Growing up in a foreign land

I remember the first time I got my period, I told my mom that I was gonna die soon because I was bleeding non-stop 'down under'. Mom raised her eyebrows slightly and she smirked, "Oh really?" She then proceeded to laugh like a hyena. The worst part is she broadcast 'the joke' to the whole wide world, i.e. my uncles and aunties. So embarrassing can die aitelyu.

When I was 15, mom and dad sent me away to further my studies in a nun school in NZ. Imagine my horror when I found out that there will be no more guys for me to ogle at or harass during recess time! It was the worst nightmare/punishment/torture that came true in my life. It was downright cruel, cold and inhumane to the max Max MAX!!! Mom~, do you know that I'm NO 'vegan' ?!

There was a Science test in my class on the first day I stepped into my new school in NZ. There was no multiple choice questions on the test paper like what we're used to having in our PMR exam. But instead we're asked to write an essay on the photosynthesis process of a plant. I know the answer well. But too bad, I didn't know how to write it out in English then. And so, in the end, I wrote something like this for my teacher:

Fotosintesis is the sintesis proses of sugar inside a plant with green leaves. It uses sunlight, water and karbon dioksida as the raw materials and produces oksigen as the by-product bla bla bla... (You get the 'drill', kan? ;)

My England was really VERY the powderfool then. ;p Hehehe

And of course, I didn't pass the test.

There was a comment attached together with the test script when it's returned back to me two days later. It says,

"You've got the idea right but you need to work on your spelling."

And I did. It took me three whole months to adapt to the Kiwi accent and it took me another three months to re-learn everything in English. It is not easy at all, my dear friend. Switching from one medium to another is no child's play.

Some more the schooling focus in NZ is very different from the one here in Malaysia. The Kiwis emphasize on the learning process & experiences while we here in Malaysia prefer to put emphasis on how much we can rot learn and regurgitate from the textbooks.

Tell me,

1) How many of you get to bungee jump to better understand the gravitational force (F = mass x acceleration) taught in Physics?

2) How many of you get to visit dormant volcanoes to study their formation & activities during your Geography lessons?

3) How many of you get to visit the zoo to study primates like chimpanzees, orang-utans, gorillas, macaques & baboons for 200 hours each to compare their behaviour with humans?

4) How many of you can wear sexy black stockings to school?

5) How many of you have seen, chatted or even hugged an HIV+ person in class before?

I'd been through the aforementioned and a great deal more More MORE in my life. And I'm really thankful for the opportunities given to me by my parents to see and explore what I can't experience in my own country. :)

I think this shall be the closure of my childhood stories series. If you are interested to know more about my life in NZ, please don't hesitate to let me know. I might consider to write out the third & final instalment of my stories for you - My university days in NZ. ;)

Till then, have a nice weekend. I'll be out of town from tomorrow till Monday. Promise me that you will try to miss me a little, will ya? *wink wink*