You know, I've set my eyes on Mass Communication since the age of 15. When I first saw that brochure, I thought to myself, "I definitely must get in there!" And I worked hard for it, and here I am today, in my final semester of my three academic years.

Throughout these three years, I've come to realize that some of the reasons why I picked Ngee Ann included the fact that they had the hip hop dance club, New Revolving Age (NRA).

I went through all the tough trainings just like the rest, and even though I stopped NRA after a year (due to my overwhelming school work), I still enjoyed the times that I danced. I learnt a great deal of things from the seniors and these aren't just lessons that you can learn anywhere. Some of them teach you a little bit of life lessons here and there, and you get to see things from a different point of view. And you have to admit, the fact that NP has over 100 CCAs for you to choose from is amazing. That means you're spoilt for choice and you won't have worries like, "Oh what am I gonna do? There's nothing I like here..." because it practically covers almost every category of activies.

Now the next reason why I'm glad I picked NP, is the fact that I got to go overseas to study. Even though it was for a month, my stay in Wuhan has really taught me a lot. The experience was extremely pleasant and I believe my friends and I have picked up a skill or two about photography from our lecturer, which led our techniques to improve by leaps and bounds. Here at NP, every student gets to go overseas for at least once during your 3-year diploma, so widen your horizons by travelling abroad with us!

Last but not least, I always liked how there's so many events going on in school! Some of which included the Halloween event, Scarefest, organized by Stage52. It's events like this that makes the students in school go crazy because we all get to enjoy ourselves very much. You would think that a Halloween event organized by students would be meh, but no, these kids prove you wrong. And it was a successful event, which ran for 2 years, and if anything, the queue got longer instead.

The aforementioned were the main reasons why I'm glad I picked NP. And if you want to find out some of the other reasons why some of my friends picked NP, click the image below to find out!

Now you know our reasons, so what's yours?

Ideawerkz has launched their annual competition yet again. This year's competition is called the Ideawerkz Innovation Challenge 2011. Students participate by forming a team, or by working solo. What they had to do is to come up with ideas for the betterment of the school, at the same time fulfilling these criterias:-

1)  What can you do to make campus a livelier and cozier place?
2)  What initiatives can you mount to help students manage stress?
3)  What can you do to encourage students to be innovative? 

With so many inventive ideas, here are some of the ideas our students have contributed! Congratulations to our winners!

Shawn Tan's Proximity Sensors is pure genius. This way, I dont have to go on a Scavenger Hunt for tables and seats for lunch! With that, this makes him the Winner of Ideawerkz Challenge 2011!

Now this I find pretty cool. This will keep my feet dry! Normally, if you're wearing just socks and shoes during a rainy day, your socks will get wet, and then it will wrinkle up your toes, and you don't want that.

This movement will be great for budding musicians! Entertaining too!

This is really cool, considering there aren't enough seats available during lunch time in school.

The first time I walked past this contraption, I thought it was pretty annoying. But after seeing the reaction on the people's faces after passing this station, it's actually pretty entertaining.

Having a food delivery service in NP would totally help beat the queues during lunch hours.

I would be so thrilled if this actually happened. I could use a mini foot spa everyday after school!

Congratulations once again to all the participants!

Aside from the sightseeing, there had work to be done of course. Afterall, this was what this trip was all about - to serve the Cambodian community.

The project required us to teach English and Oral Hygiene to Cambodian Children. So off we went to our first stop in this town - the rural Old Piek Snaing Village! This village was very far out from the main part of town, and due to that - supplies were hard to come by, which resulted in many being malnourished. Besides that, there was a problem of head lice infestation among the children. So we spent the afternoon killing the pesky head lice and cooking up a nutritious meal of rice-soup consisting of rice, carrots and pig's blood for them. Sadly, the kids only get to eat the same meal twice a week, every week.

With their tummies filled, we taught them how to brush their teeth next. It was difficult at first because of the language barrier as there was only one interpreter, but we managed to pull through. Then, we gave out toothbrushes and toothpastes for everyone of them.

After visiting that village, our next community service activity was at the Kompong Khleang, The Floating Village. This village was very special because the children there are able to maneuver a sampan to their desired places in the village. It was heart warming when we saw one of the kids, after eating, immediately went to try out his new toothbrush.

Here are some of the many pics I took:

Old Piek Snaing Village, kids all lined up waiting to be de-liced.

Girls of the village.

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: Boys in a queue, waiting to be scrubbed. 

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: Big smiles from Johnson and Nicholas. "Muay, Pi, Pai!" Which means, One, two, three! It's a countdown for the icy water to reach their skins, as they brace themselves.

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: Had to tie up my hair into my cap for I was afraid the lice could jump to my hair. I had fun giving them a good scrub and a free head massage. 

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: Keefe & Jonathan.

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: They enjoyed my free head massage.

Courtesy of Aaron Leong: Rice Soup, with carrots and pig's blood.

Singing as they await their meal.

Serving them slowly..

The Lunch Ladies.

Rachael Ho, distributing the bowls.

She was the last one to finish, because she savored every bite of the soup, while others had seconds. 

Cute isn't she? Pity she's malnutritioned. 

On our way to The Fishing Village, we stopped for a bite. That's glutinous rice with beans, Cambodian style of the Malay 'Lemang'. Our boys here said it tasted sweet. 

They set up their own stalls along the road, and all of them sold the same glutinous rice with beans cooked in a bamboo roll. 

Welcome to The Floating Village! 

We've reached their Floating Church.

Us teaching them the correct way to brush their teeth.

This cutie pie on the left fell asleep shortly after I took his picture. 

Applying what she's learnt.

That's one happy baby.

Precious

Sleepy boy.

Awaiting their meal.

Azira on their Sampan.

Very caring, they are. After they had their share of the rice soup in a bowl, they 'tapao' some soup into a plastic bag to share it with their family members.

Class dismissed! 

Like a boss.

Til we meet again! 

Our efforts paid off! 

Hope you enjoyed this one, and maybe one day you'll be able to travel to Cambodia too! 

Photos courtesy of Aaron Leong, Keefe Wong & Fatin Halina

We all know that fashion plays a big part in our life, especially one of a teenager. So, we take our time to shop, dress up and look pretty/presentable at all times. But....today, I decided to take a look at fashion from another angle: practicality. We often like to wear what we want without having to care much about anything else, and unfortunately, sometimes we end up damaging or dirtying our outfit because of unforeseen circumstances. This is even more so during this period when our weather is extremely unpredictable.

I scouted for people from the various schools to ask them why they decided to wear what they wore to school that day. And here's what they have to say…

Regina Er, School of Business & Accountancy

"Today was a rather sunny day so I decided to keep my look simple. Shorts and sandals are my comfortable wear and I never leave my house without them on most sunny days! Despite that, I still bring along and wear a cardigan just in case the weather turns erratical and I'd need to keep myself warm. I ALWAYS think of a Plan B."

Aaron Goh, School of Engineering

"I chose to wear jeans and not bermudas or shorts to school because the weather recently has been rather cold. The rain comes and goes, and when it does come, the temperature seems to have taken a rather big dip. And, the reason why I wore these accessories and necklace is because they give off this nostalgic vibe and I'm really a person who's into vintage stuff, so this is essential to me."

Charlotte Tan, School of Film & Media Studies

"My usual wear range from dresses to random tops and pants and today just happens to be that random top and pants day. Because the colours I'm wearing might look a little dull, I decided to carry my laptop with the red polka dot sleeve today instead of keeping it in my bag. The rain has been unkind to me for the past few weeks so I made sure I wore my white creepers because psychologically I feel taller and safer with them."

Ong Zhi Yang, School of Health Sciences

"I had my six-week attachment and I just came back from the two-week break. So my friends and I are wearing our uniforms so that it will help us integrate back into the workforce for our four-month attachment. Basically, we wear it for in-campus trainings and even for documentation of nursing skills that we learnt in year one and year two. The main idea is to help prepare us for the attachment."

Chee Jiamin, School of Humanities & Social Sciences

"I tend to travel around a lot within school itself, so I try as much as possible to wear outfits that are more cooling. And that's also the reason for having so many maxi dresses in my closet! I wear these bangles because I like to hear them jingle when I'm walking as it reminds me of the times when I was young and played with the bell chimes. Also, I wore this pair of gladiators because they're just more comfortable compared to my other footwear."

Joanne Seo, School of InfoComm Technology

"As you can tell, I'm wearing the Sports and Wellness (S&W) because that was my last class for today. I decided to shower in school afterwards so I actually kept some of the toiletries in my bag, which I also use to contain my other files and homework. I went with this pair of shoes because I knew I would be doing sports today so I really wanted something easy to run and play in."

Lim Hwai Yi, School of Life Sciences & Chemical Technology

"The lecture theater (LT) always felt too cold for me so my jacket's my best bet when it comes to days with long lecture hours. I cannot live without my jacket because it'll feel like Siberia in the LT if I do. Also, I decided to go with the haversack and not my usual slingbag today because I've been exercising for the past few days and I just wanted less force to be on one shoulder. So wearing a haversack bag would balance out that force and thus easier on my shoulders."

Like I mentioned in the beginning of the article, we sometimes don't consider other factors when dressing up, but these people above have proven that it pays well to dress with practicality! You can still look good even if you're dressing to fit the weather. So, make sure you think again before heading out on a cloudy day in a pair of suede shoes!

Apart from experiencing the flood, we also visited one of the wonders of the world; Angkor Wat.

Angkor Wat means 'Temple City'. Like it's name, it's the state temple in Cambodia and the country's prime attraction. It's also the world's largest religious building catering at first to the Hindu religion, then to the Buddhists.

It was raining when we visited all the temples, so we got to see Angkor Wat in a different light. Angkor Wat is HUGE. It's surrounded by a spectacular moat and it was simply amazing on the inside. Walls with carvings that are perfectly chiseled, each panel with a different story to tell.

The visit was also very special because the Ta Phrom Temple was used as a location for a scene in the movie Tomb Raider. As a film student, I felt very fortunate to be able to visit a famous movie location.

I shall leave you to the pictures now and let them do the talking:

Here's a ticket that you'll need in order to enter all the temples in Angkor Wat. They snap your picture and print it on the spot. Really cool souvenir.

The moat surrounding Angkor Wat.

And it was raining...

Stone carvings on the temple walls; Khmer soldiers marching to battle.

Such detail in the carvings..

Our tour guide for the day, Mr So Hun

Steps to go up and see the other side of the temple.

We saw this pretty lil darling on our way.

It was already flooded when we came.

Ta Phrom Temple

How efficient...

Can you spot a smiling face?

Faceless temple God.

Gates to Angkor Thom.

Spot any elephants?

A temple guard at the Bayon Temple. His head and part of his leg was stolen. So they replaced his leg. His head, I'm not so sure if he's going to get a new one..

Carvings of Muslim Soldiers

The Smiling face of Buddha.

There was a photoshoot going on while we were visiting.

This place is great for hide-and-seek. 

After the rain...

It's like a boardwalk through the temples..

Replicate statue of Buddha right there, with the golden yellow sash. The real statue was stolen, unfortunately.

That would be all for this post. If you're interested in checking out other pictures of Angkor Wat, drop me an email! Stay tuned for my other posts about Cambodia! 

Til then! Toodles, my noodles! 

Yes, RED Camp 8 is coming!

(RED Campers have already been informed of their tribes! There's the mighty Spartans, the stealthy Ninjas, the hot & super cute Apaches, the vivacious Vikings, and the sexy Centurions!)

RED Camp is your Roadmap to Explore and Discover Ngee Ann Poly, an exciting stay-out camp for 'O' Level students to learn what NP has to offer!

This year's RED Camp will be from 22-24 November. During these three days, secondary school graduates (fresh out of their battle with the big O's), will be coming to NP to have a feel of our campus life. As each year's RED Camp gets bigger and better, we're expecting lots of people!

For our soon-to-be RED Campers, our student leaders can’t wait (just had to have that extra emphasis to express how we're feeling) to meet you! Over the three days of RED Camp, you’ll get to meet them, and they are the ones who will be with you throughout the whole programme.

If you didn’t manage to sign up for RED Camp, don’t worry! We will be having our Open House in early Jan 2012, so do come down then and check out what NP has to offer.

So see you at RED Camp, or at Open House!

I am back. Two weeks later, I am flood-trained. Yes, I am flood-trained from spending time in Siem Reap, Cambodia where water-levels were thigh high. It was an eye-opening experience for me and 14 others from the School of Film & Media Studies who came along for this Youth Expedition Programme.

It happened day four into our trip, when we were all snuggled up in our pyjamas and pillows getting ready for bed when our lecturer made the dramatic announcement that we had to evacuate! We thought he was pulling our leg, but he was dead serious! So in the next 20 minutes, we were all packing our things really quickly and made our way to a church nearby that was on higher ground.

It was pitch black and we had to rely on our torchlights, and this point some of the houses were already flooded up to the knees. As walked deeper in, the water got higher. On the way to the church, we passed by the river bank and saw water spilling speedily into the village.

We camped in the church for the night, and the next morning were told that BBLC was flooded up to the knees. But our luggages, thankfully, were safe. All our activities in the village and BBLC were suspended for they were expecting another wave of flood to come but we had to make our way back to BBLC to collect our luggage.

And off we went to a hotel, for the next three nights!

Here're some pictures that were captured in the floods:

Leaving our first hotel for BBLC.

Flooded houses in the city.

Flooded up to the knees in Siem Reap.

Finally reached the entrance to the village, where BBLC is located about 500 metres in.

We had to carry our luggages in because the bus couldn't drive inside to drop us off.

The river in the day.

Our flooded journey began at our ankles.

Later, it was up to our thighs.

The overflowing river bank.

Church playground.

Overflowing river dam.

The village river.

Embarking to back to BBLC.

Villager's house.

Flooded up to out butts.

One of the kids found a fun way to entertain the flood.

He built a raft! 

A flooded BBLC.

Our flooded dorm, where we were supposed to have nice dreams..

This is Smey. (Pronounced Smai) One of the kids who goes to school at BBLC. Please ignore my very glamorous pyjamas.

Here comes the Land Rover to rescue our luggages! 

He too found a way to entertain himself with the flood.

Walking out of the village.

Finally out! 

Flooded roads.

One of the streets in Siem Reap.

A flooded church in Siem Reap.

Locals playing in the flood.

Swimming..

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Marching out of the flood in our pyjamas.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: The flood's not that bad.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: A flooded boys dorm.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Mr Hsien, one of the lecturers for the trip.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Walking back to BBLC for cleaning up.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Scrubing the donated towels, t-shirts, to be given away to villagers.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Lots of work to do! 

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: The library got flooded too, so we sorted out the books that were still in good condition for reading.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: Mrs Sng, our other lecturer, hanging up the towels for drying.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: That's Nicholas, cleaning up the store room

Photo courtesy of Aaron Leong: What Nicholas & our other friend Johnson came up with during our 2-night rebound to BBLC.

Don't forget to check out FMS YEP CAMBODIA PART II & III for more exciting stories! 

Hey you! Have you heard of the Arts Fiesta?

If you haven’t, just know that you’re in for a treat! Our various performing groups will be showcasing their talents outside Munch, and at the Student Plaza. These mini performances will be on 24, 27, and 31 Oct, as well as 2 Nov.

Here's a sneak peek of what happened at Munch! There was a performance by the Contemporary Dance Club and other performing groups.

Members from hip-hop dance club New Revolving Age (NRA) were also selling tickets for their performance, The Carnival Act, which will be held on 4 & 5 Nov 2011 at the University Cultural Centre at NUS.

There will also be more ticketed performances by some of our performing groups, like the NP Voices, Indian Cultural Society, Concert Band Club, Chinese Orchestra Club and Contemporary Dance Club at the new MusicBox@73.

NP Voices Club's recent concert, Grandioso IV. (Photo credit: Lee Zhi Xiong)

What will they bring to the stage at this upcoming performance? )

The best part? All proceeds from the ticketed performances will be donated to the President’s Challenge 2011. You get to enjoy performances while doing your part for charity!

So grab your friends, and support the Arts Fiesta 2011! More information can be found here!

Now that I’m back (safely) in Singapore after spending 6 weeks in Wuhan, Hubei China, and started a new semester back in school, there are some things that I miss about China.

You may have seen my previous post on the food in China. If you haven’t, check it out here!

Yes, I miss the huge food servings. The mountain of fried rice that costs only a dollar.

Of course, I’ve learnt through talking to the locals that while their food is cheap, their pay is lower compared to Singapore. What we consider a meager salary from a fast food restaurant worker is higher than what they can get for a similar job.

On the trip, we also went sightseeing to the Lulin Forest, Three Gorges Dam, Yellow Crane Tower, Hubei Provincial Museum, East Lake, Wudang Mountains and so on. The scenery was a shutterbug’s galore, and we also learnt about the rich history of Wuhan, of Hubei, and of China. Here are some pictures:

One of the artifacts on display at the Hubei Provincial Museum.

The beautiful scenery onboard a boat tour of the Three Gorges Dam.

This Overseas Immersion Programme was definitely a good experience. I learnt to adapt to the dire conditions of China, and in the process appreciated how fortunate I am to live in Singapore.

If you ever have the chance to go for such a trip, I encourage you to apply for it!

Hi! This is Clara, with the last blog post on my 6 weeks spent in Wuhan, Hubei China!

So, as the title suggests, what makes a country?

If you guessed that it’s the people, you’re right! This post will be about some of the interesting people that I met during this trip.

周阿姨 (Aunty Zhou) is the caretaker of our hostel. The 43-year-old has been working and living in the hostel for three years, and has seen four batches of our NP students so far.

During the day, she will read the newspaper or watch drama shows on her computer.

What struck me the most about Aunty Zhou is that she is always so friendly and welcoming with her smile. She goes the extra mile; once, she helped us to keep our laundry that was in the sun, because we were out over the weekend for sightseeing.

严阿姨 (Aunty Yan) operates a noodle stall in the school’s canteen with her husband. The stall operates throughout the week, from 7am to 8pm.

Aunty Yan, who is 42 years old, has never heard of nor been to Singapore, so it was interesting for her when she found out that I was Singaporean. Ever since then, I have a friendly chat with her every time I patronize her stall.

To me, Aunty Yan is a motherly figure that truly cares for all her customers.

When night falls, the street outside my university comes alive. Food stalls line the place, and everyone flocks the place for cheap yet good food.

Some of the stallholders knew that we were Singaporeans. For this uncle (picture below), it was because we always bought the chicken wraps from his stall.

However, I didn’t manage to talk to him more, because he was always busy serving his customers.

That’s all I have for this post, and this wraps up my 6-week stay in Wuhan! I leave you with some of my pictures of the people I met on the streets. Enjoy!