SEP PREPARATION

for students interested in Student Exchange Programme (SEP as NUS dudes call it) or International Student Exchange Programme (IntSep as NTU dudes call it), here's a BRIEF list of things to prepare prior to taking the plane for 10+hours to some god-damn places 10 000km away from singapore..

1) LOTS OF MONEY
haha.. YES, i am trying to say tat ALL SEP TRIPS ARE EXPENSIVE.. the lowest i heard was a low-budget 6k SEP in the states, BUT tats without much travelling.. the most expensive - 30k, and tats machiam CONQUERING THE WHOLE OF EUROPE.. and i am talking abt 1sem.. so 1yr exchange = twice the amount of moolah.. on average, a europe SEP student spends ard 15-20k bah.. and tats with SOME travelling to cities like paris, barcelona, rome, florence, milan, london, stockholm, berlin, vienna, salzburg, WHICH U CANNOT MISS!! and travelling IS THE BEST PART OF SEP!!

2) LOTS OF CURRENCY
haha.. yes, again, money.. dis time, currency.. CHANGE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE IN SINGAPORE b4 coming over.. cos, the exchange rates online or using credit card, SUCK BIG TIME.. when it comes to exchanging currency from the money changers here, they charge commission for changing money with u!! haha.. to be better prepared, change ALOT of ur host country's currency, and some EUROS and some POUNDS.. i brought COLD-HARD CASH worth of 8k sing over.. and its barely enough.. haha.. and dun worry too much if u r coming to scandinavia countries, its like so freaking damn safe.. haha.. if go italy or paris or US for exchange, tink, u draw from atms there lah, bobian.. haha..

3) EXCHANGE RATES AT UR FINGERTIPS
1 euro = 2 sing.. 1 pound = 3 sing.. 100DKK = 29sing.. 100SEK = 45sing.. 100NOK = 31sing.. 1 usd = 1.4sing.. 1 chf = 1.3 sing.. 1 aus = 1.2 sing.. its crazy, but U WILL NEED TO DO UR SUMS to decide wat its gonna cost u.. haha..

4) EURAIL PASS
if u r coming to europe, its a MUST to get "eurail pass" in spore even b4 flying over.. its a pass tat comes in different packages for u to choose.. like 9/15/21/30/60days global pass (which r valid for all ard western europe), or select pass which r valid for 3/4/5 connecting countries and for 6/9/15days within 1/2/3 months period.. so plan which cities u wanna go, and see which deal gives u the best offer.. cos afterall, TRAIN-RIDES in europe is the WAY TO GO lah.. haha.. not EVERY city got budget flights de, so train is the next best and cheapest alternative liao.. having said tat, some train rides can cost up over 200bucks.. with the eurail pass, its juz a 6euro booking fee.. haha..

5) BUDGET AIRLINES
yes, be frens with them, VERY GOOD FRENS.. RYANAIR, EASYJET, STERLING, NORWAGIAN AIR SHUTTLE, SKY EUROPE, etc etc.. they can hav air tix at 10euros including tax and stuff!! no jokes.. BUT see heng suay one lah.. haha..

6) MOISTURISER
its A MUST i say.. not juz something for the face, but something for the whole body as well.. haha.. unless u dun mind having dry flaky skin for the next 5 months.. lip balm is REQUIRED too.. the humidity level is PRETTY LOW.. like 40%.. not like spore 80-90% de.. its dry, VERY DRY.. haha..

all used up in 5months.. and i din even apply everyday lor.. lazy.. haha..

7) CLOTHINGS
for the northern hemisphere, winter clothings for nov-jan.. summer clothings for may-aug.. anything in between, will do find with summer clothes + jacket.. haha.. the difference IS HUGE!! i wear like 4 layers, including a fat fat down jacket in jan, and now wearing singlet n shorts in june.. some pple survive on 1 pair of jeans, i am surviving on 6.. haha.. well, actually i tink, 3 is a good number.. haha.. dun over prpare.. packing is a hell load of problem.. tshirts, depends on ur travels and if u intend to wash n go, or keep it until return den wash.. haha.. so yar.. minimum 7 lah.. one for each day of the week.. haha.. LOADS OF UNDERWEAR AND SOCKS.. haha..

8) FOOD
spices and paste and sauces, bring 'em all lah.. haha.. SEP is the time to hone ur cooking skills.. haha.. dunnoe how to, juz try.. internet recipe available aso.. haha.. lidat at least u got something to start with.. buying from the supermarket here, its often more expensive, and aso will not hav as wide a range den wat u can get from spore.. easy to prepare stuff, like bakuteh spice bag, curry paste with coconut powder, teriyaki sauce, BRING BRING BRING!! haha..

assuming all paper work done (like acceptance letter from host uni, visa and stuff), and all the above packed, u r READY FOR SEP! haha.. really.. dun hav to be paranoid and keeping tinking abt it.. haha.. its TAT simple..

oh yes, prepare an OPEN-HEART and OPEN-MIND to the influx of different cultures coming ur way!!

with dis, the blogger is off for holiday for the next 3 weeks, to mark the end of SEP.. there might be post and updates, no guarantees though.. hee.. do check it out sometimes.. hee.. cheerios..