12 February 2009. 1st year at the University of Melbourne.
Boarded the plane...feeling (rather) homesick - a semester lasts about 4 months, and that means 4 months away from mum, dad and bro, 4 months away from Singapore, 4 months away from usual hangout places, 4 months away from mates......the list is (almost) endless. Yet feeling extremely excited about beginning a brand-new life Down Under, meeting new friends, studying piano, studying psychology (and hopefully not becoming psychotic), taking even more pictures...yet again, the list is (almost) endless.
Although it didn't start off as ideally as I believed it should - because of subject clashes, fee problems and confusion, it eventually kicked off fine...
...Despite the frequent homesickness episodes and intense cravings for local food. Believe me - I had to go through cold turkey to curb my Hokkien Mee addiction. There were also many first times - first time falling extremely sick while overseas, first time performing in front of a large audience, first time experiencing gloomy Melbourne winter, and first time watching a sunset for an assignment. And yes, as I said, this list is also endless.
Year 2 was a blast. The fun and excitement escalated as I knew people better, and psychology got more and more fun. There was one point where psychology threatened to turn against me though, but eventually it all turned out well. As for piano - it's always fun, and will always be. Played in piano class for the first time too! Went to Sidney Myer for the first time. Did something unimaginable - went on reverse bungee during the annual Moomba Festival. Went for Piano Landmarks. Went for more trips out of Melbourne, including one to Lilydale for theTesselaar Tulip Fest (getting lost in Dennis in the process and meeting a friendly kitty), and made multiple trips to Warragul of course! And yes, the awesome trip to Lakes Entrance! Arrggh there're so many things to list! Oh oh oh...and I started photo-blogging properly too!
23 February 2011 - almost exactly 2 years later.
I'm flying off in about 2 days' time, to begin my senior year (year 3) at uni, and I'll be graduating at the end of this year. I'm having mixed feelings as usual - and somehow there's this familiar feeling of deja vu:
I will inevitably go through cold turkey again (from the Hokkien Mee - yes, my addiction is back!, and Singaporean food), I will inevitably feel pangs of homesickness every now and then again. I will inevitably call home and talk incessantly to mum, dad and bro. I will look at pictures of home every now and then and imagine myself there. I will imagine myself playing on precious Sojin - my piano. I will imagine how it's like at home - where tropical weather reigns supreme and where there's no need for trench-coats, boots, furry scarfs and woolen sweaters.
But this time, instead of feeling apprehensive, I'm feeling more confident, despite the deja vu.
I'm now used to commuting to and fro - between Singapore and Melbourne, at least twice a year. I know that I'll go home once semester ends, and I have something to look forward too. I know that I have to work hard in order to reward myself with an enjoyable trip back home. And I trust telecommunication systems - the world is shrinking indeed - and Singapore won't seem as far as I thought (psychologically, of course). I'm also used to being away from home - studying abroad has definitely made me more independent and restored my confidence.
Well, I guess it's back to uni, back to piano lessons, back to assignments, back to seeing good old Aggie again...
Goodbye holidays! And hello to uni!