Chan Weng Kit's Blogspot: DAY 437/438/439/440

Nov 11, 12, 13 & 14

1) The past three days have been a whirlwind of activity, as I prepared both mind and body for a weekend in the UK. I wasn't there for holiday though; rather to coordinate the hosting of UKECatalyst's first event - Coffee and Conversations with UKEC, and for the Induction Event for the 2017/2018 Executive Officers. And so, after spending a night over at my friend Vik's, we set out for the airport in the wee hours of the morning.

2) And who did we see in the bus? Denise, my friend/senior from UCD! Turns out she was going to Germany for the weekends. What a coincidence! We said goodbye to her and went our separate ways. Around two hours later, we found ourselves at London Gatwick Airport. Took the Thameslink to St. Pancras International, where we continued to our accommodation. After dropping off our luggage, it was time to explore. First, we went to the Malaysia Hall Canteen - to satisfy our craving of "nasi lemak". The afternoon was spent visiting many important landmarks, e.g. Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, and Royal Albert Hall.

3) Our first event was Coffee and Conversations with UKEC - the title up for discussion was the recently announced Malaysian Budget 2018. Participants were invited to give their views and opinions regarding the Budget, while the moderator Vik prompted them and raised interesting questions for everyone to ponder. It was not a large turnout that we received, but a valuable event nonetheless. After the event, it was time for dinner. I went to a nice Mac 'n' Cheese shop to order a (you guessed it) macaroni and cheese cup.

4) Day 2 of the UK Trip Agenda - finally meeting up with everyone. It was a busy day from morning till evening, as we had an ice breaker session, followed by actual discussion of our trajectory for the rest of our term. In the evening, we had the pleasure of dining with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (Malaysia), YB Dato' Sri Reezal Merican Naina Merican. He was very cordial towards us, asking each one of us to introduce ourselves, and having a casual conversation over a wonderful meal. After dinner, I had one more agenda of my own to complete - to meet my good friend Hon Wa. I met up with him at Queensway station, and he brought me to his place. Along the way, we stopped by various landmarks including Chinatown, Piccadilly Circus etc.

5) After a short tour of his university (Imperial), we walked to his accommodation. It was a nice chat we had about the good old times, as it was talking about our friends. I had to leave soon though, as the trains would stop operating past midnight. Day two, complete. Day three was our third and final day in UK. As usual, I took the Underground Tube to the Malaysian High Commission. The morning was spent having our committee photos taken, as well as hosting the High Comissioner, His Excellency Dato Ahmad Rasidi Bin Hazizi. He spoke to us about his experience working in London, and he how he felt about the prospects of Malaysia achieving the targeted goals of TN50.

6) After his departure, we were broken into different groups to come up with a solution to challenges facing UKEC. We were required to come up with a presentation after lunch. Our team went first, then Vik's, as both of us had to catch the 5.30pm flight back to Dublin. We said goodbye to everyone, and hurried to St. Pancras. Took the Thameslink to Gatwick, and from there it was back to Dublin. We touched down at around 9.30pm, just in time for us to grab Burger King for dinner. I took the LUAS back, and had to mentally prepare myself for the Quiz 2 the very next day. That has been my weekend, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Thanks for dropping by, and have a great day. Cheers!