overall, a great weekend, indeed.

the time i've been spending actually IN singapore, as opposed to around it, has been getting better and better as time goes on...this weekend is probably living proof. it all started on friday night...

i decided that this weekend wasn't going to be devoted to doing absurd amounts of work, or to worrying about what absurd amounts of work i'd have to do at some point. it was going to be all about enjoying myself, doing what i wanted (instead of what i felt i had to do) for once, and to the general idea of enjoying myself.

it began with Good Friday. me, oli, and tim decided to go to a nice little island just north of singapore, between it and malaysia. Called Pulau Ubin (literally translated, Granite Island), its an island no more than a few miles across which is known for its trails through its semi-inhabited land. we decided at the beginning of the day that the weather looked nice enough that we'd go out and rent some bikes for the day. it turns out that the weather was gorgeous and the island is a lot cooler than i expected. it was exactly what we thought it would be: some paved paths, others not so much, snaking through woods and fields. it was a great retreat from the concrete jungle of singapore, and all three of us had a great time. it was quite a workout though--our best estimates put our total distance biked at around 5 or 6 miles, about half of that actual paved areas, and all hills. good times.



saturday was a significantly more relaxed day. most of it was spent in anticipation of going to our family friend's home in singapore. i decided that to battle the fleeting feelings of homesickness, i'd spend an evening with my aunt here, and i have to say that it was a great decision. however, i thought i'd be going over a good deal earlier than when i did, so i spent a lot of the day just sitting around not doing much at school. at around 5, i left school and arrived at their place at 6 or so, and spent the rest of the evening there. i took a backpack with some clothes, just in case i ended up staying over, which is what ended up happening. it was just me and my aunt, so not a big crowd of people at all, so we just spent the evening together, chatting, eating, did a little shopping and dinner in little india (which was within walking distance of her home). we got back from our outing around 11 or so, so i brought out my laptop and i showed her pictures of my trips that i've taken so far over some strawberries and whipped cream. all in all, a spectacular night, i really appreciated having somewhere/one to turn to in the face of my homesickness :)

the next morning, we woke up and had a late breakfast, and she went on her way to the spa for an appointment she had made some time ago. i wandered around the area around their house for a bit while Tim was on his way from school to meet me. we then proceeded to go to the National Singapore Museum, basically just the national history museum, but it turned out to be spectacular. we spent about five hours inside the museum, which is quite a bit if you think about it. for five bucks, you cant go wrong. and it was really interesting too! learned about the history of singapore from beginning to end, and its quite a story...makes me want to pick up a book about it and learn more! after we finished up the museum, we walked around for a bit, mostly looking for food and a subway to get back home, and ended up home shortly afterwards. on the way, we passed through the campus of the SMU, Singapore Management University, and i have to say, i was quite impressed. the area even outside the university was absolutely beautiful, the buildings were painted nice bright colors, a very clean area, i think it would be a really pleasant area to be studying in. it kind of reminded me of the area around BU, just in terms of how well it was kept and the old-town feel it gave me.

so ended my weekend, and what a weekend it was. im really glad that i got to go around singapore some, because with time dwindling down at an alarming rate, its a legitimate fear to think that we may not get to explore singapore before we leave! its cool, im on it now and by the end, i dont think i'll have forgotten anything.

arriba! fiesta!

havent written in a while, thought i'd spill some of whats on my mind to all the three loyal readers of this blog haha its been a pretty slow two weeks since i last wrote. so slow, in fact, that i cant believe its only been two weeks since i wrote last. it feels like an eternity has passed, but in all reality, no time at all. i dont even know what i've done in the past couple weeks though, i dont feel very accomplished. i suppose i've just been chipping away at some of the stuff that i have to do for some classes, working hard i guess. however, after the dreadful period of a couple weeks that i went through, i'm much more relaxed now, so ive found some time to relax and enjoy myself lately, which is definitely good. i just hope that i dont slip into a rhythm that'll end up putting me back in that horrible state of mind where theres just too much on my plate and i feel ridiculously overwhelmed. i'll have to keep an eye on that.

other than that, i've mostly just been hanging out with people around singapore for the most part. spent a couple nights out at bars/clubs, danced some, saw a couple live bands that were good. i had mexican food this weekend!! for the second time so far this semester, at the same place too...its actually very tolerable. and they give unlimited chips and salsa, just like on the border. and their portions are actually very sizable...all in all, very impressive outing, i'd say. went with 6 other friends, and we all stuffed our faces completely, it was sooooo good haha. i've also got the address and location of the ONLY TACO BELL IN SINGAPORE mapped out...i've gotta make a trip there before i leave, bc honestly, its been way too long since i've had it, and its killing me inside.

on the upside, i got a package from my family today!! my sister had been telling me about it for days now, and i finally got it! they sent it out the 6th of march, and it took 11 days to get here..but considering it was a box vs envelope, thats understandable. soooo as im walking back from the management office where i picked it up, i'm turning the box over reading things on it to see what it could possibly be, and lo and behold, on the shipping label is written: Food items. instantly, a smile broke out on my face...i knew what it had to be, or at least what it had in it---mexican food. i got back and opened it up, and living up to my expectations was two packets of tortillas, two cans of refried beans, and a jar of salsa! ARE YOU FREAKING SERIOUS?! my family sent me mexican food!!! i couldnt believe it...i was sooooo happy hahah. included was also a pack of butterfingers (my favorite chocolate bar), a pack of Ghirardelli chocolates (beautiful chocolates btw) , a dispenser of dentyne ice (which is interesting, bc its gum, which isnt looked upon highly in singapore lol) and finally, a box of microwavable indian dishes! not the frozen kind--they come in packets that you empty out into a bowl, but they're vacuum sealed or preserved or something so they dont go bad. but how awesome is this? this is easily the best care package that my family couldve sent me...i love you guys!!!

countering that point of light to begin my week would be the viral fever i've been nursing for the past 24 hours...yeah, not cool. its been drifting up and down around 101.5, peaking at about 103.5, but it hasnt been that high since yesterday, which is good. it was at around 101.5 all day today, and whats weirder is that the tylenol the student health services prescribed me didnt do jack to keep it down...what has been working is the advil my mom packed for me before i came here, so i figure i'll just stay on that for a few days until the fever goes away on its own. its really crappy being sick with nobody around...its not even like its back at uconn where i always have one of my beloved roommates around to keep me company. if i wasnt careful about it, i could rot away alone in my room, sick and wallowing in self pity. luckily, Timothy Spenser Dobbs came to the rescue..honestly, he's pretty much been my saving grace ever since we started hanging out. its really good to have company when youre in a place like this, because otherwise its really easy to feel reallly alone, and since at UConn i've always got great company, its tough to live without it. Fortunately, not only is Tim company, he's great company...we get along incredibly well, and he's just a great guy in general. definitely makes me feel a lot more comfortable in a foreign environment, knowing that he's there to tough it out with me. and tonight, at my request, he kept me company for a couple hours while i wasnt feeling well, which definitely helps to bring up the morale and keep my mind in good spirits, which translates to a healthier physical state as well. i def owe him for coming to my rescue tonight, for sure.

welp, its getting kind of late, and i figure i should be getting as much rest as possible, so i bid you all farewell. I'm Rishi Kothari, you stay classy, San Diego.

some xanax would have been nice

since sunday, i'd say i've been the most anxious i've ever been, for a prolonged period of time anyway. this even surpassed the feeling that i got before i took the MCATs last summer, and believe me, that was definitely a nerve racking experience. this time of year, its standard procedure for exchange students at NUS to realize exactly whats going on with their lives, and every story is pretty much the same:

- we havent gone to too many classes (which i'm not guilty of at all, surprsingly. i've missed two classes, and that was before i added the class, so as far as i'm concerned im batting 1.000)
- we havent studied for classes outside the bare minimum to take exams or do assignments (guilty as charged)
- we've done WAY too much travelling, which is more or less responsible for the above problems (true that)

as a result, most of the exchange students you'll meet nowadays are significantly more stressed than they would like to be, and i can personally attest to this feeling. its more or less the same feeling as it is at home when you realize youre behind on things, but then theres all the added pressure of everything else thats going on in our lives, such as being far away from home, and not only that but in a place where we dont fit in, dont feel comfortable, and everything is done differently. expectations for discipline and self-control are at an all time high, not only from yourself, but from those around you, and all these things can easily combine to make one hell of a physically and emotionally dissheveled exchange student. those of you that have talked to me in the past week will know exactly how i feel, as i've probably told you about it at least once or twelve times. however, in the past few days, i thank those who have talked me through it and helped me realize the real situation, that things will be okay, things will get done, and before i know it, i'll be able to enjoy myself again, be it here or back at home. you all know who you are, and your efforts have not gone unnoticed, trust me. i'll be going to our family friend's house here in singapore on saturday evening to get a little taste of home and for a little comfort i suppose...i think that'll put me at east, i hope anyway.

things otherwise are going alright. the rest of the semester will be work-based, with a project for a class here and a research project for a professor at home being the two main goals. on the upside, classes here end april 18th, so any of the work for NUS will be done then, with only two exams to study for after that. perhaps i'll take the days before my first exam (april 18th to may 2) to travel somewhere, not sure where or with who and what have you, but i should look into that soon. vietnam is a possibility, perhaps cambodia or laos along with it. even if i dont, i dont think i'll regret it. i've been to malaysia, thailand and indonesia while i've been in singapore, and i'll be making a surprise pitstop in shanghai, china, on my way back to the US for five days, so i dont feel that i've come all this way and not traveled. we'll see, im sure it'll turn out okay. welp, back to studying. more or less counting the days till i get home :) cant wait to see you guys!

little points of light

a short list of some things that i've either realized or accomplished in the time i've been in this part of the world:

- i've eaten mcdonalds in every country i've been in so far, which is 4 here, and a total of like 7 or 8
- i'm more proficient with two forks than with a fork and knife
- ive done some of the best snorkeling in the world off the western coast of thailand
- ive witnessed someone i know getting arrested
- three of my closest friends here are an egyptian-canadian, a french-canadian and a french-belgian
- today, i said that over break "I only went to Bangkok and Phuket, nothing big", as if i took a "routine" trip to Thailand
- i've officially climbed a volcano and seen its crater
- i've hung out with native Laotians, in Thailand, and couldnt communicate a word with them

just some random things that have crossed my mind at some point in the recent past. now that i've wasted two minutes of your time, you may go back to doing whatever it was that was wasting your time.

the title of this blog still holds true

still STDfrEE after thailand <-- new pictures!! as i sit here with my fresh bag of crispy Spicy Curry flavored Chachos, i cant help but revel in the glory of the fact that i am, still, free of STDs, as the name of my blog states. and this too, after returning from a week in Thailand, where i saw more prostitutes than you can possibly count. not that i'm particularly proud of this, as if anything less were expected, but i'll probably get a free screening back at uconn, just to be safe... so last saturday we left for bangkok from singapore for a week...what we were hoping would be 5 or 6 people was whittled down to two people, myself and Thuy, for a weeklong trip to Thailand. to be honest, despite the setbacks in the planning stages and Noura not being able to come, we still managed to make it a great trip, which im quite happy about. saturday night we arrived in bangkok after quite a flight. we flew Tiger Airways, and both me and Thuy swore we'd never fly it again. when in reality, it wasnt the pilot's fault, the turbulence during the entire flight made it feel like we were basically on our way down right from the start. every time the intercom came on, me and Thuy looked at each other and listened for the "you're all going to die", but instead it usually turned out to be "we're ok, you can take off your seat belts now". needless to say, the flight was definitely a bit scary, but we made it through. i suppose we were warned when our flight left from a different terminal than the rest of the airport...
upon arriving in bangkok, we took a taxi to khao san, the backpackers' street, and hung around our hostel for the night. what is a running trend im finding in a lot of southeastern asian cities is the development of an area geared towards backpackers, like ourselves. often, a street or even two will be full of hostels and a market-type atmosphere with lots of people day and night, and its pretty much awesome. It makes it really easy to find a place to stay and its definitely got a good vibe. and, of course, its cheap and a great value for the prices you pay for places to stay. saturday night was spent here, browsing some of the shops and stalls, and of course, eating. everywhere you looked on this street was a pad thai cart, which was incredible (and cheap, 60 cents a heaping serving :)

sunday and monday, we roamed around bangkok quite a bit. sunday was spent at the famous Chatuchak weekend market, which is renowned to be one of the biggest ever. estimates put the market at or around 10000 stalls...needless to say, we didnt get around to seeing them all. however, i did do some of the requisite souvenir shopping here and, stupidly, was forced to lug it all around for the ensuing 7 days. the rest of the day was spent walking around another part of bangkok and ending up at a beeeaauuttiiiffuulll park (Lumphini park) where we took a rowboat out onto the lake they had there, ate some cotton candy, and listened to the outdoor orchestra play for a while. simply stunning to see such a beautiful place in the middle of bangkok, totally unexpected.

Monday we made visits to the temples that were scattered around a small area in bangkok. these were absolutely gorgeous temples, it was weird to see them so close to the rest of the city. Wat Arun, Wat Pho and Wat Phra Koew were their names. this is Wat Pho from a distance.

inside one of the temples lies the famous "reclining buddha". This is a Buddha statue about 150 feet long and about 15 feet high. the angle on the picture just doesn't do it justice...it was amazing..


later that day, we spent some time around the backpacker street again, this time roaming a little further from home and exploring the area. we found a bar that was essentially a Shell gas station, just abandoned and with tables set up everywhere...weird thing was, they left all the stuff still up (although im sure there was no gas actually running through the station, but all the pumps were still up, the canopy and the Shell sign were. certainly an interesting sight, to say the least.

tuesday morning, we took our flight from bangkok to phuket, an island on the southwestern coast of thailand. our intentions were not to stay here however. we immediately found a ferry to take us to the island of koh phi phi, one of the more popular islands off the coast of phuket. we stayed there for three nights. the days were spent either lounging on the beach, going on a boat tour of the area, snorkelling, or sitting inside while it was raining. save the last day, the stay on the island was very enjoyable, especially the food :) the island itself was quite touristy, but we were prepared for that before we got there.




from koh phi phi, we headed back to phuket on friday morning. we stayed on the west coast of the island in an area known as Patong, which is a highly developed area with a nice coastline. the place reminded me of the street we stayed on in bangkok with all the hostels and restaurants/bars and lights at night. This was the place that we saw the most prostitutes, i'd say, although they get around to coming out of their caves around 6 or 7, after dusk. i undertook a mini-mission, to see if i could even attract their attention without being too forward about it..turns out you need to be a middle-aged slightly balding white man to even get them to look at you. a young, not balding indian kid isnt really gonna do the trick. :(

saturday morning came around quite quickly after a long day in patong, and we headed back home. our flight was delayed for about 45 mins, but with the budget airlines, theres never any telling how exactly your trip is going to go. all i know is, im alive now, and i suppose thats better than the alternative.

instead of a funny picture, i leave you with something slightly more impressive this time. on the island, we saw a fire show, which was absolutely spectacular. after fiddling with my camera for about half the show, i managed to get some amazing shots of the performers, and this was one of the better ones. the light exposure basically was just longer, so not only does the fire show nicer, but you can see the person moving inside the ring...i thought this was awesome, personally.