2005-07-13
4:32 p.m.
Austria - 12 July 2005
Here's the latest update, thanks to Dada's nagging... *grumble grumble* =p
I miss my PA. But I'm really glad they seem to be having fun!
Minz>> tell Mohan and YL to be good and EMAIL ME before their TAs murder them.
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Dear all,
We had our first "casualty"�among the delegates yesterday. It was a girl from Czech Republic who fell while running and twisted her knee (yes, knee, not ankle). We saw for the first time, and hopefully the last, the teamers in action, moving her up and down the bus using evacuation methods. She was sent to hospital but is alright and back with us in camp now. She's currently walking with the assistance of 2-aider human crutch.
Mohan, Michelle and Yuling are missing Singapore food very much. But they love to torture themselves so they still constantly talk about things like char kway teow and laksa and then moan and groan about how they want to eat it NOW. I think they are getting tired of bread, butter, ham, orange juice, cheese and yoghurt (to me, it's heaven here! I love all these food!) But the one thing that we ALL miss are vegetables. They don't ever seem to eat vegetables except for salads and it's forever drenched in vinegar. Perfect for developing gastric/stomach ulcers. We're planning to go to the supermarket in town and see if we can find familiar looking vegetables (kai lan? Haha..).
Yesterday, after visiting the concentration camp, we came back to watch a video on it. The video upset quite a few people. Mohan, Yuling, and Michelle were all a bit down and quiet for the rest of the evening. My room mate was super upset and was brawling in the room. She told everybody that she wanted to be alone so myself and my other room mate, a Croatian girl, were 'banished' from our room. It affected her so much that when some of the guys went to cheer her up, she shouted really loudly at them to get out of the room. Thank goodness, though, everyone is back to their happy moods today.
After the visit to the concentration camp, we stopped by a little town called Durnstein and we went into a little cafe because it was raining (which incidentally feels like ice water falling from the sky) and we couldn't do much sightseeing. The prices on the menu were real interesting. A glass of wine was �1.50, a beer was �1.60. I had a fruit tea which also cost �1.60 AND Mohan had a small bottle of water which cost �1.80. I think that would be the last time he buys a bottle of water.
We've just finished a 2.5 hour session on IFRC, ICRC and Red Cross History. Just like our Red Cross Knowledge but more detailed. It was a wonderful interactive way to 'teach' RCK and it was so inspiring and stimulating, I feel like doing my own research/study about RCK and I wouldn't mind teaching it too. However, we sometimes feel lost during the workshops because they talk a lot and they relate a lot to European History (which we are not very familiar with). For instance, when they talk about world war 2, they only talk about Germany, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic etc etc. Basically, Europe. They also feel more strongly about it because they grew up in this part of the world and have heard stories from their grandparents I suppose.
That's all for today. I have another hour free. Probably run into town to buy some chocolates.
Mae
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