FAQ for Staying Overseas
I wake up feeling thirsty everyday. How do I get rid of this phenomenon?
A: This may or may not be a no-brainer. Drink more water before sleeping. Or if your bladder can’t hold that much water during the night, have a glass of water beside your bed. Firstly it helps to make the room more humid and your air in your room won’t be so dry. Secondly, you can drink it immediately after you wake up.
I get depressed thinking about home/bored of the country I am staying in. What should I do?
A: This depends on the level of homesickness/boredom of the individual.
1. For me, I just needed to talk to other Singaporeans (luckily I had a friend around) and also to chat on MSN, Skype, and of course (God’s gift) VOIPstunt which you can use to call land or mobile lines in Singapore for free (dunno how long this lasts). Talking to your friends back home also keeps you rooted firmly to your culture.
2. Cooking some “home-cooked” meals also helps. It’s great if you can learn a few dishes before going over to a foreign land for a period. Otherwise, you can also pick up a few tips from the online recipes (there are so many!).
3. Pick up a new hobby (like any sport) or make more friends in the foreign land. People are generally friendly (well at least give them a chance) so do chat them up and find out more about them.
4. Listen to songs from back home. It helps a lot! But skip the sad ones, unless you are in the mood to reflect.
5. Set up a blog. Take pics, post on the blog.
6. Play computer games.
7. Don’t think about home.
8. Write another FAQ for overseas exchange students/ people going overseas for a long time. Or if you can cook, make an online recipe website and tell me about it.
9. Hold a party at your home. Invite the whole town to it. Then you will be busy for a week cooking. And also for another week after that, cos you need to clean up the mess in your home.
10. Bang your head on the wall. Hard. (No, I’m not serious.)
I’m really afraid of getting lost in a big city (especially since I come from tiny Singapore). How do I explore what’s beyond the viewpoint of my residence?
A: Ha, take it slowly. Especially since you have time in that place. Else get friends to go with you. Always have a map with you, so you can ask for directions more easily. Of course it helps that you know how to read maps properly (not like me).
I see people staring at me wherever I go. Am I an alien?
A: Probably you didn’t comb your hair properly (if you have no hair, I'm sorry), or your face has some stain of the meal you ate earlier. Or maybe your fly is open. Or maybe you are stunningly pretty/handsome.
Well, of course there’s plain old racism. Well face it, there’s always going to be some racism. Don’t take it too personally. Wait, did you come from Mars/Saturn/Uranus/Pluto? Drop me an email!
P.S.: This is a postdated article meant to help people who are going overseas for some time. Will be updated as soon as I think of questions that I have answers to.
A: This may or may not be a no-brainer. Drink more water before sleeping. Or if your bladder can’t hold that much water during the night, have a glass of water beside your bed. Firstly it helps to make the room more humid and your air in your room won’t be so dry. Secondly, you can drink it immediately after you wake up.
I get depressed thinking about home/bored of the country I am staying in. What should I do?
A: This depends on the level of homesickness/boredom of the individual.
1. For me, I just needed to talk to other Singaporeans (luckily I had a friend around) and also to chat on MSN, Skype, and of course (God’s gift) VOIPstunt which you can use to call land or mobile lines in Singapore for free (dunno how long this lasts). Talking to your friends back home also keeps you rooted firmly to your culture.
2. Cooking some “home-cooked” meals also helps. It’s great if you can learn a few dishes before going over to a foreign land for a period. Otherwise, you can also pick up a few tips from the online recipes (there are so many!).
3. Pick up a new hobby (like any sport) or make more friends in the foreign land. People are generally friendly (well at least give them a chance) so do chat them up and find out more about them.
4. Listen to songs from back home. It helps a lot! But skip the sad ones, unless you are in the mood to reflect.
5. Set up a blog. Take pics, post on the blog.
6. Play computer games.
7. Don’t think about home.
8. Write another FAQ for overseas exchange students/ people going overseas for a long time. Or if you can cook, make an online recipe website and tell me about it.
9. Hold a party at your home. Invite the whole town to it. Then you will be busy for a week cooking. And also for another week after that, cos you need to clean up the mess in your home.
10. Bang your head on the wall. Hard. (No, I’m not serious.)
I’m really afraid of getting lost in a big city (especially since I come from tiny Singapore). How do I explore what’s beyond the viewpoint of my residence?
A: Ha, take it slowly. Especially since you have time in that place. Else get friends to go with you. Always have a map with you, so you can ask for directions more easily. Of course it helps that you know how to read maps properly (not like me).
I see people staring at me wherever I go. Am I an alien?
A: Probably you didn’t comb your hair properly (if you have no hair, I'm sorry), or your face has some stain of the meal you ate earlier. Or maybe your fly is open. Or maybe you are stunningly pretty/handsome.
Well, of course there’s plain old racism. Well face it, there’s always going to be some racism. Don’t take it too personally. Wait, did you come from Mars/Saturn/Uranus/Pluto? Drop me an email!
P.S.: This is a postdated article meant to help people who are going overseas for some time. Will be updated as soon as I think of questions that I have answers to.
Greetings from Finland @ 6:01 pm
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