Hello 2010, Goodbye 2009

I was busy. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Chinese New Year everyone! "Ho Ho Ho, May you be live happily and eat till your belly becomes like mine" (Santa Claus on Spring time), "What resolution(s) this year? got meh?" (New Year was tweaked to late February, my style) and "Gong Xi Fa Chai" (CNY - no angpows to you...)

I know I should post it earlier. But well, it's better to be late than never, right? 2009 to me was totally a whole new year with plenty of new experiences, new sights and new people. I can't remember people's name well because I always choose not to remember, I always want to look at the future and I do not wish to look back.

2009 has its ups and downs. I do not talk about my downs here in this Everyone-can-read blog. People can go on and on talking about their downs but I liken that to "Washing your dirty linen in public"... not me... lol. But isn't it more interesting to read nice stuffs than reading emo, boring, I-am-so-sorry posts?

*bang*

2009 was interesting because I travelled to many places in Korea. So far, I had travelled to nearly everywhere in Korea except for the North-East part of Korea, Busan (been to the airport only on Feb 2010), Jeju Island, Nami Island, Gwangju area and the West Coast of Korea.

Throughout my stay in Korea, I like Seoul, Jeonju and of course my current city, Daegu the most. Seoul is a metropolis and been a metropolis means lots of nice and interesting spots centered on this city. Seoul is more like the heart, with the roads resembling the blood vessels. Busy, active and never sleeps.

Jeonju, a traditional town. There's nothing spectacular about this place but I like the quietness and the distance from the city. There's always nice Korean Traditional houses to stay, and it's also known as the food capital of Korea. My hometown in Malaysia, Penang is also known as the food capital so it has "sentimental value" to me.. just kidding... I really like learning people's culture and this place seemed to resemble the old Korea.

Daegu. 1 year (11 months to be a lil' accurate) and beyond. There's always nice aka positive things and negative things to say about it. At first Daegu doesn't really meet my expectations of it being the 3rd largest city in Korea. It looks small, it feels small. But what that matters is that it has that "feel" that makes you want to continue living here. Daegu - Nice and kind Koreans, tolerable weather, affordable city lifestyle, etc.

*okay... I'll keep on writing*

After a year staying in KNU (Kyungpook National University), getting and making new friends is easy but seeing them leaving after a year was heart wrenching, exaggerated but I am really going to miss them. And I made a video on our 1 year journey in Korea. It was my very first video.




Lera, Olesya, Oxana, Kay, Hsu Myat, June, Kay, Kampanart and Jaime - really nice knowing you all, nice memories, great people.

*Resolutions? Wth?*

"Dear Mr. Resolution,

I heard through watching TV that every new year, one has to make a list of what we want to achieve in that particular year. Is it really a custom or is it another scam? I found out that this idea of yours is only a mere time wasting tradition of writing unachievable goals. Undoubtly, there are some who can achieve their goals, wei, come on... they are the 0.00000001 % or even less..

So this year, I make a simpler list of resoulutions.

1. I wish I can sleep more. I slept at 1~2 am these days.
2. I want to look good and feel good. Isn't it great to feel good every morning?
3. Travel to other country while I am in Korea (actually I did that already! I went to China on Feb 12)
4. Study hard and ace the exam. "Be Optimistic! be Optimistic!"
5. Practice more Korean.
6.
7.

I can't think of it now... So I will leave no. 6 and 7 as the empty spaces which I will want to fill it someday. So do you think it's achievable?

Yours sincerely,

You-know-who

p/s shhhh... You want 1 sen? tolong me lah... (You want 1 cent? please help me okay...)"

I will be posting some pics if I have the time. My class will start next week too. Classes... hmmpff... 난 이번 학기는 아마 바쁘지만 꼭 쓰고 싶어

Time after time

Er... actually, I do not have any intentions to blog these days. I am too preoccupied with assignments (especially the Korean Universities' Entrance Application and my school Korean language exams) so I think i would have to forsake my interest in blogging for a short time, maybe a month or two. In a span of only two weeks, I had travelled to the capital (Seoul) twice and one of the trip was sponsored by my university or the Korean Government while the other comes from my pocket (Ouch!). We had a university exhibition on the 15 and 16 this month.

As usual, it's quite interesting to see how the Malaysian KGSP scholars have changed (both physically and mentally), some remained the same, some grew wider (hehe), some grew thinner. But what that doesn't change is that we still treat each other as if we are family, maybe this is one of the reasons that birds of the same feather flock among themselves. One of the funniest memory that I can remember is that some Malaysian KGSP people cannot recognized me, maybe I change a lot, I don't know. Change is part and parcel of life, and I hope I change for the better. Hehe.

After that exhibition thingy, the next week (21 December), I went back to Seoul. I went there to hand in my university application directly to the university. I have no choice back then, the dateline for one of the university (Yonsei University) falls on that day itself and yet by sending my application through mail, I don't know wheather the parcel will reach them on time especially during this christmas season.

OH YA, MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR! DEAR READERS!

For the university application, I had applied for :

1st choice: Yonsei University
2nd choice: Kyungpook National University
3rd choice: Inha University

I have no high expectations on entering Yonsei and Inha, maybe this is because I felt applying to good and well-known universities are quite a risky move but oh well, who cares? I think I stand a better chance in getting to Yonsei than Inha because from the piles of Inha applications that I had seen (stacks and stacks of applications and Inha University is my third choice)

At Inha University, We met Bilqis (another KGSP scholar, our senior), I was kinda suprised to see her, she looked so different from the last time we had met. Just so different. More like Arnold Schwarzenegger than Bilqis. (Hehe - just joking aight!) Anyway, she helped us (Malaysian KGSP Scholars) a lot but I couldn't talk to her much and eating out together because at that time after we had submitted our Inha university application, I had to go back. I'm staying in Daegu (the Southern part of Korea) while Inha (in Incheon that is in the Northern part of Korea) and it would take lots of time to go back and that time, the sky was already dark.

Thanks Bilqis.

A few days later, on the 23 and 24 of December, we went to Muju Ski Resort. Before going there, we had a slight detour to POSCO steel factory (the second largest steel maker in the world) to listen to some talks. As usual, our minds were not into another boring talk or something like this, we are all into SKI. Period.

We went skiing. I skied, snowboarded and tried sled. Of all, snowboarding was the hardest while sledding was the easiest. Not much pics because I did not bring my camera during skiing.

I hope I will be updating my blog often. I dont have much time like last time to update my blog so frequently. I love writing but sometimes when there's other things/commitments, I have to prioritize. Till next time, more pics to come!

Kyle

Autumn in Korea (PART III)

Autumn in Korea, and in this series, it's the continuation of this post - Summer in Korea (Part II).

I always want to experience 4 seasons but there's a part in me that prefers the joy of going back to Malaysia, meeting my friends and family. it's gonna be 7 months.

Ilusi

Pertarungan kian sengit
semangatku makin pudar
emosiku berubah
aku menyerah kalah
tiga tahun lampau
Zaman kegemilangan
Zaman kementapan

Tiba-tiba…
aku ditidakkan
dari diri sebenarku
Mengejar kegemilangan yang bergelora
Dalam jiwaku
Aku tahu…
Aku mencuba sekali lagi
Aku mengejar impianku
tetapi adakah sekadar ilusi?
Adakah sekadar memuaskan hati?
Adakah aku ikhlas kemukakan soalan,
Mengetepikan prasangka orang.

Burung bersiul sayup kedengaran
Aku mencuba
Aku tewas…
Kekalahan membinasa hatiku berkecai
Berkat semangat jitu,
Ia tidak berjaya
Kini nostalgia dahulu menghantuiku
Namun diakhiri dengan satu kesudahan,
Game over…


P/S I wrote it in Form 5 (Year 2006), i was checking my files and stumbled upon my old Malay poem.

Capitalism – The Rogue of Society?

We have learnt that wealth creates more wealth and when unequally distributed, will sow seeds of hatred and discontentment among people. Dear readers, capitalism is when the wealth of a nation is in the hands of the fortunate few. Do not get me wrong, I am not opposing capitalism in totality. Rightly so, people who work hard should be rewarded for their labour. But I feel it is kinder and fairer that the wealth of the country should be shared by all and not confined to the lucky few.

Basically capitalism is created based on scarcity and demand. Due to scarcity of a commodity, demand will increase, prices will hike. In a layman’s term, it will lead to higher value for a particular resource or product. Eventually, our paper money will become worthless. 1000 Won does not equate to 0.85 USD (as of October 2, 2009) forever. Actual value fluctuates.

Recently, we are exposed to the destructive nature of capitalism. A case worth mentioning is the collapse of the Lehman Brothers. It was not because of company mismanagement but rather greed and unsupervised market trading. Overnight, it transforms a millionaire to a pauper.

With capitalism, anyone can participate with or without money. People borrow money to participate in the system and when the person loses the money and is unable to settle its loan, it creates a Domino’s Effect. One by one, each and every sector will be affected, private lenders, banks, companies, governments and right at the bottom, the man in the street.

Since the last recession, United States (US) has now been so heavily indebted to the Chinese and Japanese Government, and to a lesser extent, the Korean Government as well. These countries bought the US Treasury Bills. When US literally runs out of money, it keeps printing the notes. When money lacks demand due to oversupply, this will depreciate the value of the currency. With currency depreciation, inflation sets in due to the high cost of buying products especially imported ones.

Some might argue that democracy and capitalism complement each other like butter and bread. However, in ancient Greece, the birthplace of democracy, there is no presence of betting on the value of resources or goods which allow prices to go up or down. Usually, countries that benefited from natural resource like oil have higher corruption or are alleged to be sponsoring terrorism.

On the other hand, in this millennium, socialism is no longer applicable though it has existed until now. There are no socialist countries that subscribe 100 percent to socialism because socialism basically cannot support a State. What I am suggesting is Creative Capitalism similar to the idea initiated by Bill Gates. In my opinion, creative capitalism is really about innovation as the prime mover.

Human population is projected to grow from approximately 6 billion in 1999 to 9 billion people by 2043 (Source: US Census Bureau). If this is true, why do capitalists worry about not profiting? Innovation will be the only way out in this saturated market. I believe trading of foodstuffs that are a necessity for human survival should be prohibited in international market. By adopting such policy, prices of essential food will be maintained.

If food prices are to remain constant, how can agriculture companies profit from it? With research especially through biotechnology, food production can be hastened. Professional jobs too are created along the way while profits will now be based on how productive the farms are and not be determined by international market. Hunger will then be eradicated.

For certain resources that can be traded, hedge funds should be discouraged. Hedge funds are collection of funds from investors that invest in stocks and will eventually disrupt market value. The funds will be withdrawn once it finds that it can make a tidy profit but it comes at the cost of small investors. Stocks that are invested should not be allowed to be sold immediately. This is because stock movements are often not based on rational thoughts. Usually many investors get very emotional when they see the prices moving up and down.

People are easily swayed by greed when they see their stocks rise substantially but continue to wait for better yield. This is how stock “bubbles” form. When the “bubble” bursts, panic takes over and everyone will start selling the stocks. This is what makes stock trading market volatile. In capitalism, not everyone will benefit from it. The poor will continue to be poor while the rich will become richer. Wealth disparity gaps widen.

In the advent of a brand new technological age, we need a system that will allow everyone to benefit. Creative capitalism, I believe may provide the answer. With creative capitalism, innovation will be the main driver in our ever expanding thirst for natural resources and wealth. With innovation, we can seek the unexplored, explore the unknown for the benefit of mankind. The final question is whether we will have the courage and political willpower to adapt to a newer type of capitalism. The benefits will be long term for all of us.

“Capitalism has improved the lives of billions of people — something that's easy to forget at a time of great economic uncertainty. But it has left out billions more. They have great needs, but they can't express those needs in ways that matter to markets. So they are stuck in poverty, suffer from preventable diseases and never have a chance to make the most of their lives…” Bill Gates


Kyle Tan Jin Soon

P.S. Will update sometime in the future (not that long lah), this is one of my I-Have-Too-Much-Free-Time to write post, so why not post it? When I'm young, I wanted to be a doctor, an entrepreneur, a scientist, this and that. Eventhough I'm a science student, I think, I'm much more inclined to business. I like writing too. My right brain is better that my left, i guess...

Pepero Day?

My first post for November. I have many things to write but I have so little time. The problem is not because I need more time to study but I need more time to sleep. Usually I have less than 6 hours of sleep daily.

For your information, I don't study, I review. It works wonder. Hopefully.

Back to the topic, today is Pepero day. This is weirdest day because Koreans just love to make every date that have nice number a special day. What is Pepero Day?

"Pepero Day is an observance in South Korea similar to Valentine's Day. It is named after the Korean snack Pepero and held on November 11, since the date "11/11" resembles four sticks of Pepero. The holiday is observed mostly by young people and couples, who exchange Pepero sticks, other candies, and romantic gifts..."

Sourced from Wikipedia

I will remember this day because it was the day where I had to treat my whole classmates (I got full marks in my quiz so I'm top in my class) with Starbucks Coffee. Imagine how it burns your pocket when treating all your friends (all together 16 people) with expensive coffee, lolz. Okay la, honestly, I felt good for being able to treat them once in a while...

I received chocolate sticks (Pepero stick) too but I was hungry at that time and it's now lying in my belly. So no photos.

But...





My next post might be on KLPT exam.

erm, my exam is on this Sat so this post might be kinda structured... everytime i think of something, I just type it down.

E is for the way Exam Ends (partly)

Mid-Term Exam OVER!!!

One word- glad.

But KLPT is 2 weeks away.

Had to study hard for it, "focus!" *Reminds me of my bio teacher that used to say this to a particular classmate of mine*

To learn Korean,

Try listening to the song above, slow and understandable, it comes from Stairway to Heaven Korean Drama.

"Bo go ship da", 보고 싶다... it means, I want to see you...

I think listening to Korean songs might help.

I prefer to write my blog in English because it will enable readers to understand better than in Korean, and also because I think my readers can understand English rather than Korean.

I'm always curious until now on why there's so many people that wants to learn Korean language, why not other than Korean?

요즘 난 생각이 많아... 친구 때문에 제한국 생활이 좀 힘들어서 말레이시아에 가고싶어 왜 이렇게? ㅋㅋ

*again, remember to pause the annoying background music to listen to the song, gonna remove the first song (my sassy girl) soon*