A Visit to My Befriender's Home

Yesterday I together with 6 other camp group members paid a visit to our befriender,Jerry’s home.We really had a wonderful time there.

“Happy New Year!”Jerry picked us up at the MRT station.
“Happy New Year!”
“So,how is your first Chinese New Year in Singapore? ”Jerry asked.
“Well,not bad.”
“We spent the new year’s eve with our seniors and made dumplings ourselves.”
“I celebrated the new year with my seniors as well .We ate the hot pot and watched the Spring Festival Entertainment on CCTV.”
“So glad to hear that you all enjoy your Spring Festival here.”Jerry then led us to his home.

We walked for about 15 minutes,passing a lot of Chinese restaurants which gave me a false impression that I were in China instead of Singapore,and finally arrived at Jerry’s home.

It is a beautiful,delicate two-storey house with a little coutyard.After taking off our shoes,we stepped into the parlor.Wow …What a tidy and nice house:ecru floors,white and light blue sofas,cream coloured curtains,white shelves with orange Chinese madarins put on…The style of his house’s decoration is simple yet pretty and makes people feel comfortable and warm.I think this can be called an idyllic style which I like very much.

The tea table in front of the sofa had already been full of different kinds of snacks:shrimp crackers,almond cookies,pear cookies,dreid fruit…Appitizing,isn’t it?After we were seated,Jerry’s mother came downstairs.
“Happy New Year!”We greeted.
“Happy New Year!”She replied in a gentle voice.
Then we introduced ourselves to her one by one.
“Hello!My name is XiaTingting.”I shook hands with her.
“Tingting,right?”
“Yeah.”At a closer sight,I found that Jerry’s mother is so beautiful and graceful.
“After a walk in the hot sun,I think they need something cool now.”Jerry’s mother said to the maid.How considerate she is!Then she together with the maid brought us bottles of coke,grape juice and orange juice and a box of ice cakes in order to make the drinks cooler.

“Now have a taste of these shrimp crackers.”Shuzhen (another befriender)distributed them to us.”They are my favourite.”
Then we began to have a try of all those snacks which are really really tasty.
At about 1 o’clock we began our sumptuous lunch.Jerry’s mother prepared sooooo much food:fried chicken wings and legs,braised chicken legs seasoned with spice,fresh vegetables and fruits,bunches of shadie (sorry,don’t know how to say it in English),braised beef seasoned with an unkown sauce,a kind of cooked meat mixed with some other food materials(really don’t know its name)and different kinds of sauces.
“So,real Singaporean food is like this.So delicious!It turned out that the food in Eton Hall can’t represent real Singaporean food.”Miaosen sighed.
“Yeah.Actually I don’t think the stuff we eat in Eton Hall can be called food.”I couldn’t agree more with Miaosen.
“You know I thought all the 13 members would come,but only 7 come.So we overprepared .The food will be wasted.”Jerry said.
“We are sorry for that.Some of them have to visit their tutors or host families,so they can’t make it.”
“It’s okay.So you have to eat their shares.”
“Oh,no!We will get stuffed!”
After lunch,Jerry’s mother also prepared desserts:a kind of cold beverage with the flesh of peaches,watermelons,pineapples and pears and many kinds of little cakes.
We kept eating and eating and eating.Finally I am sure that all of us including our befrienders got rather full.

In the afternoon we played the CS game.Actually it was my very first time to play this game.We played,laughed,ate and drank as if we were close friends because I couldn’t see any gap between us although we were raised up in different countries.

It’s pretty nice of Jerry to invite us to his home.It is my first time that I have been to a Singaporean’s home which in my opinion will help me integrate with the local community.
Actually on the first day of the new year Jinshan,another befriender,took me to a dinner party held by her church.There I met many Chinese and Chinese Singaporeans who are all very friendly and nice.The people from the church are very hospitable and served us wholeheartedly.Although I’m not a Christian,I really appreciate their hospitality and kindness.

In the end I still want to repeat the same words that THANK YOU ALL MY BEFRIENDERS!Without them I may probably feel desperately lonely and homesick during the Chinese New Year.Their friendship,their care and their kindness make me feel warm and comforable in a new country.