I happened to filter out this flimsy piece of note during the time when I was rummaging through my drawers and cupboards, patiently searching for my resumes, testimonials, academic and non-academic transcripts to prepare for my scholarship interview.

I wasn't sure whether I could stand another afternoon of nostalgia, 2 years after I left Ci Bi village located in the mountainous region of Yunnan. It was my overseas CIP expedition to Yunnan, China, a project collaborated between MJC and YEP, where we spent one of the most memorable and intoxicating 14 days of our life, an experience far beyond words could describe.

I can still vividly recall the defining moments of our trip, in which almost all of us were down with diarrhea or/and fever, symptoms which were very likely attributed to food poisoning, high altitude sickness and unfavourable climate. Similar to a domino effect, one by one, we fell sick as the days stretched. I was down with diarrhea towards the end of the trip, the next morning after we had a football match played at 2000 metres above sea level. The feeling of running on such high altitude with cold wind brushing past me was totally different, such that the high physical drainage took a toll on my stamina, causing me to pant profusely with each stride I took. Coupled with the cold weather, I did not perspire at all. I guess my lack of physical conditioning to such environment eventually brought my body system down.

That alone did not dampen our spirit of extending our warmness and gratitude to the guest who accomodated us. We were treated with their traditional minority performance and also the best of dishes they could possibly whip out. Even after 4 years from the trip, these were some of the unforgettable memories that I can possibly squeeze out from my grey matter:

With each new day, the bonds forged with the students were strengthened and cultural barriers were gradually broken down. We interacted with the students of a local secondary school through games, English lessons and home visiting. The emotional attachement held on to this part of the world was so strong that we were overwhelmed by the fact that we had to physcially depart from there anyway.

On the very last day, we had our autographs signed by the students. I was amazed that they could recall my name when we only introduced ourselves once on the first day. Some even wrote down their address hoping that we would return them a letter when we returned back. I felt guilty of not doing so. But I will make my way back there one day, even though this village is located in the most remote and unaccesible parts of rural China. No tour guide group anywhere in the world would take you there because it is very inconvenient and secondly, we all know of China's attempt to neutralise foriegn intervention into their private culture.

Lastly, I dedicate this post in remembrance of the thousands of innocent lives lost in the Sichuan earthquake. Somehow, the images of the students and physical landscape caught on media resemble those of what I saw when I was in Yunnan.