I spent a few hours at the Treasures of the World from the British Museum exhibit.

This coming Saturday, I'm going to do my first tour for the exhibit. I'm a bit nervous but I feel more confident. I feel that I'm prepared to give a tour.

I hope that I remember everything that I want to say.

All day museum day...

Today was all day museum day.

NGS in the morning, NMS in the afternoon.

Tiring, tiring day.

Brunch and volunteer work...

Before heading to the museum for volunteer work, I met up with I-van and Mon for brunch.

I-van was in town for a few days because of work. However, he's been busy and only had time to meet up today. He flew back to KL this evening.

We agreed to have brunch at Robert Timms since it was most convenient for everyone.

I didn't mind trying a new brunch place but there weren't really a lot of choices in the area. This was because we agreed to meet up at 1030AM. Hehe!

In any case, Robert Timms is always a good choice as the food is good, the price is reasonable, the place is still in the town centre but not that crowded.

Mon and I-van went shopping while I had to go for my volunteer work.

Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the work, but I was exhausted at the end of the day.

What a Monday...

What a Monday!

The activity I planned for today didn't go as smoothly as I hoped it would.

Hmm, the team lead of the volunteer team said it was okay. I guess I was just being too hard on myself.

When the day ended, I planned to just head home, get my laundry and have a simple dinner.

On my way to Si Lom MRT, I saw a Wine Connection at Si Lom Complex. I checked out the menu and the price was half the price in Singapore! I decided to have my usual Wine Connection order, which is bolognese. It was just as good as the one I always have in Singapore. I also had a glass of vino, just because.

Sigh, I hope the rest of the week goes better.

Second day of 2016 went well...

Today felt like a Sunday even though it's only Saturday.

The day turned out to be quite fruitful and I'm happy about it.

In the morning, I went to the gym to attend Vinyasa class. The teacher for the class I attended is one of my favorites. Since I have not been practicing, it was a challenge. I could do certain poses but I definitely still have a long way to go. It was a good workout though since I sweat it out. The left knee survived although it doesn't feel as strong as my right leg. For the meantime, I think I will be doing less Pump and more yoga classes, Body Balance. On the side, I'll do the weights. On off days, I'm thinking I can do short, light jogs.

After gym, I passed by the kopitiam for a quick brunch. Then, I headed back home to change my clothes.

The afternoon agenda was a guided tour at the National Gallery. Today was the second time I led a group around the Singapore Gallery. And I must say that I did a lot better today than my maiden tour last week. I felt I was more confident today. I felt I knew the gallery better. I adjusted my tour - I dropped some of the artworks that I talked about previously and I added some of the other art works that are closer to my heart. Of course, what also made the tour more enjoyable and twice as fun was the group itself. I led a group of 20 people - Singaporeans, Americans, Japanese. Several members of the group were responsive to my questions and many were willing to share their thoughts about the painting.

I was smiling on the inside when I saw several heads nodding in agreement, when there were smiles on some of the faces, and of course, when they applauded at the end of the tour. The other proof I have that the tour went well was that I took almost an hour and a half to finish the tour. Last week, I completed the tour in under an hour. Today, it was much better. I should however learn to stick to the 60 minute or so tour time since another group will need the headsets that we used. Oh, there was also one guy who walked up to me after the tour and told me that he had also previously attended my guided tour at the National Museum. I really appreciated the kind words he and a number of other guests gave.

Anyway, I was happy with how the tour went today. Round 2 of tours tomorrow. ;)

I left the gallery and walked to nearby Funan where I grabbed a late lunch at Subway. Thinking that it was part of the $5 meal, I ordered the Italian BMT. Ugh! It turned out that it wasn't and I paid more than what I wanted. Haha!

The last stop was the National Library. It wasn't as crowded and I easily found a study space. Spent a few hours at the library before packing up my stuff and heading back home.

Now, I'm just taking a break and then I'll study again for an hour before calling it a day... a long day.

Busy August 1...

Can't believe it's already August! Time is flying by so fast!

The first day of the month turned out to be a very long one. I hope it's not a sign of how the rest of the month will be. Haha!

I left the house around 730 to attend the last lecture for the National Gallery Docent Training. I have to admit I am amazed that we have reached the final lecture. The first lecture was some time in late January. Now, here we are several months later equipped with information and (hopefully) ready to guide when the museum opens this November. I just need to write two papers and pass my assessment tour. After that, I'll be officially a docent of NGS. Yay!

We had a whole day lecture today. During lunch, my team mates and I headed to the nearby Din Tai Fung. I'm going to miss seeing these lovely ladies every Saturday morning. Hehe! I hope we do stay in touch even after we start guiding.

From Bras Basah, I took the bus to River Valley to attend the sunset Mass at St. Bernadette. I figured I might as well attend Mass today since Sunday will also be packed with activities.

After Mass, I headed back to Orchard and spent a good hour at the library at 313 Somerset to work more on my tour paper.

When the announcement came on that the library was closing in five minutes, I packed my stuff and just headed to the MRT station for the journey home.

Tired and exhausted now. I'll just rest a bit before hitting the shower and zzz...

Tired and sleepy at 9PM...

It's been a long day and I am thankful that I am finally back home. Haha!

There is no doubt that I will be sleeping by 10PM or even earlier tonight. The reason for this, aside from having a long day today, is not enough sleep from last night.

After I was done with work yesterday, I headed to Orchard for dinner with Mon and Richie. CD Guy and I made plans to watch a movie at 930PM. Since he had dinner plans with his cousins, I made plans with Mon and Richie as well. However, Richie was only getting out of work at 8PM.

With time to kill, Mon and I checked out the sale at Zara before heading over to Richie's workplace to wait for him. We still had 40 minutes to spare so we ended up going for drinks at CPK.

When we reached the Thai place, it was packed but we quickly got a table. The only problem was the food took a long time to arrive. One of the wait staff told us that our food was still third in queue. It was already 9PM so I apologised to Mon and Richie that I had to go. Hehe!

On the way to Cineleisure, CD Guy thankfully asked if I wanted to snacks. I replied that I wanted a hotdog sandwich, or maybe chicken nuggets and drinks. I was starving!

I saw him waiting for me with a lot of food, LOL, and looking very cool at the spot where he chose to wait. The good thing about movie screenings in Singapore is that it really doesn't start on time. The tickets we got was for 9:30. I knew it would only start around 9:45. That gave me enough time to wolf down the food that CD Guy bought.

We watched Far from the Madding Crowd. There are no other movies to watch. It was a good choice though as I enjoyed the film. CD Guy said he also enjoyed it. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to talk about the film afterwards.

It was already 1140 when we got out of the cinema and I had to rush to catch the last train to JE. I only had less than 15 minutes to reach the station. CD Guy, sweet boy that he is, even walked me to the station. It's nice to be the one who's looked after for a change. Haha!

I reached home around 1AM. When I got home, my new flatmate and his partner were still up. I know it because the light in their room was still on. My flatmate also came out of his room and was about to shower. He asked me if I wanted to shower first. I said I want to rest first and he can go ahead. Lol! It took him a loooong time to finish! The good thing was he knocked on my room after 48 years to say that he was done. I thought that was really nice and considerate of him.

It was 130 when I finally fell asleep.

Because of a training today, I had to wake up at 7, and be out of the house by 8. Training was from 930-12. I had a leisurely lunch at Plaza Singapura afterwards and debated whether I should head home to take a nap or go to the library as I had originally planned.

The spirit triumphed. Yay! I went to the library and spent a good few hours to work on my museum paper. By 5, I made my way to church for the anticipated Mass.

Then, it was time to head back for dinner and now, I'm just going to finish this and I'm going to get ready for zzz...

Tomorrow, it will be a somewhat busy day. I want to go to the gym at 10AM for Pump before heading to the museum for my guiding duty. I only have one schedule for tomorrow but a fellow docent needed help. I was free so I agreed to do an extra shift. Good luck with that! Haha!

Okay, that's it.

Packed weekend, as usual...

It's a long weekend. Most of my friends are overseas for a holiday trip. RKGreg and MkSurf8 are in Perth. Tian3x is in Bandung. Even Mon is out of town for the weekend. Hehe. We were messaging each other yesterday and he said that he was on his way to JB with colleagues for an overnight stay.

It really didn't occur to me to plan an overseas trip as I am saving for the trip to Cambodia with Mom by end of June. Yeah, Cambodia is very budget-friendly but I'm buying plane tickets for two, hotel accomms for two, tour packages for two. Hehe! Not that I'm complaining. I'm really looking forward to the trip because 1.) Mom has no idea that we're going to Siem Reap (I just told her that I'll meet her in KL); 2.) it's her birthday on the third day of the trip and she has always wanted to visit Siem Reap.

Anyway, Friday and Saturday were still busy (as expected). Friday late afternoon, I made the trip to the East to join the send-off dinner for Rej. Her best gal pals hosted an intimate dinner at Jackie's place in Tampines. Initially, I told Rej to meet me at the airport for dinner since we didn't get to spend a lot of time chatting last Tuesday. Plans changed because of the dinner. A lot of food, of course! Good food! Hehe! After dinner, Jackie and her fam drove Rej to the airport. It was really nice seeing her. She'll be back in August so there's not enough time to miss this friend. Haha!

Yesterday, I went to Pump with Jon in the morning. We went for the usual class at Westgate. Jon thankfully made it in the nick of time to secure the last slot for the class. Yahoo! Again, because of the energy-draining heat, I found Pump to be quite tough. Gym was followed by a well-deserved lunch at Din Tai Fung.

In the afternoon, I headed to the museum for volunteer work. I had a big diverse group. About 22 people - Americans, Indians, Singaporeans, Indonesian, Malaysian and Irish! Interesting group to guide. The last agenda for the day was dinner with Richie and Ian. It was a rather impromptu dinner. Since Mon was out of town, I figured Richie might want to have dinner. The three of us just had a simple dinner at The Asian Kitchen in Raffles Link before parting ways.

When I got home, there was still time to FaceTime with Tipz. Hehe! Surprisingly, he was still awake. Well, not really surprisingly, since he usually sleeps late. I was complaining of the hot weather. He was complaining of the cold weather in Sydney. Hehe! We had a good chitchat for close to an hour before saying buh bye. Good catchup. I can't wait to visit Sydney!

Moving on, the weather these past few days has been close to unbearable. I really shouldn't be complaining given that India is experiencing 50 degrees lately and a thousand lives were already lost. I'm just saying that it has been very hot in the island lately. It's the kind of heat that saps the energy out of you. It's no wonder then that I've been sleeping very early (10PM, 1030PM). Hehe!

Alright, I have to end this post as I am going for a nature walk this morning. God help us with the heat. Hehe! It's a packed Sunday as well - nature walk, museum visit and Mass.

Have a blessed Sunday!

Tired, really tired, lol...

What a looong Saturday it was! How I am still able to operate at this hour, I have no idea. Hehe!

Just a quick recap of the day, and then I'm going to hit the sack.

After closing the issue (finally!) at 1AM, I turned off the lights and jumped into bed. The problem was it took me some time before I finally got to sleep. I'm not sure if it was because of the coffee I drank or because my mind was still awake. Even with my sound machine that played chirping birds, crickets and evening rain (seriously!), I only fell asleep after 15 minutes. I was hoping I would get at least 6 hours of sleep. Well, no surprise, I was up at 6.

Aware that there was no way I can go back to sleep, I just decided to get up and start the day. First stop was Jollibee at Lucky Plaza. I've been craving for tocilog or tapsilog. Jollibee was the only Filipino food place open when I reached LP. I was that early. Haha!

From LP, I took the bus to go to YMCA. The first agenda for the day was a continuation of the museum training. For three hours, I sat through a lecture on Chinese ink and calligraphy, and a bit about the artist named Wu Guanzhong. Tipz should know the man because we visited his exhibit ages ago.

After museum training, I grabbed a quick bite with my fellow docents before heading to the National Museum. I volunteered to help man the Museum Volunteers booth for two hours. There's a call for volunteers for next year. I hung out with fellow docent and good friend Lionel. We managed to get a few signups and I was also interviewed by a Thai student on the Philippine national anthem and flag. By 4PM, I was so sleepy.

I was tempted to go home but I had plans to go to the library. So.... from Dhoby Ghaut, I took the train to Bishan. There were books I meant to borrow and they were located in Bishan. Also, I asked PG Boy to help me borrow the books. I really should consider getting a library card and pay the annual $50 membership fee since I spend so much time at the library, anyway. We'll see.

While waiting for PG Boy, I managed to do some of my extracurricular work. Around 5 plus, Richie messaged to ask for dinner. He initially suggested The Rice Table. I was craving for Indian food. He suggested Sakunthala in Farrer Park. I asked PG Boy if he had plans. After telling me that dinner was with his best friend WC, I just told him to join us instead. Thankfully, WC was okay with it.

From Bishan, we took the train to Serangoon. At Serangoon, we changed to the Purple Line and headed to Farrer Park. I felt like I've been on my feet the entire day and I was just really tired. Lol!

It was a gooooood diner at Sakunthala! I will admit that I ate more than usual. I figured since I'm at a good Indian food place, I might as well eat the food that I want. After dinner, we passed by Mustafa where Richie hoarded several bags of different types of nuts. From Mustafa, PG Boy and WC headed to City Square to catch Mad Max, Richie went his own way to catch a cab, and I made my way to the MRT to head back.

What a tiring but productive day!

Long Saturday...

It's a tiring Saturday.

To make up for a booboo last April, I volunteered to do three guiding shifts for the month of May. Hehe. Usually, volunteers are only asked to give one guided tour per month.

In any case, it was good that I volunteered to do three shifts for May as there seems to be not enough volunteers for the month. I dunno, perhaps people were or are planning to go on hols.

My first shift today was at 1130. Whenever I do this time slot, almost always I would get about just five to six visitors. Maybe it's too early for museum guests, maybe museum guests prefer to have lunch first. So I was pleasantly surprised when I had a group of about 15 people for the 1130 tour! 7 Singaporeans, 2 British, 2 Americans, 4 Indians.

The tour lasted for about an hour and a half. The main reason was I was overlapping with another guided tour. Hehe. At some points, I had to stop and wait for the other group to move forward. At some points, they had to wait for me to move forward.

My first tour ended a little past one. It gave me enough time to have coffee. I walked over to the neighbouring SMU where I got myself a kopi si and just sat down at one of the uni's benches to relax for a bit.

Close to 2PM, I headed back to the museum for my second shift.

The second shift was rather surprising because I started with a small group (for a 2PM time slot). As I expected though, more people would join once we went into the galleries. I wasn't able to get a proper count of the number of people who joined the tour. I do remember that my group included 1 Thai, 1 Taiwanese, 1 Japanese, 2 Americans, and 8 Singaporeans.

This lasted just a little over an hour, which was also good. I think both tours went well because 1.) there was an applause as I gave my closing lines and 2.) some people walked up to me to say thank you for the tour.

The last agenda for the day was anticipated Mass at St. Ignatius. I wasn't feeling very well but I went for the Mass anyway since I want to have a slow Sunday. I enjoyed the Mass! The priest was vgoood! I have to say that the Jesuits really do know how to engage the crowd, just like the Franciscans. Hehe!

Quite a busy Saturday...

Prayers for Nepal....

Shocked by the news about the Nepal earthquake.

First thought that came to mind was I hope the women, teens and kids the company supports through a partner foundation are all safe.
Prayers for Nepal.

Looking for new volunteer opps...

I feel better today. It must be the prayer. It must be the change in perspective. It must be the acceptance. Whatever it is, I am feeling a lot better today.

It was a busy Monday. With my holiday trip approaching, I am trying to finish as much as I can. Last Friday, the VPN was acting up. Hence, a lot of time was spent disconnecting, rebooting the laptop, waiting for the network folders to connect, and so on. I had to take care of Friday tasks this morning.

I started work at 730AM today. That's the thing about having access to your work files 24/7. One is tempted to go online early to work. Is that good? I dunno. Haha! I just want to get my work done.

By 6PM, I made my way out of the house to go to the gym. I was planning to go all the way to the city to attend the Pump class in Paragon. I decided against it when I remembered that I have to wake up early tomorrow as I planned to work from the office.

Instead, I just headed to the gym closest to my home. It turned out to be a good choice as the instructor was good and the class was not packed (surprisingly!). There was much room to do the routine.

Post-Pump, I headed to the salad place at the neighbouring mall. I haven't had salad for more than two weeks now. I miss Fresh+ very much! Haha!

Done with dinner, I headed back.

Before I started writing this post, I did a search for new volunteer opportunities. I already ended my volunteer work with the Chinatown NGO. My museum volunteer work is still manageable. I figured I can still volunteer with another group.

Actually, I recently got accepted to another volunteer position. It's a very good one! However, I'm now having second thoughts as to whether I should push through with it. I'm thinking maybe it's time to join a volunteer group catering to another particular group.

There are a few groups that I've been eyeing. I sent an application email to one of the groups I'm familiar with. Hopefully, I will get a reply within the week. Otherwise, I'll take it as a sign that I should go for the volunteer position I got accepted to. Hehe!

Whatever the results, I'm looking forward to new volunteer experiences.

Docent training with Guggenheim's Director of Education...

While almost everyone I know back in Manila (including my own family) celebrated Mother's Day, I was at faraway Gillman Barracks and attended a whole day docent training for a special exhibit.

No Country: Contemporary Art for South and Southeast Asia is the inaugural exhibit of the Guggenheim UBS MAP Global Art Initiative. The exhibit was first presented at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. The exhibit then traveled to Hong Kong before arriving in Singapore.

We had two speakers for the day. In the morning, the curator June Yap talked about all the works on display. She started by giving a backstory on the homeland of each artist. This was followed by talking about the art work. It was quite interesting.

I must say though that the afternoon session was much more enjoyable and inspiring. Guggenheim Museum's Director of Education Sharon Vatsky spent a few hours talking to the group about possible ways to guide for the exhibit. It was such a fantastic session. After a brief talk at the conference room, we moved to the exhibit venue where she conducted a walkthrough for us. It is just amazing how we spent a little over an hour discussing just three works.

Aside from learning about the exhibit, I certainly picked up a lot of other ideas that may be used when guiding for the museum. I was really glad I got to attend the session. If that was how sessions are conducted in contemporary art museums, then I am quite sure more people will be open to understanding and even possibly appreciating contemporary art.

Another interesting thing about the exhibit is that it seems fitting that it is staged in Singapore since most of the artists feature come from this region. Two paintings by Filipino artists Poklong Anading and Norberto Roldan are included in the exhibit. I met Norberto Roldan several years ago at Green Papaya gallery. He sold me 5 collages by Geraldine Javier. I also became a frequent visitor of the gallery and eventually bought a few more pieces by Mariano Ching and Jonathan Olazo. Really glad to see his work here in Singapore.

No Country touches on themes such as ethno-nationalism, national identity in an age of globalisation, to name a few. The 22 works on display include paintings, sculpture, photography, video, and installation. The exhibit will run until July 20 at the Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA), Singapore, a national research centre of Nanyang Technological University.

One very good guided tour...

Earlier, I had my monthly guided tour at the National Museum of Singapore.

For the first time, the group I guided was composed of all Singaporeans. There were about 12 people in the group. Two young couples, three married couples who are probably in their fifties or early sixties, a granddaughter (I assume), and a young woman.

Though I've been guiding for several months now, I still get nervous just before I start the tour. I'm worried that I won't be able to answer a question (It has happened a couple of times. My mentor said, "It's fine. We are not expected to know everything because we are all volunteers.). And to be honest, I sometimes feel strange that I talk about Singapore history to citizens.

This is why I think the intro to the tour is very important. It is the point when the docent establishes rapport with the tour group. It is the moment when the docent gets an idea whether the tour needs to be adjusted or revised. The few minutes before the intro are also important as it is a brief opportunity to get to know the guests joining the tour.

Earlier, I just gave my usual intro. My name. Where I'm from. That I'm a museum volunteer. That I love museums. That I love volunteering. That I've been volunteering even when I was still in the Philippines.

It didn't take long before I felt much more comfortable in giving the tour. The curiosity, the friendliness, the genuine interest of almost everyone in the group contributed to making the tour an enjoyable one.

As with the other tours that I give, I would always engage the guests. I avoid a monologue as much as I can because I certainly do not want to attend a monologue if it were the other way around. This afternoon, I can say that the group was able to do that.

I was really happy that the group was composed of young adults and seniors. At certain points, I would ask the seniors to share briefly about what they know/recall about the artefact. Paintings are also a favourite subject of mine because it is a chance for me to get everyone to talk and give their opinions about the painting.

By the end of the tour, I have already had created a good relationship with the group. I know that because as soon as I bid everyone to have a nice afternoon, the group applauded and most of the guests shook hands with me and sincerely thanked me for the time. One uncle even said, "Salamat po."

This was definitely one of my favourite and memorable tours.

As a side note: I've recently been seeing some online articles about the upcoming Philippine Independence Day with a lot of negative comments from I dunno if they're locals, PRs. I dunno if these people are posting with the real identities. Nevertheless, the content is just filled with hatred and negativity.

I actually wonder what percentage of the citizenship feel this way towards foreigners. Sure, there are those who are really anti-foreigner, but there is a part of me that believes it is a small percentage. Is it being too dreamy? Too wishful thinking? Too optimistic? I don't think so. A part of me really believes that there is a bigger "open-to-discussion, open-minded" group. Otherwise, I wouldn't have good Singaporean friends. Otherwise, I don't think my friendship with KK or with BT or with BC or with LL or with JL or with DP and PK or even WC would develop into a real friendship. Otherwise, the group I've had earlier wouldn't be sincerely applauding and shaking my hands after the tour even if a foreigner was talking about their nation's history.

During the recent Eurotrip, I had a very good experience in Brussels which my Filipino friend Gemma later pointed out to me. She has been living in Brussels for almost a year now and it has been a good experience for her. She shared that one thing she really loved about living in Brussels was that people do not "profile" people based on the colour of their skin or the shape of their eyes. Whether you're black or Caucasian or Asian, the first thing you would be asked is "English or French?" (referring to the language to be used in conversing). I had that experience at the hotel where we were stayed. The concierge's first question after politely greeting me was "English or French?" I thought it was really nice. I thought it would be great if it were like that everywhere. Okay, now this part I know is wishful thinking. But the earlier one, I know there is still hope.

Volunteer appreciation dinner at Bumbu...

Last night, I attended the volunteer appreciation dinner for one of the groups I volunteer with.

The dinner was held at the Thai-Indo place Bumbu located along Kandahar Street.

It's actually a very nice place for private functions or special dinners.

The staff are very nice and helpful. The food is goooood! The other thing I love about the place is the collection of Peranakan items. From Peranakan tiles to wall dividers to wall decors to tin lunch boxes and so on, there is much visual treat around the restau.

It was quite an enjoyable night.

I had a good time catching up with some of the volunteers. The good thing about the dinner was it was an opportunity for volunteers to gather together and just enjoy each other's company.

Since volunteers rarely see each other, I always make it a point to attend the gathering. Alright, I also attend because of the good food. Hehe!

Speaking about volunteering, I've been volunteering since I arrived in SG almost three years ago. This year, I intend to do some self-examination of my volunteer activities. I have to see how I can move forward with my volunteer experience.

Anyway, that's a whole other topic.

If you're looking for a new place to try, do go to Bumbu. After dinner, you can head over to the neighbouring Maison Ikkoku or even Haji Lande for drinks.

Bumbu
44 Kandahar St, Singapore 198897
6392 8628

On volunteering...

Recently, I had an interesting convo with a fellow volunteer.

We were discussing volunteer recruitment matters. I pointed out something to this fellow.

He then told me about this article/research he read about reasons why people volunteer.

The reasons can be one or a combination of the following: 1.) pure altruism, 2.) social network, 3.) escapism, 4.) career advancement, to name a few. There were three more items but he couldn't recall. Lol.

Uhm, it was a bit of a news to me given that I come from a traditional school of thought when it comes to volunteerism.

Up to this day, I still recall my first volunteer experience. It was when I was in Primary 2. We visited an orphanage which was a short walk away. I remember I brought a few toys to share with the other kids.

Back then, I was still too young to understand what I was doing. Lol. Few years later, I started another volunteer commitment. This one lasted me close to seven years. In uni, I was part of a volunteer group. After uni, my first job was with a volunteer organisation. The following jobs saw me in the field of corporate social responsibility, which included a volunteer component.

When I came to SG, one of the first things that I wanted to do was to volunteer with a group. I was blessed to have found one group and I've been with them for close to three years now. (Whoa! Time flies!). Last year, I started another volunteer commitment. This commitment is on its way to its first year. I am planning to volunteer with one more group.

Writing this down, I am amused to realise that volunteering was and continue to be a signficant part of my life.

There are times when I experience internal conflict though. At one point, I would either ask myself my reasons or ask whether there is a fit between the values I believe in and the values/thrust of the group I volunteer with.

I still continue to volunteer though. There is much to be done around, whether it's in the Philippines or surprise, surprise, even in a First World country like Singapore.

A fellow Filipino volunteer I recently chatted with shared his reaction after a few months of volunteering with another group. He said, "I'm surprised, you know. I didn't think that there were similar issues here in Singapore. I've always thought everyone has it good here."

Yet another reason why I believe in volunteering. It is another way of knowing the place where we are in. This makes me remember those times that I've gone to far-flung areas for immersion. The objective was simple: live with the community to understand their way of life. Hopefully, when one returns home, he/she will have an understanding of the need for action, for volunteerism.

There's this quote from St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of my primary school. Though I've graduated from Grade 6 a looong time ago, I still recall this quote and it continues to be one of my guiding principles in life:

"Brothers, let us begin. Let us begin, for until now we have done little or nothing."

Docent training begins...

Last Saturday was the first session for the Museum Guide/Docent Training Course at the National Museum of Singapore.

A day before the course, the organizers emailed readings - yes, readings - to all docent trainees I suppose.

On the way home last Friday and over breakkie last Saturday, I was reading on the pre-colonial history of Singapore.

It's very interesting. When I think about Singapore, what usually comes to mind are the skyscrapers, great shopping, chicken rice. It was good learning about the time before the island was occupied by the British in 1819.

The first session of the course was both fun and intense. The senior guides gave a lively and enjoyable talk on guiding skills for museum volunteers.

Afterwards, we were given a lecture on the Temasek history. Singapore was once known as Temasek. In Malay, it means sea town. That afternoon, I met Wang Dayuan, Sang Nila Utama, Raja Culan, Iskandar Shah, among others.

Following this was our first gallery walkthrough. I've been to the History Gallery a couple of times, but this is the first time that the artefacts and relics are having more meaning to me.

The session ended with an assignment. (It really does feel like going back to school!) I had to prepare a talk about a particular topic. Come the third session, I will be doing my presentation. Exciting and it's also making me nervous. Hehe! :D I'm really impressed with how organized the training course is. It was also great seeing how passionate the senior guides are in what they do.

We were given a schedule of the entire training schedule that will run until end of May. The senior guides are right. Our Saturdays will never be the same again. Hehe!

Looking forward to the next sessions.

Woohooo!

Best email I received this morning.

Wooohoooo!

New volunteer opportunity...

This morning, I went for an interview for a volunteer post.

It was a volunteer post I've been eyeing and have been waiting for for quite some time now. Every time I would check the website of that organization, I would always see "There is currently no recruitment for volunteers."

That changed last Monday.

Because PG Boy asked me over the weekend about volunteering with the organization, I decided to check the org website when I got into work and there it was...

Landing page had a huge banner that said "Recruitment of Museum Volunteers Ongoing." Yay! I clicked on the banner and I was led to a page that said Application deadline 3 March 2013. Monday was 4 March 2013. Boo!

Still, I submitted an application. I figured I wouldn't lose anything. Come the following Monday, I received an email from the group saying I've been shortlisted for the volunteer recruitment. Yay!

This morning, during the interview (which I think went well), I told the interviewers about the status of my work pass. They told me it was a concern. Boo!

My new work pass expires this 2014 March. The organization requires a one-year commitment until July 2014. That's because training is April until June and the actual deployment is this July. I just told the interviewers that regardless of the interview, I plan to do everything I can to stay in the country.

I would be lying if I say that I wasn't a bit crestfallen upon hearing that the work pass status was a concern. I expected it to be a concern though. I really planned to mention the work pass status during the interview. I'm wondering now whether I should have delayed divulging that information. Hehe.

I already saw the training course topics and schedule and it is wonderful and exciting. I can already imagine it will be a good learning experience. Sigh.

There's nothing I can do now but wait. The results of the interview will be released in a week's time. Crossing my fingers. If it doesn't happen, I'm going to take it as a sign...

New volunteer opportunity...

Monday ended on a good note.

I received an email from this particular organization that I was shortlisted for the volunteer recruitment interview. Yay!

Interview will be this Saturday morning.

I'm really hoping I get in as this is going to be a great experience.

More on this soon...