Oh… Malaysia and Singapore…
The 18 days that I spent on the other side of the world were unbelievable. I learned a lot about myself…one thing being that being a picky eater can diminish the power of an experience. This trait eventually turned into an obstacle that I had to overcome. I despise eating vegetables, and tried to avoid local food by sticking to the fast-food chains that I was used to here in the United States. Eventually, I realized that McDonald’s wasn’t cutting it, so I ultimately began to try the local dishes which, to my surprise, I very much enjoyed.
The quarter before the trip, my cohort took a class where I chose to research Sikhism and give a formal presentation on it to my classmates. I grew up Sikh, and thus took the opportunity to spread my knowledge of the religion. Towards the end of the Malaysia trip, we visited a Sikh Temple. When we arrived, I expected that a tour guide would show off the temple and explain the teachings of Sikhism. However, I quickly discovered that I was going to be the tour guide! Luckily, most Sikh temples have the same structure. It was an interesting experience because all throughout the pre-trip course, I had attempted to describe what a Sikh temple was like. Now, my classmates were actually able to see one with their own eyes. I finally felt as if everything was connected for and made sense to the people around me. During the temple tour, I explained how the musical instruments worked during worship and even played the Vaja (harmonium). This was probably one of the funniest moments moments of the trip, since I had not played it in years. I struggled a bit at first, but overall it seemed as if everyone found it fascinating. Overall, it was definitely a struggle to try to remember all of the details during the temple tour, since I had been disconnected from the Sikh community for a couple years prior. This made the experience very important for me, however, as I was able to reconnect with this aspect of my background and share with those in my cohort.
The trip to Malaysia and Singapore was a fantastic experience. In addition to the Sikh temple, we visited mosques, museums, and national parks. Perhaps my favorite place we visited was Gardens by the Bay, in Singapore. Gardens by the Bay had the most innovative structure and beautiful flowers that I have ever seen. I have always been told that this trip was one of the best aspects of the honors program, but I didn’t believe it until I was there myself. We spent a quarter during the pre-trip course learning about the culture and being able to follow up with the trip was amazing. For the freshmen and sophomores in the program who haven’t yet been, you might think that most of the learning comes in the pre-trip course, but it is really the two in combination that solidifies the experience. I wish you the best as you experience it for yourself!
— Shannon Grewal (Class of 2021, Biomedical Science)
