Growth through travel
The past few years have really flown by. I feel like I’ve changed as a person, and as a writer too. Why travel blog? So I can follow what I’ve seen and how I’ve changed over the years!
How I’ve changed as a person
What I love about travel is that you challenge yourself. You can challenge your beliefs of what the world is like, what other people are like, and who you are. I’ve grown the most through traveling, and much of this has been because I’ve gotten to know myself better. Instead of floating through life living on a routine, travel has broken it up by giving me new experiences, exposing me to new cultures, and making new friends. It’s also forced me to think about what is important to me.
I’ve learned that I love being around different languages, and that I can be braver than I thought I could be.
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One year post operation: Tiny scar and a numb face
A year ago last month, I had surgery for some facial fractures. This injury included some nerve damage on the right side of my face. I wrote about when it had just happened. In the last year, I’ve had to change some of my expectations for recovery. This is my follow up on post operation recovery.
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HOoray, I’m thirty! Let’s make shit happen!
Last week…it happened…I turned 30 years of age. Here’s my crack at thirties life advice. Ha!
Nothing special happened, and the next day my country recognized same-sex marriage as a right, so my birthday became even more of a non-event. I don’t mind.
If my Facebook feed could be this full of people celebrating something this wonderful all the time, I would be happy forever.
I’ve never really celebrated my birthday, and I generally don’t like being the center of attention. I even felt somewhat of a twinge of selfishness when planning a small outing for my 30th birthday with a handful of friends and my sister.
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I'm...gonna swing... A New Yorker’s bucket list for the holiday season in New York
New York is less smelly this time of year, and generally happier. You might still witness a cranky commuter or two (or a few million), but the overall atmosphere quietly shifts during the holiday season. Maybe it is the shopping high that everyone is on.
My toes tell me it’s cold, but my hair couldn’t be happier to escape the humidity of Singapore. I’m back in New York, and I have a few things I’m looking forward to this holiday season. Continue Reading
Pirate face, my recent surgery, and healthcare in Singapore
Sorry I haven’t been around the past few months! It has been a bit of a strange period of time, but I’ll explain later.
I’ve had the pleasure of experience healthcare in Singapore, now on 2 occasions. I fractured a few bones in my right hand last year, and a few weeks ago I suffered a collision during an ultimate tournament that resulted in facial fractures.
My face is broken
It’s called a zygomaticomaxillary complex fracture. Basically, there were some fractures in the parts of my skull supporting my eye and the tissue around my eye. The tissue under my eye was shifting or falling downwards because the bone there (orbital rim) had some slight displacement. Some of the bones to the side of my eye were fractured, and then there were some fractures in the lower part of my cheek (at the level of the bottom of my nose).
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136 days until World Ultimate Club Championships in Lecco, Italy!
I’m officially 136 days away from playing ultimate in Italy for the World Ultimate Club Championships (WUCC) 2014! This international tournament will be held in Lecco, Italy (which is somewhat close to Milan). The weeks and days are winding down now, and I’ll soon be back in Singapore to train with my team (Shiok! ultimate).
On not freaking out when all your friends are getting engaged or having babies
I’m a few short years away from turning 30, and it seems I’ve entered the time span where all my Facebook feed seems to be dominated by is posts about engagements, weddings and babies. It has been like this for probably a year or more, but wasn’t so apparent until a few months ago when at least 5 or 6 people got engaged within about a 2 week period.
With this, I’ve come to realize that I’m not that close to contributing to Facebook feeds of my friends in this fashion, and I’m ok with that. I’m better than ok; I’m pretty good! My life is not devoid of happy events and especially not jewelry which I don’t care to wear. I’m in no way less “complete” and don’t feel like I’m “behind” in any way. Life events aren’t necessarily following a particular sequence (except for getting older and other time related phenomena). Continue Reading
A few days in the forests of Thailand…
I’m in Thailand to spend about 4-6 days at the Sakaerat Environmental Research Station in Nakhon Ratchasima Province. It is a few hours bus ride northeast of Bangkok (about 300km).
Last time I was there, I didn’t get to stay very long or see very much. I’m glad to be able to spend several days in at the research station, which is in the dry dipterocarp and dry evergreen forest! Although I’m admittedly a newbie at outdoorsy things, I think I’m really going to enjoy this time here. It is nice and cool at night, and not too hot during the day. Continue Reading
Graduate student expenses in Singapore (updated monthly budget and sample spreadsheet)
I made a preliminary budget a few months ago, and now after having settled in and miscellaneous moving costs have been covered, I am going to aim for this budget and track what I spend. I was tracking my spending at home too in NYC, but now it is even more important for me to do this because my income is lower and I have more expenses. (FYI, I receive a monthly stipend of SGD$2000 from a scholarship to cover living expenses. This would increase if/when I pass my Qualifying Examination…) Continue Reading
Graduate student personal finance (living abroad edition)
I’m a grad student again! First stop is Singapore. And that means a few things: different schedule (more and less flexibility in many ways!), taking classes again, moving expenses, and reassessing my monthly budget. Oh yeah, and making new friends. (I miss my old friends, so don’t worry, I’ll be back again!).
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term personal finance, it just means tracking your money and what you are worth, including financial goals and life plans. Continue Reading
Hey, I'm Chewy! I'm a science journalist currently living in New York. I'm an introvert who likes to see new things and learn. Here I write about my travels and musings about food, places and cultures. Check out my photos, reviews, and random thoughts!