BSC weekend Reflection
A thrilling week has passed, and the memory of our weekend is etched in the deepest corners of our minds.This weekend was like no other. In the early morning, my friends and I woke up early and had a sumptuous breakfast in the Subway shop. We were all energetically prepared to leave for the Science museum.What stroke me the most was how compacted and humid the buses in Beijing were. We were so densely packed that the radiating heat of the man next to us, the reek of his cologne, the rhythmic puffing of his breath was next to ours.
Boarding the bus was also a really disturbing task, for people rushed up the bus like a swarm of bustling bees, compared to the relatively nonchalant attitude in Singapore. It felt extremely uncomfortable for many of us to engage in such tight competition despite already freezing from the bitter coldness.
When we eventually reached our destination, we were in awe of its majestic, splendid outlook. A mere split second glance of the building created an irresistible bond of attraction between the visitors and the museum. There was a gigantic screen that played interesting caricature on the mechanisms used to purify the air. And beside it was the oval-shaped museum, its surface so bright and shining that it resembled a mirror. We could even brush our hair and adjust our winter clothing in front of it.The grandeur and beauty of the various exhibits did not so astonish many of us.
There were four floors; each floor had four exhibits marked with A to D showcasing a particular area of interest. For example, the first level showed us the tools used by peasants in Chinese history. High-tech devices such as infrared detectors and motion sensors were utilized for displaying the tools. It had effectively teleported the visitors into the past, and made us feel deeply connected and well-informed of the Chinese history.After exploring the museum, my friends and I took a brisk 20 minutes walk to the “bird’s nest”. The entry ticket was 25 yuan, and the price raised our expectation concurrently. It was a satisfying experience as we had the opportunity to marvel at the enormity of the interior of the building, and the brilliance of architects. It wasn’t that difficult to realize that constructing a building with curved metals took a lot of hard work and genius in the part of the constructers.
Later in the day, we decided to take a 40minutes taxi ride over to “Wang Fu Jing”, and visit the shopping malls around there. Some of my friends were excited about the prospect of purchasing clothes, some just wanted to look at its splendour, but I was really attracted to the renowned 6 storey high bookshop there with cheap books for sale.
I was not disappointed. Every level of the bookstore had its own classification of Chinese books. The vast amount of available books was made more intriguing with the price it was sold for. 50 Yuan for a thick manuscript of Liszt, 30 Yuan for Chopin, 15 Yuan for a book on Chinese poems. I went berserk. After much contemplation, I narrowed my purchasing list to 5 books and made payment. I was really glad for my friends to have bought me there.
Later in the day, I had dinner with my friends and ate a bowl of noodles, which was a local delicacy. All of us enjoyed the unique exotic taste of the noodles melting in our mouths, and the flavour of the sauce. We had a good meal.Overall, I really enjoyed myself during the weekends. The field trip, the outing with my friends, the food and the cheap prices was part of it. But what really mattered was the experience we gained, the friendship we made, the people we met. I had learnt a lot from visiting the public areas of Beijing, and learnt a bit of the culture of the people. As such, I really look forward to the weekends in China, for every week brings forth a new, exciting set of experiences.
