DAY 789-793

Oct 30 - Nov 3

1) This is turning out to be one hectic month. We have yet another quiz on Monday (Nov 5), this time on the "REGUB" module (Renal Endocrine, Genitourinary and Breast). Amidst all the studying and stressing about, I've found some time off to attend a session with the other PMC scholars at RCSI. This is the first meeting we have had as a group, and we aim to expand on this to facilitate better transitioning from each year to the next, especially the transition back to Penang, Malaysia.

2) It was a short and informal meeting we had with Mr. Philip Curtis, Director of Student Recruitment, Admissions & Student Services. He informed us that he would have a meeting with the UCD correspondent, to see if we could form a group comprising PMC Scholars over the years. The main goal would be from an academic point of view, including feedback on how to improve the programme as a whole.

3) The rest of the week has been pretty much the same, but one thing I've come to appreciate more is the drastic change in colour as autumn comes. The fallen leaves turn the ground many shades of red, brown and orange. I'm not sure why I haven't noticed it before, but it looks very beautiful! I won't be seeing much of that back home, that's for sure. So best to make the most of my time here. Sadly, most of it will be spent burying myself in my books. Anyway, that's all for today's blog update, and stay tuned for more. Have a good one, cheers!

PMC Scholars from across three years!

Back row l-r: Melissa, Me, Talal, Mr. Philip Curtis

Front row l-r: Engracia, Aisha, Sarah, Shu Chen, Jamie

Empty library is the best library ^^

Halloween food!

Roast chicken with carrots and colcannon mash

(mashed potatoes with chopped cooked kale, green onions, milk or cream, and lots of butter)

DAY 781-788

Oct 23-29

1) So this Sunday I took part in the 2018 SSE Dublin Marathon. It was meant to be my final swan song before returning to Malaysia, but it didn't go according to plan. If there's one thing I've made clear that I wasn't a big fan of here in Dublin, it's the weather. Particularly the perishingly cold weather that we were subjected to today.

2) Anyway, things kicked off relatively well - we took a nice group photo in front of the college, and then got ready to run in our own waves. I thought that I had accounted for the weather by suiting up with thermal wear underneath the singlet and shorts, but evidently I was wrong. I started off happy, running on the spirit and atmosphere of a fantastic crowd.

3) We had a couple of tough slopes to overcome, but in the end - that wasn't the deciding factor in my unimpressive DNF today. Yes, I did not finish the marathon today. Everything was going fine for the first 10km. I met a couple of doctors and we had a lovely chat. The Sun was out for some time, and my prospects were looking quite good at the moment.

4) Then, after the halfway mark (which is 21km by the way), my calves started cramping. Common sense dictates that you stop and rest, but at the same time, I'm well aware that stopping completely only makes things worse. So onwards till mile 16 it was, when the temptation to have a little rest by the pavement got the better of me. Depending on how you look at it, it was either the best or worse decision I made.

5) For the next fifteen minutes my calves and ankles spasmed uncontrollably, and any sort of movement (flexing, extending, adducting or abducting) would trigger a spasm of some sort. I was literally hunched over, a mixture of disappointment and anger as I knew a) the race was practically over for me, b) I might have averted this if I had layered up more and rehydrated a lot more. Ankle spasms are completely new to me, and they felt a lot worse than the usual ones I get in my calves.

6) An EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) came to assist me, and when I first tried, I couldn't stand up. After some time, I could stand up and hobbled my way to the medical tent - which was thankfully only 20 paces away. The sight of rain and a gloomy sky seemed to be giving me all the signs to stop and call it a day. So they called a van to pick me (and some other runners) up and bring us back to Merrion Square - the starting point.

7) Along the way, I had plenty of time to reminisce about the situation. On one hand, bitterly disappointed that it had to end this way, considering I wouldn't be returning for the next iteration of the marathon. But on the other - perhaps it had all been for the better that I did listen to my body. If I had successfully finished the marathon but at the expense of my health, would it have been worth it? But it's easy to think clearly when it's all over, not so when you see waves of runners finishing up and start thinking "why did I stop?"

8) Finally, some of you (or let's be honest, maybe none of you XD) may have been wondering why on earth I would take part in this gruelling event in the first place? With little training, a lesion in my lung, absolutely nothing to gain as I've done the marathon before and finished in time, why would I even bother? To be honest, the main reason is much more personal than all that. I'll leave it at that. But after more than a half marathon, what gave way was my legs, not my lungs.

Thus, the moral victory is mine...

That's basically it from my blog, thanks very much for visiting. Have a nice week ahead, cheers! :)

The RCSI Running Team for the SSE Airtricity Dublin Marathon 2018

The night before the run :))

From l-r: Shwe, Areen, Myself, Jane

(just before the starting gun went off)

DAY 737

Sept 9

1) So, free from the shackles of an infectious disease, I am free to travel as I please again. And where better to go than the city centre? I had to buy medication from the pharmacy first, and after that it was the 27B bus to Eden Quay, as usual. I then proceeded to have buffet (my first in a while) lunch, and thereafter it was a nice stroll to the RCSI library. 

2) I haven't visited the library for more than a month, so it felt very good to be back. I used to spend the entire semester last year holed up in a particular spot in the library - studying till the wee hours of the night. I've also tried to cover some of the lectures next week, but without much success. I've found out that my attention span isn't good, and I easily get distracted after a while. 

3) On the bright side, it was nice seeing many familiar faces in the library - including our friends from the cohort below us. As you may know, they do not come to Beaumont (where we have our lectures) until the following year. So it was nice to meet up and chat with them. I went back a bit later than usual on Saturday (past nine), and finished that last bit of study for the day.

4) Today has been a relatively mundane day in the Beaumont Library. I came here in the morning, and have been here for the entire day. In the evening, I wanted to get dinner at the cafe downstairs, only to find that it was closed. Then I checked Northside, hoping to get a Subway or something - only to find that it was closing in half an hour. The last option was KFC - not that I was complaining. 

5) Halfway through my meal, I was approached by some rather friendly primary kids. They had been here for a while, a whole group unsupervised. They sat next to me, asking me where I came from and why I was here. Initially they thought I was a tourist, and then I explained that I had actually been studying here for a while. After a while, they left - leaving behind a rather fine mess of leftovers.

6) Anyway, I returned to the hospital, helped someone access the backdoor in (my RCSI keycard is OP if I'm honest, able to access many many keycard only areas) and made my way back to the library. That has been my day, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Thanks for visiting, and have a great day. Cheers! :)

The statue of Molly Malone - with a rather fancy black hat!

(I honestly don't know if it means anything)

Buffet lunch food haha

It's certainly been a while... ^^

Apple crumble with vanilla ice cream is just the perfect harmony of flavours!

DAY 630-642

May 24 - Jun 5

1) For the past couple of weeks, I've been quite free - not burdened by exams or studying. But other things have taken up my time. For example, I've had to travel to Ballsbridge (Dublin 4) multiple times in order to make a visa application to China. It has not been an easy process, but in the end we managed to obtain our visas.

2) Also, it appears that since coming back from my Europe trip with my parents, I've come down with a rather nasty cough. As I have had a chest infection a year ago, I wasn't taking any chances and went to see a doctor quite promptly. Luckily, it was not an infection and I was given some cough syrup (Exputex). It's still lingering a bit though; hopefully it'll clear off soon enough...

3) On June 5, the official opening of the No. 26 Building, York Street (the new academic building) took place. RCSI warmly welcomed Michael R. Bloomberg (WHO Ambassador of Noncommunicable Diseases as well as ex-Mayor of New York), The Lord Darzi of Denham (one of the world's leading surgeons and Labour politician), Pat Kenny (veteran Irish broadcaster), and an ensemble of over 500 distinguished guests.

4) Some of us had volunteered to be a part of this momentous occasion, as Student Ambassadors of the college. Our role was to assist the guests in whatever possible, and to to show them around the college. On that day, all floors were open for our guests, and I was assigned to the fifth floor. So me and some friends showed the guests around this floor, into the wet lab (for surgical procedures). A technician was on hand that day to explain the different equipment and apparatus in further detail than we could. All in all, it was a very successful event, not to mention a hugely memorable one too!

5) I'm off to Suzhou, China in literally an hour after this is published. As I understand, there is something called "The Great Firewall (of China)" which is enforced within China to regulate the internet domestically. This means no YouTube, Google, Facebook, Whatsapp etc. I've bought a VPN as a sort of roundabout way to counter this, but if for whatever reason no more blog posts for the next two months (that's how long I'll be in China - I'm coming back Aug 3) then at least you know why.

That's basically it for today's update. Thanks very much for tuning in, and happy summer break. Cheers!

 The Embassy of China in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

Letter of Admission ^^

 On the Dart to Sandymount, where it's an 8-minute walk to the Embassy

the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI)

Preparations ahead of the big day :)

 This really cool box is actually a set of VR glasses, that when connected to your smartphone gives a guided walking tour of the new building ^^

The turnout was so great that some guests were left standing!

(and Desmond Auditorium seats at least 540)

 Professor John Hyland, President of RCSI - gives his opening speech

 Mr. Bloomberg was interviewed by Pat Kenny

 The Lord Darzi with his closing remarks

The official unveiling of the building by Mr. Bloomberg