night of first recollections from NY/Princeton

The trip to New York and Princeton now feels as if it happened a lifetime away. Such is the working of human memory. I had already worked on another piece of thoughtful analyses, but this ad-hoc, impromptu one will do for now.

I remember walking on the streets of NY and suddenly feeling so small. It seems like NY was the world, and it was only then that I began to understand a bit of what it meant in the world and learning to figure out its vastness and accepting it. I still get that feeling now, especially as I participate in the teeny conference and coming to realise what the world means through the eyes of Americans, especially from students.

Back to NY. NY is such vibrant place, especially when one walks around Times Square, eat in its restaurant, watches the plays on Broadway, riding on the subway, arriving at Grand Central, to see the architecture of the 18th centry and the 21st century. I was at the Empire State Building, and all of NY was spread out before...

It is a city that is alive in the flows of people. NY is always young, never really ageing as immigration continues, as people keep coming in fresh from their previous contexts and adding something to NY both good and bad. It is a city that always 'moves on', never really staying in the present, but always moving. I didn't realise that NY had moved on from 9-11, and the makeshift temporary memorial park is gone, instead, it has already started rebuilding. Even that place of tragedy is now alive, with cranes and other construction material even possibly healing the sore wound of NY's soul, that though it will heal, the marks will remain, but all of these is a testament to the resilience of a city. Could Singapore survive a physical attack to its CBD? I leave that as an open question.

I walk down Fifth Avenue, walked through UN HQ, tried to go to the HQ of the TED Conferences (didn't work out), and everywhere there is this sense of *life*... Things are always moving, dazzling, even in the day, images all vying for attention. But I guess after a while, you get tired of such things. I would say that I felt similar vibes at a condo that overlooked Singapore's CBD.

NY doesn't represent America, but I think it represents, what the world thinks of America - a huge diverse place, full of life and energy. In other words, it represents the American Dream.

So yeah. That was NY. Princeton was another experience.

Princeton is a beautiful campus. Every inch of that spot seems dripping with history, with even the brick sometimes dedicated to a person, or by a class. These institutions have wonderful alumnus support, which explains the dedication and the endowment that they have. All that said, the people there aren't really that superior. After a while, I begin to realise that its not about the student, actually, its about the culture and the opportunities that students have. I took a picture of summer opportunities, and its simply amazing. The Ivies themselves have tremendous opportunities summer exchanges with each other - I think about Singapore and I wonder whether NUS would think about summer classes with NTU, and vice versa. Both universities have strengths and weaknesses, and it doesn't seem too weird an idea for the two institutions to compliment each other. It isn't all about competition, its also about cooperation, not just at the staff/research level, but also at the student level. I just don't get it - don't understand...

And then the other thing is about the attitude of education. While many people both in the US and Singapore just think about getting a bachelors and be done with it, the difference (seemingly) in the top universities is that they have people who really are passionate about what they are learning, and they will want to go on learning and learning... Its not about getting a degree so you can find a job, for many of these people, lifelong learning is itself a job - and it is that passion that makes them want to take up opportunities, push themselves, and become the best that they can be. They are persistent, disciplined, and work tireless towards their objectives (add having fun with friends in the process). There really is no secret to success, or *things to do* and all. The self-help books, as I realise are complete shit. All there are to success - persistence, discipline, passion. As a comparison, I could possibly say that USP is to NUS what the Ivies/top unis are to the whole system of higher education.

(I come back to NUS more eager to be what I can possibly could be. )