into the different stores and looking at all of the things that were for sale. While in Chinatown we toured part of a Hindu temple, which I thought was very interesting. The temple was so colorful and filled with statues of their gods. After Chinatown, we visited an area of Singapore called Clark Quay. We found a Mexican food restaurant and enjoyed a meal outside over looking a river. After lunch we took the train to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. Marina Bay Sands is a super ritzy hotel surrounded by high end shopping and skyscrapers. Again, I was blown away with how modern/sophisticated/clean Singapore is. I love how in just a short 24 hours my perspective of this country changed greatly!

Here are some pictures from the first half of my weekend-ignore the fact that they are out of chronological order.

Shopping on Orchard Road

Marina Bay Sands Hotel-that is an infinity pool at the top

Area surrounding Marina Bay Sands

While shopping on Orchard Road, my co-workers insisted that I try on a Chinese gown..

Top of the Hindu temple

P.s-Tonight when I was walking home there was a group of young children playing with water guns in the road. It was such a cute scene and reminded me of the days when I used to have "water wars" with the kids in my neighborhood. I love being reminded that although I am so far away, the people here are just like me.

Sweet blessings flow!

As I sit back and reflect on my day today I can't help but feel overwhelmed by the many blessings God is pouring into my life while I am abroad. My co-workers at my job are literally angels. Today two of them decided to bring me "American" food for lunch. One of the ladies walked in with a Subway sandwich just for me and the other brought me a ham and cheese sandwich. This may not seem like gourmet American food, but to me, it was heavenly. The sandwiches did not have eyes staring at me or skin I needed to peel off, and best of all-no chopsticks required! During our lunch break the women sit around and plan "toursity" things for me to do with them while I am here. Literally the women made a list of the things I needed to do while in Singapore and then divided the activities amongst each other so I will have someone to go with. Angels or what? During free time today I was asked to teach the children American dance and cheerleading moves. I traveled back in time to the days where I used to do that stuff and spent a solid two hours in the Singapore heat teaching the girls the best I could, I am convinced I looked like an idiot, but they ate it up. I am so blessed to be spending my days with adorable children and generous adults. 

Every time I get on the computer I am greeted with emails and facebook notifications from my friends and family back home letting me know how much I am missed, loved and in their prayers. I can feel the Texas love all the way in Asia. I think those emails, facebook messages, and skype sessions are God's way of reminding me of the love and mercy He has graciously given me via my wonderful support system back home. I am one blessed girl, it just may have taken a trip to another continent for me to realize it.

Here are some pictures from the last few days-

On the way to work

The house where I am living(the attic is on the 3rd floor and the window at the top peers into my room)

Girls from the school-the one of the left is Averil and she is Taylor Swift's biggest fan.

Chinese cake-it is very gummy and sticky(it has an actual name but I forgot it)

                    

P.s -tonight I walked to the gas station tonight  and bought a Coca-Cola Light(Diet Coke) and an ice cream cone, so I am also currently thankful for processed food and aspartame!

Asia 101

It has now been a week since I left America for Singapore, and even though I have not been in this country for too long I have already learned a ton about the culture.

I have discovered that:

1. Hello Kitty is supreme In Asia you can find Hello Kitty stuff EVERYWHERE. I bought a box of Fruit Loops and a Hello Kitty figurine fell out with the cereal.

2. Asian deodorant HAS to be a different breed than the American stuff. Singapore is literally a sauna, and my wimpy American deodorant is not combating the heat very well-and I'm from Texas!

3. Asians do not use a fork and a knife, instead they use a fork and a spoon. They use the fork to put the food on the spoon, so the spoon is the main feeding utensil. I forget this every time I eat and only use the fork, my bad.

 4. Cross walks here are called Zebra crossings due to the white stripes on the black pavement.

5. You cannot wear your shoes inside the houses here. All shoes are left on shelves outside the front door. I have made the mistake of taking shoes out of my suitcase, putting them on, and walking down the stairs with them-awkward.

6. Most of the citizens of Singapore live in public housing. Only about 20% of the population lives in private estates. The family I am staying with falls into the private housing sector.

7. Taylor Swift appeals to everyone. I sing her songs with the girls at school and they know the lyrics  better than I do.

8. Cars drive on the opposite side of the road here, and the steering wheel is on the opposite side as well.

9. Asian sitcoms are super awkward, consisting of really bad lighting and even worse acting.

10. Wasting food is a huge "no-no". Leaving food on your plate is highly frowned upon, in fact, at the school where I work all of the girls must show their empty bowls to the teachers before being excused from the table. If there is only one grain of rice left the bowl is not considered empty. This little rule has been my worst enemy since I am not loving the food here.

I am sure I will continue to learn more as time goes on, as for now, I am about to go to bed. Tonight I went out with the students from the program and we swapped stories about our jobs/host families/experiences and it was a lot of fun. I managed to get to dinner and home without any problems. I did ask a few people for help and they were more than willing to assist me!

Introducing, Miss Bridget from America!

Yesterday was my first day of work. I was never exactly very clear on what I would be doing for my internship while in Singapore. I told the program coordinator that I wanted to work for a non profit that focuses on children from broken homes/and or orphans. Turns out, that is not quite where they have placed me. I am actually a teacher at a girls school for kids who are between the ages of 8-10. About half of the girls live in a girls home because their situation at home is unsuitable for them to live there, and the other half of the girls come from middle to low income backgrounds. This is definitely not what I thought I would be doing, and I was sort of bothered by the placement at first because this current job does not reflect what I hope to be doing after graduation, but then again, who knows how I will feel about everything when my time here is up. At the school all of the other teachers were so nice, and they gathered the kids together for an assembly to introduce myself. Lulu, the head teacher, told all of the girls that I was Miss Bridget from America and literally the girls gasped with excitement. All of the girls would run up to me and ask me questions about my blue eyes, and the light colored hair on my arms. They would literally stare at me and try to figure out why I looked so different from them. They loved my headband(I told them to prepare themselves because I had more where that came from) and they were all asking me to take off my James Avery jewelry so that could hold it. I SO wish I had my Aggie Ring with me because I feel like the girls would love to see that piece of precious gold! The girls then proceeded to ask me if Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Beyonce, and other big name celebrities were from America-I told them yes they were. Their eyes were so wide when I was able to confirm that I knew songs by Bruno Mars and the Black Eyed Peas. During free time the girls wanted to show me a dance they made up to Tik Tok by Ke$ha, it was too funny and reminded me of when I used to make up dances with my friends when I was little. Lulu asked me if I would be willing to teach them American dance moves during their music time everyday, I agreed because I felt forced to accept, but I am probably the last person who should be in charge of teaching any kind of dance!The day was so long, but I think it will be an enjoyable experience overall.

Two of the younger teachers have taken me under their wing, one of them named Jaya, offered to walk with me home so she could point out which buses I should take if I wanted to ride them to work instead of walking. She is also studying to receive her Masters in counseling, and told me that trips like the one I was taking can sometimes cause trauma(just what I needed to hear) so it is her goal to make sure that I get adjusted to the culture as best I can. Pearla, the other teacher took me into the library during our lunch break and wanted to hear all about my experiences so far and I really enjoyed talking with her. She wants to give me a tour of the city on Sunday so I am looking forward to that.

After work today I am meeting up with the American group I came here with for dinner at 8. Last night I had Fiona, the other daughter in my host family, draw me a map of how to get to dinner. I am not the best with maps, but I do know what bus to get on, and once I am on the bus I am just going to ask the bus driver to tell me when I need to get off in order to reach my destination. Risky business, but hopefully I can end up at my desired location, both coming and going.

Weekend highlights

Well my first weekend in Singapore went well! On Saturday I went shopping with my host mom, Margaret. She attempted to teach me how to use the bus and subway system-eventually I will learn. The malls in Singapore are all very different, some are completely indoors, and others are outdoors, but are covered with sheets that act as a roof, and all of the different stores look like booths that seem to be privately owned. I was quite surprised to find a lot of clothes that I actually liked and wanted to buy, for some reason I didn't think Singapore would be up to date on the fashion trends, but they have some pretty cool stuff over here! My host mom and I went to lunch in food court at one of the malls, and again I had issues with the cuisine. My host mom figured I would like some chicken and rice, which normally I would be all for, but when I went up to order the food, I stood face to face with all of these chickens hanging upside down, their heads are fully attached , and their eyes are staring at me. Turns out, they cut the chickens neck off and place the head in your bowl next to a portion of rice. I have never really been on board the vegetarian train, in fact, some would say I don't even like animals, but in that moment I felt like a PETA spokesperson. There is no way I could consume that, so I walked myself on over to a stand that was selling noodles. Meanwhile my host mom went to get us some drinks, I was thinking she would come back with some tea, water, anything but a but bowl of jelly. She hands me a bowl of brown looking water with what looked like caramelized onions floating in it, but the onion-like elements were some form of jelly. You could either consume the "drink" with a spoon or straw, needless to say I struggled to drink even 1/4 of that stuff. Later that night we went out to dinner, where my host family ordered a large pot of fish head for all of us to share. Similar to the chicken situation, I soon found myself staring at a fish that looks like it came straight out of the ocean, and then they burnt it a little bit. The mouth of the fish is gaping open and you are expected to take a fork and eat the insides...great. After dinner we went to get some groceries at a local market. We picked up some durians, a fruit that is a favorite among the locals here. We went back  home and my host dad placed some newspapers on the kitchen floor and cracked open the durians for us to eat. The fruit has a very distinct smell, that honestly is not appetizing, and I can't say the actual taste of the fruit is much better, which I am sure at this point comes as no surprise.Overall, I had a great night with my host family and I feel as though I am connecting with them more.

On Sunday I had the opportunity to go with my host family to church. They attend a Methodist church here in Singapore, which is awesome considering I grew up in a Methodist church! Being from the West, I feel like I always hear how important it is to share the Gospel with other nations, which don't get me wrong that's SO true, but I guess The Great Commission left me with the impression that there are only Christians in the West(even though Christianity didn't even originate in North America). I was pleasantly surprised to walk into a very contemporary sanctuary where we sang the same songs we sing at church back home-talk about a feeling of comfort. Before the service started, the preacher asked the congregation if  it was anyone's first time at the church, and if so to raise their hand. Of course, the American girl was the only visitor that Sunday, so I got to raise my hand and watch the entire church turn around to get a glimpse of the newcomer. Since all eyes were on me, I said hello and told them I was from America(which I kind of like declaring). The preacher's sermon was very good, and as I stood and sang with a congregation that looks NOTHING like my church body back home, I could not help but feel the power of the Gospel. This morning I learned that the love of God truly does reach to all nations! After the service we ate with the congregation where I found some noodles that I actually liked-they are called Bee Hoon noodles(I made sure to remember so I can ask for them when I am eating at other places). At the lunch they did not have any forks, so I was forced to eat with chopsticks, which was not too bad this time, whew.

It is now raining here, but once the rain lets up I plan on walking to the place where my internship is located to make sure I have the route down since my first day of work is tomorrow! As of now though, I am currently enjoying the Sunday afternoon rain as I read a book up in my attic space.

The jelly "drink"

Durians- (you have to cut them open to get to the actual fruit)

When life hands your oranges?

My host family had to work on Friday, so that left me the day to explore on my own, an idea that honestly terrified me. Their transit system is super confusing, so I decided to forgo the underground transportation and use my ever faithful legs. I figured I could retrace my steps to get back to the house, rather than try to retrace the path of an underground tram. I made my way to a mall close to the house I am living in. The mall was designed like an American mall, but filled with different stores, obviously. I found a Starbucks and a KFC, which really excited me becuase as I previously mentioned the food here is not my favorite thing. However, the only thing I saw on the menu at KFC were waffles, and a tall coffee at Starbucks was almost 8 dollars-crazy! I walked around the mall for a bit, but soon became hungry. In Singapore a lot of the eateries are half indoors and half outdoors. The kitchen and cash register are covered, but the tables and chairs are out along the street. I was not in the mood for rice or noodles, so I found a fruit stand where I could get a Diet Coke, or Coca-Cola Light as they call it over here, and an orange. The fruit stand did not have any tables or chairs to sit and eat, and you are not supposed to use the tables and chairs of another restuarent if you didn't buy their product, so I walked around aimlessly looking for a place to peel my orange and sip my drink. I was looking for a nearby park, but found nothing, so I settled for a rock in an allyway- pathetic I know! I peeled the orange and quickly realized I didn't have a place to put the peel. Singapore has a VERY strict no littering policy, in fact if they catch you violating the law you can pay up to a 500 dollar fine. I searched for a trash can, but could not find one. So there I was, an American girl, holding an orange peel, frantically looking for a trash can in a foreign country I know nothing about sans the littering policy. That was one of my "I wish I was back in America moments". In fact, there have been quite a few of those moments since I arrived in Singapore.

In my few days here it has become very evident that my faith is placed in my family, friends, boyfriend, and the United States. In a short amount of time I found myself without all of these things and in a state of panic, I was homesick and had no idea how I was going to get through these next 6 weeks. I believe my state of panic was the Lord's way of showing me that my hope is found in things other than Him. I miss the comfort and security of Texas, which reveals to me that I don't think He capable of providing me with the peace I think I need. As hard as it is to realize these things, I think in my heart I knew this would be the case all along. My prayer is for God to show me what it looks like to live a life fully dependent on Him.

You know the saying, when life hands you lemons, make lemonade? It is implied that lemons symbolize bad or "sour" situations, and you just make the best out of it...i.e lemonade.  Well, life is not handing me lemons exactly, but an oranges are close enough. To wrap up my story from above, I eventually found a plastic bag on the street(obviously someone ignored the law) and placed my peel in the bag until I found a trash can-crisis averted. In the same way that my orange peel dilemma was resolved, I know that I will soon become used to living in Singapore and that God will provide me with the strength I need to face this new situation.

So when life hands you oranges, make orange juice?

Settling into Singapore

Well, I feel like I have so much to say but I have no idea where to start, I am literally gushing with a thousand different emotions right now. 

I will begin with the flight, for starters it was entirely too long, and I was not able to sleep very much. We spent about 27 hours traveling from Houston until we finally arrived in Singapore. We got into Singapore at about 12:45am on the 7th, we then stayed in a 5 star hotel for the night, which by the way was very impressive. The next day we went on a quick tour of the city and we stopped to visit an orchid garden, which had a flower named in honor of Laura Bush, shout out USA! The country is TINY, literally Houston is bigger. The city is very modern though, it is also very clean and lush with greenery! After the tour, I then proceeded to meet my host family that afternoon.. The family consists of a mom, a dad, and 3 children-2 girls and a boy. The daughters are super wonderful, and are 21 and 24, so we are pretty close in age. I am sure the son is great too, I just have interacted with him too much, I am not exactly sure what he thinks about an American a girl living in his attic! I went to dinner with one of the daughters, Dawn that evening. I am having some trouble adapting to the food, I thought P.F Changs and Pei Wei had conditioned me to like Asian food, I was definitely way off on that one. Dawn showed me around the area by our house and helped me get a card for Singapore's transit system. I realized that I have not had to navigate around a city without a GPS or a smart phone before, so I am a littler nervous about how I will handle getting around the city considering directions have never been my strong suit

 I already have plenty stories to share and I am already learning a lot about myself,  but I want my posts to have some kind of order/theme/direction, so I  will be posting more as the trip continues-I just wanted to do a quick update today!

Adios, America

Well, the countdown is about over. I will be leaving for Singapore in less than 12 hours. My flight departs at 9 am, so I will be getting to the airport around 7:30. We will be in the air for 21 hours, but traveling for 27, seeing as though we have a few layovers. My suitcases are packed, the items on my list have been checked off, and I have quite the stack of books ready for me to read on the plan(which I am pretty excited about). I used space bags for the first time, and let me tell you, they are magical. I basically shoved my entire closet into those things, vacuumed the air out, and watched a miralce happen as I zipped my suitcase. With my bags packed, the nerves are definitely setting in, and honestly I just want to fast forward to take-off and avoid all of the pre-trip anxiety that I feel at the moment! I have never been abroad, and I have never been away from friends and family for such a long period of time, so I guess it is expected that I feel this way. I was talking to my best friend, Zack on the phone and gushing to him about all of my nerves, and he reminded me that feeling this way just proves that I am human, and I know he is right. I have already begun saying my goodbyes, and I may have shed a few tears, seriously I feel like such a drama queen!

Recently I was listening to a Breakaway podcast(a student ministry at A&M) and I heard Ben Stuart mention a time when he took a trip abroad. I cannot remember where he was going, but he was nervous and feeling a bit anxious about everything that was ahead of him, until he realized that he was not traveling to a place without God. He made a joke about bringing God along in his pocket and the two of them discovering the foreign land together, as if they were both seeing it for the first time. In reality though, God designed the entire earth, and personally knows all of it. There is not a place I can go where God is not present, and keeping that thought at the forefront of my mind brings me peace. Unlike me, God does not need to take a plane to Singapore, for He is already there.