Year 3, Semester 2, Week 12

Evandro Soldati

Came back from Japan and all I could think about was assignments, assignments and more assignments. Half the time, I constantly questioned myself why did I grouped myself with a bunch of people who doesn't have initiative to do anything at all but just sit and wait for further instructions like idiots. Don't get me wrong, my ideal grouping would be with Nisa and Lim Hui only but both of them don't really gel that well working together. Lim Hui is a risk-taker while Nisa is strictly by the books and me, I'm 50/50, depending on my mood or on the module. I swear, if it's just Lim Hui, Nisa and me, the 3 of us would literally score all As for all of our modules' presentations and proposals since year 1. 

Entrepreneurship

The final presentation and proposal. Technically, we are done with the slides for presentation and about 90% done with the proposal. We just need to get through with tomorrow's presentation and edit our proposal again based on the lecturer's criticism before submission. Then I can start studying for the final exam and it's a wrap. Insya-Allah, we will get an A for this module. 

Design in Communication

Found out that the submission date was being pushed behind till 17th April which means that I got 3 more weeks to work on my poster, an additional 1 more week. Since the lecturer pushed the date out of the blue, I'm guessing that the lecturer is asking for a higher standard quality of work. I'm going to go all out on this poster and might even consider submitting a series of posters rather than just one. Insya-Allah, I will get an A for this module.

Customer Relationship Management

I swear, up till now, I still have no idea what I learn from this module at all but at least, it's going to be over and done with soon. I am so thankful to my seniors for giving my group their work as a reference. From literally nothing done when I came back from Japan and now we are at least 50% done with the proposal. As usual, I had to chase them to tell them what to do instead of any of them taking the initiative to figure it out themselves. 50% done with the proposal and shall start on the slides by this weekend. Doubtful that I will get an A for this module but Insya-Allah, I will get a high B for this module.

Practical Arts Administration

One of the weirdest modules that I have ever had throughout my 3 years in NAFA. I literally think that this class is totally pointless. After I came back from Japan, found out that we had a final presentation which we are supposed to present 2 Budget Forms on any organization of our choosing. And as usual, none of them bothered to find out the minor details about what exactly we are supposed to do or even bothered to ask the lecturer to explain about the forms at all. So now, I'm literally trying to figure out how to do it. Insya-Allah, I will get an A for this module. 

Final Year Project

Truth be told, the amount of drama coming from them, it really forces me to question their level of professionalism throughout the whole situation. Other than that, from the looks of it, the project is coming along quite fine and I can honestly say, I think it will be a success. Insya-Allah, all of us will get an A for it.

I got to start finding a job as soon as possible. I really need to start earning money to pay for my graduation trip to Koh Phangan and maybe to Boracay if I'm still interested in going with the classmates. Other than that, I'm just waiting patiently for Paris College of Arts for my phone interview and NAC to call for the interview. I really need to rush my application for NAFA Degree and the scholarship as well. Insya-Allah, I will be able to get everything done by this weekend.

Japan Trip

Rafael Verga

Day 1 - 10th March 2014, Monday

The 2nd time I'm boarding a plane. I was still not excited about the whole trip to Japan. It was as if I can't be bothered about the trip at all. I was more concerned about my assignments rather than be excited about the trip. It wasn't until I reached Haneda Airport and checked out that I really realized that I'm in Tokyo, Japan. Then slowly started to get to know the rest of the people that was part of the trip. 8 students from LaSalle, 11 students from NAFA and 1 supervising officer. 11 girls and 9 guys. 6 hours on the plane, 2 hours of waiting at the airport and half an hour bus ride to the airport before we reached Harumi Grand Hotel. We reached the hotel around 9am and had a quite briefing with checking into our hotel room. I was pretty much jet lagged from the trip that I slept for 2 hours before waking up for lunch.

After lunch, we took the bus and went off for the program's orientation briefing. I was surprised to see a number of other Asian countries involved in the program as well. There was Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Singapore has the smallest number of students with only 19 of us, no surprise there. It was an hour of briefing and before we know it, we were on our way back to the hotel and kill time for dinner. Everybody was excited to go out the first night after dinner when we found out from the tour guide that walking to Ginza would take about 30 to 45 minutes. The biggest problem of the night was that all of us underestimated the strong winds. We knew it was cold but because of the winds, it was literally freezing. I was constantly hyper just to get my blood pumping.

It was quite a nice feeling walking with one big group even though the weather was killing us. I was still in disbelief that I am actually in Japan. It was cool exploring the places with them. I was really impressed by how certain brands have their own buildings. Like Uniqlo is an 11-storey building, Zara is a 6-storey building and Abercrombie & Fitch is a 12-storey building. It was just quite impressive by how pack everything was. By 9.30pm we were on our way back to the hotel and we were separated a few times with one group walking quickly because we were freezing while another group were excited and taking pictures of everything and anything.

Came back to the hotel room and Hyrol used his laptop to set up a hotspot for all of us to get free wifi. I'm so thankful for free wifi.

Day 2 - 11th March 2014, Tuesday

We went to Tokyo National Museum in the morning. I was really excited for it. It has 5 separate buildings which showcases Japan's history, Asian histories, Global histories and even a research centre there. It was a pity we were rushing for time. After the museum trip, we went to Sensoji Temple. It was quite boring there but at least I got to try their popular sweet bread. It was really good, crisp on the outside and really soft on the inside. To top it off, the bread is really big, almost the size of my head. I love it!

Then we went off for lunch, before we went to Harajuku. It was like a bloody shopping marathon there since we only had 2 hours to explore the streets. I was rushing everywhere. Within 2 hours, I bought a pair of boots, a clutch, a Stussy Japan edition t-shirt, a Forever 21 Men's t-shirt, a TOPMAN Limited Edition short sleeve shirt and two pairs of heattechs long johns. I spent about 20,000 Yen which is around SGD250 and to me that is considered quite a bargain. I think. 

At night, we split into 3 groups. About 8 of us took the subway to some location about 8 stations away since Joel and Wei Li found out that there's an area filled with second hard bookstores. Norvin and Jovan went for sushi and sakae at some restaurant near Ginza while the rest took the subway to some other location. It was a pity that most of the shops in Tokyo closes by 8 or 9pm, so when we reached there most of the shops are closed. So we just walked around and explore the streets before we went back to the hotel.

Day 3 - 12th March 2014, Wednesday

We went to Nihon University College of Arts for their orientation. It was really impressive to see the country's investment into the Arts Industry. The place itself was really huge and the latest state of art technology that the government invest in for the school. After lunch, we watched a few performances from the University's Traditional Dance Group and from the Cambodian students.

Once we were done with the tour, we went to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office to visit the observation deck. It's on the 45th floor of the building and has a 360 view of Tokyo. It was super cool to experience firsthand the sights of Tokyo. Even though it looked like a real concrete jungle, the view was still breathe-taking. 

After dinner, most of them went out while I just stayed in the hotel room to at least try to start on my assignment. Managed to do it for half an hour before I gave up and caught up on most of my TV shows.

Day 4 - 13th March 2014, Thursday
Checked out from the hotel by 8.30pm before we moved off on a 4 hour bus ride to Nagano. Most of us continued sleeping on the bus while I continued watching my TV shows on my laptop. We had lunch first before we checked in at Shirakaba Kogen Hotel. The hotel was located in the middle of one of the mountains and was quite secluded. I think we were the only group of people who checked in, other than 4 other old couple at the hotel. After checking in, all of us rush to play in the snow. We had a few sled races and a few snow fights. Even though it was really freezing, I had loads of fun going crazy with everybody. Played all the way till it was time for dinner.

Around 9pm, most of the guys decided to use the public bath since it was pretty much a first time for most of us. After using the public bath, most of us just hang out in the lobby at the wifi/smoking area using our laptop and playing taiti until midnight.

Day 5 - 14th March 2014, Friday
In the morning, we went over to the Tateshina Town Office as a courtesy call to the Mayor. The Mayor introduce us to the town itself and we found out that the town is as big as Singapore with a population of 8,500 people only. It was interesting to see the contrast between the town and Singapore. It's slightly scary for me and I don't know why. After that, we moved over to their local cabinet to understand the concept of their local government which was quite neat.

Had an early and long lunch before we moved off to Tatekita Metal Company just to listen about their local company and how they work with international companies for business. We even had a quick tour of their factory and was treated to their speciality pastry which was a huge puff filled with 2 different types of cream. It was really good that I took 2 for myself.

After that, we took the bus and started dropping each other off to our host family houses.

Since it was the first night with the host family, they literally went all out for dinner. There were at least 7 different types of dishes and they even served rice and vegetables pasta. I stayed together with Wan and Hyrol and the 3 of us took more than an hour to finished up our dinner. We were taking our own sweet time enjoying the meal. I know I was pretty much in bed by 9pm just catching up on my TV shows. I swear, it defeats the purpose to even sleep in the house because it was still fucking freezing inside. I was sleeping in 3 layers of clothes under 2 blankets and 2 comforters. It was a miracle that I was able to sleep in that freezing weather.

Day 6 - 15th March 2014, Saturday
Woke up early for breakfast and even breakfast, they served quite a lot. After breakfast, our home stay host drove us to the town hall for us to learn  how to make Udon noodles from scratch. It was really fun and we had loads of laughter learning how to make the noodles. I must say, it was really delicious and surprisingly, I still remember the recipe for it but I completely forgot the steps.

After lunch, we went to the old Nakasendo Road to learn about the history of it since it was one of the first highway in Nagano to be constructed. Lastly we visited Nagano's very own Sakae shop which makes the wine from scratch. It was crazy fun for all of us because we literally tried all 7 samples of the sakae that was being put out on display for us. 

We were pretty much done for the day after that and went back to our home stay. We just chilled and make small conversations with the host family. By 8pm, we had dinner and were done for the night. Surprisingly, the weather wasn't as cold as the previous night but at least, it was quite comfortable sleeping under 2 blankets and 2 comforters.

Day 7 - 16th March 2014, Sunday
We said goodbye to our host family and exchange some parting gifts before the bus came to fetch us to go to one of the town halls. We had a 4 hour discussion session but really, I was just happy that I got wifi. After 2 days of no wifi, I'm just thankful for it and couldn't really be bothered with the whole discussion. Typical me, I just pretend to know what was going on and agreed to the suggestions every now and then. 

After lunch, we went to Silver Land Mitsui Nursing Home for a quick visit and we even perform a medley of nursery rhymes for the old people there. Seeing the facilities there, it was quite impressive. There have all the latest technologies and it was very spacious and comfortable. 

At night, we checked in at Saku-ichimanri Onsen Hotel. Some of us just stayed in while the rest explored the surrounding areas. From what the others said, there was a lot of cheap second-hand shops around the area. After dinner, some of us followed Joel and Wei Li to a nearby bookshop. Then after that, we went to a porn shop opposite the hotel. It was quite overwhelming to see the amount of porn and different types of fetishes there are.

We were all back in the hotel by 9pm and started playing card games and drinking in Norvin's room. There was Norvin, Jovan, Chong Shun, Wan, Joel, Hyrol, Eleanor, Priscilla and me playing a card game that Priscilla invented as part of her school assignment. It was fucking hilarious, we were screaming and cursing at each other for a good 3 hours before we called it a night.

Day 8 - 17th March 2014, Monday
Woke up for breakfast before we checked out and moved off to Tokyo. 

We reached Odaiba, Tokyo around 12pm and I literally had a 15 mins lunch before I went around to shop at Aqua City Shopping Centre. I literally spent 13,000 Yen on a Fred Perry short sleeve shirt as a present for Haiqal and 22,000 Yen on a Porter long wallet, Japan exclusive collection. Before I knew it, I was left with 10,000 Yen. I almost wanted to change more cash so that I could buy a Coach wallet for Fara but didn't had time to change more cash.

We went over to Urayasu City Bunkakaikan Samll Hall for the presentation from all 6 countries. It was pretty much a bore and I was asleep a few times. At least during our presentation which was presented by Joel and Priscilla, we literally clapped and made loads of noises. Typical Singapore students.

After that, we took the bus and went to checked in our last hotel, which was Hotel Nikko Narita and it was by far the best hotel out of the rest. The shocking part was that all 6 countries checked in the same hotel so you can imagine the chaos. 

Anyway, after dinner, I told the rest to come to my hotel room at 9pm so that we can play the same card games again. This time round, more people joined. There was Norvin, Jovan, Chong Shun, Wan, Joel, Hyrol, Eleanor, Priscilla, Wei Li, Kray, Alvin, Marion and me. We played all the way until 2 in the morning. 

Day 9 - 18th March 2014, Tuesday
It was the day for us to go back to Singapore. I can assure you that all 19 of us were starting to get freaked out about our assignments. We checked in at the airport and did last minute shopping. Literally all 20 of us, including Norvin bought Tokyo Japan snacks. It was as if we went crazy on buying the snacks. 

This time round, flying back to Singapore took 7 hours. Upon landing at Singapore, all of us realized how much we actually missed the Japan and the carefree days that we had.

I got surprised by Nazron and Khairul for fetching me at the airport. They were super cute with their signage. Then after that, Netty came from work and the four of us had dinner at Pizza Hut.

~~~

It really is the best trip that I have ever had since forever. My parents sent me off at the airport, I had loads of fun with the group and my GBFs fetched me from the airport. It was perfect.

By the way, I have a crush on you.