凡走过比留下痕迹...

This phrase came straight to my mind while writing this post. To the many many Singaporeans who shun away from China, having to live here for 6 months and work for 20 weeks with China colleagues and handling China customer could just be an horrible task that you wouldn't dream of being through. Being a Singaporean used to my comfortable life back at home, this was no easy chore as well. Remembering the first few days in Beijing where I cried myself to sleep from the drastic change in living conditions. Or from the first few weeks at Raffles when feeling unfairly treated, having work to bones just to get the pathetic 800RMB back home, it felt as if a long time has past before I got here today.

The end to the Raffles Journey came on Friday, 3rd December 2010, the day i said goodbye to my China Colleagues whom I may not be seeing at least for the next few years to come. I can't say I was entirely happy with my internship but if time were to return to the day I have to choose, I would still come here again. Raffles Beijing has trained me to a stronger person that I am today through the many problems faced and solved. Whether from the endless, countless OT work that I did with my colleagues or the screaming and shouting from angered customers or from task I was given to handle without anyone to teach me. Each and every event has made me learn more than in any other job I undertook in Singapore. By the end of the journey, remembering the many many difficult situations you encountered and how you solve it never fails to bring a smile to my face and to give a pat to my own shoulder for making me so proud to be myself.

I am glad I met colleagues like Christina along the way who taught me about life and determination. Childish a person I was, to think that having less money than others or working terribly hard to prove myself in School had made my life so much harder than most people. My life though not smooth sailing, can never be compared to the hardships of my colleagues I have met here. But never once, have they choosen to give up and wallow in self pity. Life is tough only when you make it out to be.

Emo-ness used to be my mood 80% of the days in Singapore before I came, looking back at my old post and found that I was just a young girl misusing 'sadness' far too often. *rubs the back of my head* Life is just so much more to dwell on any issue again and again. Over here, I learnt to laugh at things that didn't went my way or take things in stride. Its the feeling that nothing is far too ridiculous or hard here that makes me feel that everyday is a new challenge instead of a burden. My Singaporean friends who came over said I seem much happier than when I was back in Singapore.

I guess when life is tough, it trains a person's will. Just as the Chinese saying goes: '天降大任于斯人也，必先苦其心志，劳其筋骨，饿其体肤，空乏其身，行指乱其所为，所以动心忍性，曾益其所不能'. I am thankful for the hardship that I was brought to experience, to appreciate the 21 years of good life I had before I came. Singapore has made our young, unknowingly blind to the many sufferings in the world. To the extent that even studying is a chore and is enough to make people think of dying or cause nervous breakdown. Thinking back, all those was nothing compared to the life here.

For those who are reading, please do not think that from my experience here, I am starting to be anti-Singapore and pro-China. It has in fact made me love my country even more. To be appreciative of the environment we were given to grow up peacefully. I would say Singapore govenment has pampered us too much to the extent that we act like Mummy's child in the eyes of foreigners.

Thank you Raffles, for giving me a chance to be here, to experience an entirely new experience. I would like to thank my many colleagues who made my life here more complete.

To My Supervisor, Ms.Vivien Ren, who taught me the China ways or Revenue Management and guided me with patience.

To My Colleagues, Christina, for accompanying me all so often, working together till late night and dinnering at DONG FANG XING TIAN DI after that.

To My Reservation Manager, who work with us to clear the endless emails and fax and taught me how to TAOBAO :)

To the many Sales colleagues who entertain my silly antics just so often: Grace, Melissa, Susan, Sherry,.....

To My dearest Lunch colleague , Yvonne, who I could pour my woes to everyday and remembered my Birthday just after knowing me for a month.

To others in the Sales Team who made the journey more complete: Marcella, Jasmine, Rosa, Selena, Yuki, Terry, Vita.

To the HR team who showed me warmth and concern when I was bullied by the hosuing agent: Sophia, Raymond, Flower, Monica, Eileen.

To the Credit department: Mark who friendliness always make me work with ease.

To the Singaporean I met in the hotel: Abdul.

To the others: Canteen Auntie who clearly remembers I don't eat beef and mutton, Uniform Auntie who greets me with a smile every Monday morning with my clean Uniform ready.

To the others who left before I did: Julia, Billy, Rain, Rainy, Winnie, Tracy, Annetta.

To others others who left footprint in my life but I couldn't name you. Thank you :)

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