This morning, I was dragged awake by my father at 7am!!! Why is that so? Well, actually, I was told by my mother that I will be going to follow my father in dragon-boating every Sunday. Having this ‘command’ so undeniably given, what choice do I regarding this matter? As it is, I have no choice but to be in touch with the bitterly chilly Kallang river every Sunday morning!
However, what that surprised me was yet to come, as instead of asking me to prepare my items for getting wet and cold early in the morning, I was told to dressed up nicely and here, I was confused!! Why the need for such when I am going to be wet already? This was where my father explained to me, that the event arranged by Taman Jurong GRC was to be early today, as well as celebrating my father’s 53rd birthday! However, there was no time to be lost as the event was set to start at 11am and we must be there by 10am to meet up with the River Valley High Year 5 and 6 dragon-boaters, who were helping along for the event as volunteers for CIP points.
Rushing to the MRT station, we travelled from Hougang MRT station down the North East Line, all the way to Outram Park Station, where we switched to the East West Line all the way up to Lakeside Station. As it is, we have travelled ALL the way to the other side of Singapore, passing by the humongous Singapore Polytechnic, the newly established Clementi Mall and the giant IMM! What a long ride it was! I thought I was going to get car sick already from all that riding! Even so, we STILL have to take a bus from the Lakeside Station!!
The Taman Jurong GRC has seriously a great distance from Hougang!! 240 was the bus we have to take, and seeing how experienced my father is at this trip to Taman Jurong GRC, because he could pick specific MRT doors to exit and to enter accurately that would save the most time, I felt sorry for him as he travelled to Jurong each day, a long gruesome distance is was and still is, waking up at 5am in the morning to prepare to boil the water for the day’s use and to prepare for work, from which he returns home at approximately 6 to 7pm, sometimes even 10 or 11pm when he has a meeting after work.
After about 5 to 6 bus stops, we got down and crossed the road to our destination at last: Taman Jurong GRC!! A good 2 hours it was, just getting here!! As it was not going to get any early anyway, we rushed to the building where the celebration of the Nation’s 46th birthday lay evident all over the place, and prepared for the event. Registration as volunteer was done, for without it I would not be awarded the CIP hours I would be clocking later on in the day, and roles were quickly issued to everybody.
I was given the role as an usher for the people involved in the event, and along with some of my father’s River Valley guys, we went to take a look at the venue of which the event would be held: the hall. It was then that I saw what event it was exactly-- CDC/CCC Polytechnic and ITE Scholarship & Bursary Award Presentation Ceremony And Jurong Lake Run 2011 Appreciation Lunch!! The Guest-of-Honour was Advisor to Jurong GRC Grassroots Organisation: Mr Tharman Shanguratnam, Deputy Prime Minster & Minster for Finance and Minster for Manpower!! There were a total of about 180 people receiving the awards and as an usher, I will have to show them to their seats according to the number they were given, for their seating must tally with the seating arrangement that was set up specifically for this event.
By 11.15am, things were almost sorted out, until an announcement came to say that the Minster have finally arrived, being SUCH an early bird… Maybe I should not have said that but the event was set to start at 11am… But anyway, we were all glad as this meant the event could finally get started as this here was what everyone was here for, to receive the award given by the country for the hard work they placed in their studies and to get on with all the delicious food that was being prepared all this while. All the effort placed for this event is paying off as things are going well and finally, after the last name was announced and the last award was given out, IT IS TIME TO EAT!!
There were fruits like bananas, longan, lychees, balaku (I am not really sure how it is named but this was what my mother told me….) , drinks like chendol, food like po pia, roti prate, satays, laksa, cai tao quay and curry puffs, well basically it is still quite a spread for any famished people right there right now, AND OFF I GO!!
2 rounds later, I got food for my father, who was still up to his neck with things he needed to do, and I went off to spam the fruits!! Later, as I was enjoying my chendol, the Minister spoke again, as this was Part Two of the day’s event, the Jurong Lake Appreciation Lunch. He spoke about the Jurong Lake Run that was newly launched this year as the very first major running event in the West of Singapore, about how successful it went, and sadly, about how the challenges that was set for the runners were too little and that the run is going to get longer and bigger as an event next year. 5km as a fun run is actually still acceptable, as it was neither too short nor too long, but to increase it!! Well, that does not sounds too good although I will still try to participate in it next year… Maybe…
After all the things for the event was done, I had to wait for my father, and heard things about the planning for the upcoming North East Run and many other things, which were mainly complains about the inadequate ways things were being handled. Things dragged to 3 or 4pm before we could finally set off to home. Oh ya!! Forgot to mention, the River Valley guys chipped in for a birthday present for my father: a waterproof phone pouch thingy that could be hung around the neck while dragon-boating!! They sung a birthday song for him too!! Well this ended well and I got my CIP hours clocked and recorded!! All that have started well should end well, and it did!! And hence, I thus end my post for now!!
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