My December Holiday Reflection

My December Holiday Reflection

For this holidays I did not really go to many places. I stayed in Singapore for the most of the holidays and I went to Lombok as well. The life in Lombok seem to be peaceful and calm. There were very little locals and most of the people walking around the streets were tourists. Even so, there were still very little people in the area. I guess that it was probably due to the fact that it is not the peak period for tourism in Lombok. I also realise that due to the few number of tourists on the island, there were many taxi drivers without passengers. The drivers would pounce at the opportunity to give passengers a ride. The cost of food and services were also incredibly cheap as compared to Singapore. The base fare for a taxi was only 5000 rupiah, which roughly translates to about 50 cents in Singapore. A plate of sirloin steak would only cost you about 9 to 10 SGD and the service provided by the restaurants was excellent. I could tell that the local people were very sincere and hardworking in doing their job. They do not expect much in return, unlike the people in Singapore.

We went to a few temples and pottery shops to learn more about Lombok's culture. The locals treated their culture and values with due respect, probably because most of them cannot get a good education. Other than that, we mostly spent time travelling around the island for sightseeing and resting in the hotel.

From this trip, I learnt a lot of things. I learnt that you do not need an item such as an iPhone or a computer game to be happy. The locals in Lombok might not have the latest gadgets but they are much more happy than us, even when they are working. I learnt that we must be content with what we have and learn to appreciate the fact that we are fortunate to be in such swell-developed country. Nevertheless, this December holiday was an exciting an meaningful one.

Matthew Lim (29)