Dream Out Loud

Few weeks ago, I posted a video containing my adventures with 10  medical students from the National University of Malaysia who came here to the Philippines for the Asian Medical Students’ Exchange Program, a 70% Cultural and 30% Educational Program.

For those 6 days, we’ve really got tons of photos but I’ve handpicked a few just for my blog :)

When they arrived, I was one of the students who picked them up in Clark airport. We prepared a banner and a garland (flower necklace) to make them feel so welcome once they come out of the airport. It was fun because even though it was our first time to meet, we got along pretty well and our trip back to Manila was smooth with no awkwardness at all.

We prepared a welcome party for them at Jollibee so that they can get to meet the Philippines’ famous bee! They also got to play games with the Filipino students. The best part? Chickenjoy was introduced to them! And of course, they loved it! haha!

During the first day of the tour, we visited the Philippine General Hospital followed by St. Luke’s Global City. 

After all the hospital tours for that day, we got to shop with the delegates in Market Market and enjoyed Laser Tag! It was my first time to play and I thought the 15 minutes time allotment wouldn’t be enough but I was wrong. The game felt like it was forever! But everyone really had a great time for sure.

We had dinner at Abe Bonifacio High Street then headed to High Street Central where we chilled before going home. One of the moderators brought swinging tethered weights and taught some of our delegates how to do Poi dancing. It was challenging at first but some of them got a hang of it in the end.

For the next day of their tour, they just stayed around the UERM area. Some of them attended classes while some dissected cadavers during Anatomy Laboratory classes.

As these Malaysian delegates arrived in the Philippines, they wanted to try so many things and one of them was Dirty Ice Cream. (And I don’t know how they knew about dirty ice cream, were they not threatened by the word dirty? haha!) Of course, we know the ice cream is not at all dirty. It was given with such name maybe because it was just sold in the streets. So many Filipinos would have been sick right now if this ice cream was really dirty. Haha! Anyway, they were saddened at first because they thought the ice cream man already left the school vicinity. Luckily, as we were walking home, we saw him at the back of our school and you just can’t believe how excited these students were when they got to see the ice cream cart. Haha! Of course, when in the Philippines, dirty ice cream is surely a must-try!

For our night-out, I had them ride a jeepney on the way to the KTV place. They asked me, how will the driver know if everyone who rode the jeepney paid? And the answer? Yes, HONESTY and TRUST. One of the nice things to know about Filipino culture.

For their Saturday trip, they went to Luneta, Intramuros, and SM Mall of Asia. They were enriched with knowledge on Filipino culture and even got to role play in front of other tourists. Sadly, I was not able to go with them for that day because I figured I really had to rest for our trip the next day to Batangas.

It was a very long trip to Batangas! It was fun that they got to enjoy the beach here in the Philippines and tried different native delicacies and meals served during lunch and snack. Plus, we even got them to eat Balut! Of course, it took a lot of convincing and cheering before they finally gave in and ate it. At the end of the day, everyone had a great time, a break from the city, and went home tired but happy of course!

For their final night in the Philippines, we had a program prepared for them. This was joined by the student-moderators not only from UERM but also from UP and UST. It was like a farewell party for the delegates where we gave away tokens, exchanged speeches and letters, and enjoyed the night reliving the past few days we’ve shared!

Our Malaysian delegates even wore their traditional costume and performed for us. They danced Jai Ho and sang Kenangan Terindah (The Sweetest Memory). Okay, so I really didn’t understand what their song meant but I felt that it was so sentimental and it moved me. No wonder I cried!!!!! Okay, they were laughing at me and asking if I even understood what they were singing. I did not get what they were trying to say but I felt the song. Thus, the burst of emotions!

This program has got to be one of my most memorable experiences in an organization. This was an opportunity I really thank God for. I did not only meet new friends, but I also got to learn a lot from them and had the chance to create binding relationships. And because of them, I suddenly want to earn more to be able to be part of an  Exchange Program soon! Yay! Must work harder for that. :)

Bottom line: I’m just so happy I’m part of AMSA-UERM! Opportunities are overflowing! :)

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

While walking around school today, I noticed how there were more bouquets of flowers given by men today compared to last year. I’m not sure if people are just in the mood to be more expressive or if there are more couples (or soon-to-be ones) in the university this year. Nonetheless, it was nice to see them with their happy faces while carrying their flowers around school.

And though I did not receive any flowers today (as expected! haha!), I was not all that emo or whatsoever because I got to spend the day encouraging people to express their feelings for the day through our organization’s Say It With A Post It Project.

This project is something AMSA-UERM is famous for when February 14 is on its way. Aside from the usual chocolates and flowers, people can also express their feelings to their friends and loved ones by writing it in a post-it and having it stick in our wall for everyone to see! It’s something sweet, fun, and different too!

We had 2 different sizes of post-its sold, a small one and a big one for only 5 and 10 pesos respectively.

Our Post-It wall was also surrounded by different pick-up lines to make people more interested in checking out what we have to offer!

We also had stickers sold at 10 pesos each!

But of course, what really made our project stand out was the “personal touch” aka doodles and writings from our dear medical students. Our wall was filled with love notes, friendship notes, secret notes, and more! But what really caught my eye were those cutesy doodle artworks the people made and I just can’t let the day pass without taking a picture of them! :)

Honestly, Valentine’s Day can just be another typical day for me except the part where I get to see almost everyone carrying a bouquet. Of course, I’m still hoping for that day to come when I’m holding a bouquet of flowers given by the one I love! For now, I just have to enjoy the single (and not to mention busy-busyhan life in the organization!) blessedness I was entrusted with. I had the choice to spend the night with friends and have fun but right now, I’d rather stay here in the dormitory, check out my FB updates, and accomplish my unfinished business with regards to my event preparations.

Thanks to this project, I still enjoyed this day because I got take part in making people’s Valentine’s sweetness overflow through their post its! :)

I hope everyone’s day went well. :) Happy Valentine’s!