tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920Sat, 12 Oct 2024 11:30:09 +0000AustraliaLifeUniversityPhotographyLeisureVacationChinaEducationMalaysiaTravelFriendsHigh SchoolJobMiscSportsWorkMaterialismMoviesMusicPersonalReviewsUSAVietnamA space for sharing and loving. http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)Blogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-8834548148174326878Thu, 02 Oct 2014 09:57:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:52.364+11:00AustraliaJobLifeWow, it has been too long since I last wrote something on this blog. And it would have been longer if it were not for a friend who stumbled upon my blog and encouraged me to continue it -- so dear you, thank you. The obvious question would be why I stopped blogging -- well technically why I went on a hiatus. My honest answer would be that I didn't think anybody would care, which is why I got http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2014/10/fear-of-unknown.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-1791318874339716070Wed, 15 Jan 2014 03:15:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.259+11:00USAA lot has happened since my last blog post. For one, I spent Christmas and New Years with my family in Melbourne -- I also happened to be the wedding photographer for my uncle's wedding on the first day of 2014. Secondly, I came to the United States of America for my exchange program at University of California, Irvine (UCI). This post will focus on the latter. I admit that I was anxious before http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2014/01/my-first-step-in-united-states-of.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-5003491352788142462Mon, 09 Dec 2013 09:08:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:50.597+11:00AustraliaFriendsPhotographyI did not have much planned for this year's summer holidays. I didn't bother going anywhere because my family will be coming to Melbourne for Christmas and New Years and I will be off to California right after New Years. Besides a couple of odd student ambassador shifts per week and some administration work with my exchange program, I have a lot of time for myself. With hours of vacant time to http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-occasional-outing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-6958588997897127477Thu, 05 Dec 2013 00:45:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.696+11:00MusicLately I've been appreciating Joanna Wang's cover of Billy Joel's New York State of Mind. Compared to the original, Joanna Wang's cover feels more soothing and less jazzy. There's also more of an element of sadness that, in my opinion, beautifies it as if the beauty of life lies in serene sadness. It's the kind of song that you'd listen to while walking in a park alone on a cloudy autumn day. http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/12/new-york-state-of-mind.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-5189872704528588510Mon, 25 Nov 2013 05:36:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:50.787+11:00MoviesReviewsYesterday I watched a film that I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated. I don't normally write film reviews but I thought I just might, simply because this film was so beautiful.  The Lady is a 2011 biopic film that depicts the inner struggles of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese democratic leader who tried to stand up for democracy for almost more than two decades despite being tied http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/11/review-lady-2011.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-8567775893023265897Sat, 23 Nov 2013 01:43:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:52.174+11:00PersonalMany people see me as an optimistic, cheerful, and open guy. And sure, I do believe that's me to a large extent. But despite being almost 20, there are still occasional times when all seems well, it strikes and I lose myself. I become lost - confused, unmotivated, and uninterested. There's no anchor in my life. Things come and go. Heck, even people come and go. Nothing seems to last. Time is a http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/11/when-all-seems-well-it-strikes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-1570747355824272862Wed, 17 Jul 2013 14:24:00 +00002017-08-23T10:52:51.174+10:00PhotographyTravelVietnamThis is my first ever photo essay, and it is a product of my trip to Vietnam. Through this set of photos, I aim to portray Vietnamese locals in their work environment and hopefully provide an insight into their daily lives. http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/07/photo-essay-vietnamese-locals.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-4996589123800575916Thu, 04 Jul 2013 11:12:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:50.500+11:00AustraliaFriendsLife I thought of the 8-hour budget-flight I was about to board. Eight long hours in the air. I wondered how I was going to spend it. I found my seat near the back of the plane, in the middle aisle. On my left sat two Hispanic travellers, presumably a couple. The seat to my right was still unoccupied. Just minutes before the plane was scheduled to depart, and just when I thought I was going tohttp://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/07/unexpected-friends.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0Singapore1.352083 103.819836000000010.84410649999999987 103.174389 1.8600595 104.46528300000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-1211081014711884620Sat, 18 May 2013 12:32:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:48.974+11:00AustraliaChinaHigh SchoolUniversityI played volleyball with fellow IH people just today. The last time I played on a volleyball court was, as far as I can remember, all the way back in early-2011. That is almost exactly two years ago. Although we only played casually, I still enjoyed it very much. As I played, memories of high school came back to me. Commending teammates, coming in together to shout "1-2-3 Dragons" after every http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/05/high-school-nostalgia-more.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-7392333313159705095Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:35:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.889+11:00So fast, the first half of the semester has passed. It feels like just the other moment I was carrying a heavy-load of equipment taking the bus back to IH from the airport, yet now we're already in week 7, anticipating mid-terms and major assignments. How did Time manage to pass by so fast? Is it because of the insufficient capacity of our brain to remember the every second passing of time? Not http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/04/back-to-serenity-and-other-thoughts.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-4375075091426870625Tue, 09 Apr 2013 04:38:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:50.118+11:00With life's troubles pushing me to my limits, I booked my overnight train and bus tickets to Melbourne, Adelaide, and back to Sydney with frustrated clicks on 'buy tickets'. It wasn't cheap, especially when I booked my ticket so close to my travel date (more like time as it was on the same day...). Expensive travel fares don't generally agree with me but this time I half-willingly forced it to. http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/04/4-consecutive-nights-of-sleep-in-seat.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-4236405087873561936Sun, 31 Mar 2013 00:22:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.928+11:00AustraliaLeisure The City of Sydney held a Malaysian exhibit 'The Story of Malaysia' to promote the Malaysian culture yesterday, and I decided to go to support my countrymen. Neil and a bunch of IH new residents came along with me [I think because they had nothing better to do...]. Though the exhibit was rather a disappointment as it was small and lacklustre, I thought we all enjoyed ourselves just fooling http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/03/outing-with-ih-newcomers.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-1417836728057154281Fri, 29 Mar 2013 09:08:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.069+11:00AustraliaLeisure It may be Good Friday today but unlike my usual disciplined self, I woke up extremely late -- perhaps that's why it's called 'good' Friday. After lunch, I decided to head to the Eastern beaches for the coastal walk with Han since there wasn't much to do on a public holiday that I didn't celebrate.  The total distance of the coastal walk was around 6 kilometres. We started at Bondi beach,http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/03/beach-coastal-walk-from-bondi-to-coogee.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-4596950078543758565Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:46:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:50.405+11:00AustraliaJobLeisureLifeSportsUniversityDespite feeling reluctant to come back to Sydney, I have had quite a lot of fun in the past three weeks -- more fun than I had anticipated. Seamlessly, I have adapted back to living like a young adult -- meeting friends, sports, internet usage, etc. Of course, there are definitely days when I miss my family or worry about my grandparents, but overall it hasn't been as bad as I anticipated. I http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/03/enjoying-it-so-far.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-7183019252072504601Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:01:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.793+11:00MalaysiaVacationSigh, what can I say? My summer break is over yet again, and just like the past 8 summer breaks prior to this year's , it went by after weeks of wastefulness. But come on, a break is a break. And think about it, once I start working full-time, I wouldn't be getting any more 'Summer Breaks'. Might as well continue living the break as a break instead of trying to work and be exhausted by the http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/02/end-of-summer-break-yet-again.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-2821630801519361651Thu, 03 Jan 2013 08:28:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.640+11:00ChinaVacationIt has been almost 3 weeks 4 weeks since I'm here in Suzhou now. Time has once again taken its toll on us: we survived the 'Mayan Apocalypse Day', Christmas has just passed and the New Year [2013!] is just around the corner it's 2013 now. A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone. The holiday 'fever' has led me to procrastination -- I started writing this post the day http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2013/01/living-holiday.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-2499439161435458967Wed, 12 Dec 2012 12:28:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.545+11:00ChinaPhotographyTravelVacation17 months, the amount of time that I was away from China for. To many extents, China was 'home'; and it felt great to be back after so long. Though the first Mainland city that I stepped on was not Suzhou but Shenzhen, everything that screamed 'Chinese' to me were there. The polluted air, the poor visibility, the dusty streets, the Chinese KFC spicy crispy fried chicken, the cheap-butt http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/12/landing-on-chinese-soil-again.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-2208195612041610086Thu, 29 Nov 2012 06:30:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.355+11:00MalaysiaVacationAfter 16 hours of unwarranted travelling, I finally got to my grandfather's old newspaper shop Saturday night at 9.30pm [local time], with an empty stomach after almost 12 hours without food.  The rather classy Sydney Airport Duty-Free Stores  Oh, how different things feel here, compared to the Australian city of Sydney that I have grown so used to in merely 9 months. First off, http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/11/strange-foreign-beauty.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-9192861635327721222Wed, 21 Nov 2012 23:39:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:52.459+11:00AustraliaChinaMalaysiaTravelVacationEvery beginning has its end. Packing. Chilling. Saying goodbyes. That signifies the end of my first year of uni.  It feels as if it has been a long year yet at the same time, a school year feels too short to have passed that quickly. Well, that's another school year of my life, lived, experienced, and gone.  I like goodbyes. They can be sad and hard, but it feels like the end http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/11/sydney-in-year.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-2455316042316570894Wed, 07 Nov 2012 22:20:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.449+11:00AustraliaLifeUniversityHey all, Classes are finally over while I anticipate the coming of exams in the next 3 weeks. The past three weeks have seen me receiving some of my major assignments for different courses [of which some I did poorly while others I excelled it], finishing up a group assignment, and perhaps most interestingly, forgoing the opportunity to become the chairperson for IHMA next year. Well, that http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/11/madness-its-november.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-8596469622995588410Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:05:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:52.269+11:00LifePhotographyUniversityWork Hey all, Week 10 of school just went by and that simply means that there are 3 more weeks of school left! Well, classes at least. I'd still have 1 week of study vacation holiday and 2 weeks of final exams after that. Despite having gone by the period of the semester when most assignments are due, I still have 1 more major ECMT group assessment due between now and the last day of class. So: I'm http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/10/lost-in-uni-ii.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-613688285239527030Sat, 29 Sep 2012 01:13:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.073+11:00LifePhotographyHey all, If you have been keeping up with my Facebook or Flickr, you'd know that I've recently just completed a photography project called Project Solitude. It's a rather short project, with one photo for five consecutive days. The motivation for this project came from my experiences this semester. There was a period of time when I felt really tired, lethargic and unmotivated. I felt like I washttp://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/09/project-solitude.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-3242122732077792016Fri, 14 Sep 2012 00:50:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:49.831+11:00MaterialismPhotographyHey all, Have you ever wanted something so bad that nothing other people say can change how you feel? That's what I feel right now. I feel like a kid,wanting something that I know I don't need. Wanting something that I know I will have to sacrifice a lot for. Damn you First World Problem! If you've been to my Facebook wall recently, it's just full of updates on the newly released Nikon D600 http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/09/disillusioned.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-6826692641899156208Wed, 22 Aug 2012 09:36:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.601+11:00AustraliaLifeUniversityHey all, It has been so long (1 month!) since I last posted a blog entry. Honestly, I didn't really miss blogging that much since I keep personal diary entries anyways but these couple of days the realisation that I haven't updated my old friends about a lot of things got me back to this blog again. It's not like I have a large following audience, but it'd be good to make sure some of my friendshttp://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/08/running-in-circles.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257067291810419920.post-760216745683032010Wed, 18 Jul 2012 06:01:00 +00002019-02-12T19:56:51.984+11:00Hey all, As you would have known if you had read my previous post, I went to Santi Forest Monastery, a Theravadian Buddhist monastery located in Bundanoon -- roughly 3 hours of train-ride south west of Sydney -- for a short 10-day retreat. I went with an open and excited mind. I looked forward to what Santi had to offer. To me, it felt like a new adventure (albeit a little quiet and flat since http://shunyangchng.blogspot.com/2012/07/santi-forest-monastery.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Unknown)0