I'm blogging reluctantly now as some of y'all already knew my V3000 gave up on me. Now, I have to use 2500 to blog and the keyboard is really cannot make it. But due to popular demand, I'll still give all I got to bring up the much awaited post of the day: The FOC (Freshmen Orientation Camp)!!!

YEAH! DIG!! WE SONG SONG!!! Lets start...

In chronological order,

Day One

I no need say you all should know I go there is sure stone one corner, because I very quiet when the environment is alien to me. But anyway, I'll start from the I-alight-from-bus part. Because I'm still early, I stayed around the bus stop for a while to see if I can catch familiar faces. But there was none, so when its around time, I just walk my way to the Sports Complex - alone. I wanna emphasize the 'alone' part, because everybody was in a group except for me. So I am a perfect example of a loner, yes L-O-N-E-R. Damn sad right? Haha!

Reach the Sports Complex, and my jaws nearly dropped. I regretted stoning at the bus stop, because the queue was really as long as a dragon! Now I know why they had to implement the first-come-first-serve basis. Suddenly, I'm worried that I couldn't make it. Its so hot and stuffy inside that I felt that I was in a sauna. Almost everyone was fanning theirselves to drive the heat away. Alas, its my turn to register and I was posted into the Phantos empire (group). There are a total of five empires namely; Accion (Action), Frytho (I forgot, but I guess its something like Fighting?), Komez (Comedy), Phantos (Phantasy/Fantasy) and Venos (Venus/Love). The camp theme for this year is Movies and that explains the genre-like empire names. The camp name is a stunning: TePolyWood. A fusion of Temasek Polythecnic, Hollywood and Bollywood. Cool, ain't it?

My First Identity @ TP

The first person whom I talked to, erm, I meant the other way round is my first made friend! But sadly, we were grouped into different sub-empire. We had three sub-empire; Phanyx, Phancee and Phantaz. For your info, I'm sub grouped into Phancee. Not a nice group initially, but it got better eventually. The first Group Leader (GL) is unexpectedly my senior. When I told her that I'm from CCM, she was like "Culinary & Catering Management? Ahhhhhh!!! Yeah yeah!!! I'm from that course too! Yes, I got my first junior!" And I was like "Erm, yeah?". Totally lol-ed. She carried on telling me to eat at her kitchen but I was still in stun mode. Haha!

Anyway, there seems to be many familiar faces, but I somehow just couldn't recall them. Its like we had been friends before but somehow, the memnory couldn't fully surface. Sat at the allocated groupings and stoned. No lah, did cheering and self-introduction and whatnots. Lol. But its quite boring lah actually, just to wait for your turn and stand up and intro yourself takes ages. I got listen to them, tried very hard to remember their names, but obviously, already forgotten. Haha! My group actually got quite a number from Bowen compared to other empires. All from express de. Lucky? Suay? I don't know about y'all, but I felt sort of suay? My sub-empire already got one Bowen express girl and I was like 'great'. I guess I want my group to be total strangers to me, I don't know why. Lol. Another sad thing to share, I'm the only normal academic student from Bowen. Wait, is this even considered a sad thing? Hmm...

Next up is some bidding and flag making session. Each empire are supposed to make a empire flag and to get the materials, you'll have to bid the items off the shelves. There are tapes, white glues, CDs, Pom poms, glitters, pieces of clothes, sheets of coloured papers and other chapalang stuffs. After bidding the stuffs, we're supposed to use them and create the flag (Duh!) according to our empire name theme and the camp theme which is apparently movies, fantasy, bollywood, etc... This activity is actually very boring to me, because its like only a handful of people taking part. Too many cooks spoil the broth, get it? So its actually stoning session for most of us. Lol.

Our Flag in The Making

Then, then, its time for games! Was supposedly heading out to Tampines Central, but damn the weather! Ended up playing in the school compound. Lots of running and cheering and perspirations. The game is something like a mini Amazing Race or something like that? But the subsequent games are all like Amazing Race, lol! Initially, the aim of this activity is to familiarize us with Tampines Central but because its played in the school, abit no link la. Haha! But we still get the point as they explain the different facilities and amenities we have in Tampines Central.

Soon after all these, its already dusk. Had supper and debrief, and thier debrief is not like the usual reflections but its like a rate-the-activities thingy. They will ask for example if the lunch today is good and we'll raise our thumbs. A thumbs up is good, and thumbs horizontal means neutral and a thumbs down is bad. If its a thumbs down, they will question you why and if there is an explaination, they will address them to you. I thought its more practical compared to the conventional what-we-did-today-reflection style debrief. After the supper cum debrief, its lights off time. Everyone slept at the Sports Hall. And that sort of wrap up day one.

We say;
P is for Powerful!
H is for Hwanderful!
A is for Action-packed!
N is for we're no Fools!
TOS we gonna tos(s) you out!
We gonna tos(s) tos(s) tos(s) tos(s) you out!
We gonna tos(s) tos(s) tos(s) tos(s) you out!
We gonna tos(s) you out!!!
*STOMPS FEET AND CLAP!!!*
~Woooooooo!!!

Day Two

Woke up at 0730 and did some light PT. But seriously, its not even like a PT, more like stretching only. But I'm fine with it, I mean who wants to run around the track 40 times? Lols! Breakfast up next, nothing much to say. Unless you want me to describe how I go collect my food and sit down and wait for everyone and cheer before eating and mouth by mouth eat my food and throw my disposable plates and cups into the trashbag after eating. Erm, I think I've already described that for y'all. Opps! Haha!

The next game is yet another Amazing Race (like what I've said ealier), but this time, its near the poly (Tampines Avenue 1, fyi). Yes, the usual cheer and rush and rush and sweat and sweat and cheer and sweat and rush and cheer and sweat and rush and sweat and cheer and cheer and sweat......

Ahem, sorry for the drift. Back to the activity. Ya, everyone was like staring at us wherever we go but we like heck care and continued to cheer and sweat and rush and... HAH! Caught ya! I didn't dirft hor! Haha! And every station of the game, there will be this part where we can guess this oracle thingy? An oracle is a somebody or something in which if we were to guess correctly, we get extra points. So everytime after the station game, we'll have to ask who or what is the oracle and do a cheer or is it a dance? Its like some ali baba dance la but don't know why they say its a cheer. Lol. But everytime we guess, we must please the Programmers (One of 'em is the oracle) before they say out the answer. We'll always ask for hints and don't know whether is it we're to smart or tyco, we always guess the correct person, only once wrong nia. And everytime the oracle is always a somebody but none is something. So funny, lol!

After the game, we learn the TP song, the handsign song, and the TP mass dance. To be truthful, I still don't know how to do the handsign and how to sing the TP song yet. Heehee! But its really fun learning it and this is the point I can feel the TP spirit! The TP mass dance, omg, the fun of the FUN! Seriously. And after the dance they will always do the Chicky Dance, really funny tradition. But I like! Wahaha! Even I'm still a stranger to the person next to me, I can feel the spirit and bondage. I think you must go exprience it yourself then you will really know what I mean.

Next up, dance competition. Every empire were to select a rep to take on the stage and battle it out with the other contestant - blindfolded. Those chosen to dance really can dance man, no joke! I especially like the girls dance, keep shaking their booty. Very hot and sexy man! There is this babe, she dance like a shaking machine lor! I think if you stand close to her, you can feel earthquake man! She eventually became the dancing queen. Another girl also not bad, from my empire. She grooves really well too - 1st runner up. I got to dance the TP mass dance with her on the last day! Lucky me right? Haha! The guys also not bad, breakdance, hip hop, or just gyrating your pelvis, all danced really nice! The guy from my group also got the 1st runner up.

That night was really really high lah! Every empire had to come up with a short skit and perform it to the other empires. Again the skit must conform to the camp and empire theme. So our performance was outrageously amusing lah! I think every empire's skit were as outrageously funny too. After the show, its time to transform the Sports Hall into a night club! Woohoo! Everybody was dancing and partying like nobody's business. Haha! Then got to meet Jimmy and Jun Han and we high together. I'm so shocked that Jimmy was in the same empire as me. Its just that they two went for the FOW (Non-residential) one instead. Got to meet Jimmy's new friends too. Partied until quite late, then its supper cum debrief (yes, the thumbs up/down/left/right thingy) again. Hit the sleeping bag after that.

Oh really?
Thats scary, we are so strong!
We're gonna, we're gonna,
we're gonna win the war!

Oh really?
Thats scary, we are so strong!
We're gonna, we're gonna,
so listen to us cheer!

Oh-yo-ee-oh-yo-ee-oh-yo-ee-eh! (Think the Tarzan song)
We are Phantos the strongest,
coolest of them all!

Oh-yo-ee-oh-yo-ee-oh-yo-ee-eh!
We're gonna win the war today!
Yeah!!!

Day Three

The last day was mixed feelings. But lets start from the game again. This time, everybody are gonna get really wet! And I mean really really really super duper uber W-E-T!!! At first I heard about water games I abit sian, coz I don't like getting wet at that point of time. I tried means and ways to evade the water splashes and I must say I'm proud of myself because I managed to remain dry - for the first 2 games only. Lol. Anyway, all the wet games took place campus-wide. So you an imagine us running soaking wet around TP. The feeling of getting wet is really, ahhh...

Ahem...

YEAH! DIG!! WE SONG SONG!!!

Ahem, yes, its reall very song man! Whenever the GLs are preparing buckets of water, we were like running away. But still kena splashed by them. Running with your whole body wet is really cooling lah! By the time we finished playing the wet games, it started to rain heavily (Heng ah!). We gathered at the stadium there and cheered and air ourselves. Because its raining, and the cold winds were really strong. Then everyone was like BBRRRRRRRRRRRR... Haha!

We had lunch at the same place and got our FOW/C tees at the same time. Its really nice I must say and we changed into it and gathered inside the Sports Hall. At the Sports Hall, they showed us a video containing photos of random people during the three-day camp. Then everytime got our empire's freshies or GLs, we'll cheer and clap! Got funny shots, we laugh also. Wahaha! But sadly, they never post photos got me inside. Haha!

After the videos is another videos dedicated to the year three GLs. Then suddenly the ambient become very emo. I mean, got people started tearing and crying, wait both describe the same thing. Anyway, after the video, the year three peeps came up one by one to say their speech. Some of the peeps are are omg, cannot talk for 3 seconds then break down again. And ya, you should know what I mean.

After emo-ing is yet another emo segment. Well, at least its really emo for my empire because we won the overall champion of the FOC! Woohoo!

See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!
See the winner, see Phantos!

Opps! And ya, when they were like announcing the 5th, 4th, 3rd positions. Phantos' GLs were like praying and holding hands together. I see them I also get excited lah! When they announce the 1st place, they were like really full of suspense. Then when they hinted something really obvious, all of us were like siao, jumping for joy! Then, the GLs cried again. Lols.

Then before the FOC has officially ended, its another TP mass dance and all those TP stuffs.

Temasek's me, Temasek's you!
We are a team!

Temasek's me, Temasek's you!
We
Are
A team,

YO! YO! YO! YO!

Stayed back to take photos and wait for our GLs and head to the MacDonalds near the CPF building. Didn't stay long as I'm really shagged. And thats about all of my FOC!

PS: More Photos of Phantos at the Links Section. Visit if you wanna see more, you may even see me in action! Lols.


My reflections:

Although it was really fun and I got really high. I somehow felt empty, like something is till missing like that. Like something tells me 5A1 is till da best, no?! Woohoo!!!

5A1 Oei!!!

5A1, if got any outings or gatherings must call me okies?!

But nevertheless, its just the beginning of my poly life, and I strongly believe that it'll get better as day goes on! I have faith in TP!

TP is the Place to Be! Yeah!!!

I still have another orientation workshop this week and I've promised myself to make full use of it and enjoy myself to the max!

I Love TP! TP Rawks!