Anyway here I am back in my hometown. So far my days here are alright I guess. So much has changed! :D Today went shopping with my mum and sis hehe. Got myself two pairs of long pants (finally) and 3 pairs of short pants. Not bad, they are having some 50% discount thingy so it's worth it hoho. Sadly today I wasn't feeling uhh good, not sure why a bit moodless and just shen ti bu shu fu to put it that way.
I went to my dad's garden yesterday. The place changed quite a lot there. More technology hahaha. We're planning to plant more flowers to make it for CNY, cause that's when the flower sale is blooming. All I can say is that... Going there really reminds me of my Inner Mongolia OCIP again. Cause there's like soil everywhere. And plants everywhere. Plus it was chilling and windy there. Everything reminds me of Duolun and our planting days :(
Sigh, seriously, never have I felt so emotionally attached to a team, a place and a trip before.
Anyway here it is, my second OCIP trip write up.
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Inner Mongolia OCIP write up #2 - Yours Truly, Duolun
Our project is carried out in a county in Inner Mongolia, China, called Duolun. In Chinese it's called 多伦. In Mongolian (I think) the place means 7 lakes if I'm not wrong. Or place of lakes or something like that. Duolun is a beautiful city. It's actually a county, like there are small towns/villages scattered there. The county itself is huge (7 times of Singapore) and there are lots of grasslands, empty lands and hills. There's a lake there too.
Anyway during the interview, Jesslyn asked me if I'm okay living in a very simple accommodation, and I said sure I don't mind. From this question, it leads me to a conclusion that we'll be living in a very simple lifestyle kind of thing. Perhaps a very small town, no technology, no shopping etc. I once thought that the place we're going is a village, and life there is super simplistic. I didn't even think of staying in a hotel.
But alas I'm wrong. Duolun city is a decent-sized city with buildings etc. There are supermarkets, small shops, restaurants and hotels. We stayed in a nice hotel as well. The room is cosy and nice, even though the toilet is a bit too "dark" for my design liking. But at least everything is functional so it's good. Despite of its seemingly bustling state, I feel that Duolun itself is quite of a quiet town. Life there is simple, slow and nice.
Shot this when I first arrived here
It's the thing I missed the most about the town - it's simplistic and slow-paced lifestyle.
At night, the seemingly bustling town is pretty quiet and cold (as it was autumn). The shops there close at about 8.30 PM. But there are some shops that close at 10.30, like the big supermarket. The locals there are one of the friendliest locals I've ever met. Whenever we say thank you, they would say you're welcome. When we're leaving the shop, they would say please be careful, walk slowly.
The ubiquitous rows of shops
I want to mention a special local. There is an optometry shop in Duolun, and some of us (Ahpa, Clarence, Yong An) went there to get some new glasses. There was a day where Ahpa, Clarence and I were in the shop and Clarence was still making his glasses. We were supposed to meet at 7 in the hotel and we were not done yet. Looking at us to be in a rush, the owner of the shop offered to send us back to the hotel with his car. And we really did, we went back to the hotel in a local's car!
The usual laundry shop we went to
The thing is this. We're in a foreign country and we don't know anybody. At first when he offered us, part of my heart was asking "Can we trust him? We don't know each other". Yet his hospitality tells me that it's alright, we can go with him. There's just something that tells me it's okay to go with him. The other people in his shop are kind too. There was a female assistant in the shop whom we talked to the next day. While waiting for Yong An's glasses to be fixed, the 4 of us were chatting with her, just like friends.
We never met, we never talked before. And we talked like as if we know each other for a year.
Us and the super friendly optician and his assistant!
Another thing I miss about Duolun is the sights and views. The town itself it beautiful. Simplistic architecture, no grand designs. But that's the thing. Its simplicity makes it really beautiful. And the sights of the grasslands, the hills, the lake is really gorgeous as well. Making it one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. I wish I could have the time to FULLY explore the town, and the county itself. Maybe in the future.
Somewhere near our planting site
Lake Duolun
Duolun is really wonderful. It's a town I'll never forget. And I'll certainly miss its slow-paced and simple lifestyle. Something that we, humans of the 21st century need. The friendly locals and the wonderful sceneries. I'll miss the weather as well. It's cooling and windy autumn in the afternoon. And cold nights with quite strong winds sometime. Everything comes to a beautiful marriage of a wonderful trip. Oh not to forget, the awesome different food I've eaten there as well.
Mr Lee's beef noodle! So delicious
Thank you so much for the wonderful memory, Duolun. And I hop that I can one day visit you again and relive all the moment I had with you back in September 2011.
Yours Truly
Adhi
Monument at Duolun
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