The Beach

It feels like I haven't had the chance to produce a blog entry in such a long time. By 'chance' I mean that I haven't actually been doing anything interesting or blog-worthy since my last entry.

The week has been a relatively busy one, I have spent every day out this week coaching in some capacity, and it has given me a great opportunity to try out some new coaching techniques, and also try out a host of new drills I have been able to create.

Today I was given the day off from coaching, and I made the most of this opportunity by having a lie in. Those of you who know me well will be able to vouch that I am never one for spending too much time in bed. I am usually averse from getting up because I took myself to bed at an unholy hour, rather than a lazyness or reluctance to do anything.

With time on my hands I decided to make the most of the opportunity and had agreed with a couple of the coaches that we should finally take that trip to Sentosa Beach that I had been hoping for since visiting there for the last couple of weekends in a row.

The guy I am sharing a room with, Abdul, felt this would be an ideal opportunity to enjoy his last couple of days here before returning to England on Sunday. And with me departing on Wednesday this was a good chance for us all to hang out together for one last time.

We had planned to head to Sentosa after this morning's coaching session, and after postponing our trip until the early afternoon we were invited by a kids that we coach from a local school to come and join them for a game of football.

Since being here I have only had one oppotunity to actually play a game of semi-competetive football, so this chance definitely appealed to me. The kids who invited us were having their usual week-ending match against the year above them, so we joined in on the younger side and probably gave them a massive advantage.

The blazing heat, although quite subtly disguised by clouds, wasn't as much of a factor as I thought it was, although after we'd finished playing I was definitely in need of a shower and a bottle of water.

After refreshing ourselves we decided to head out to HarbourFront in the direction of Sentosa (a journey that is now familar to me) and Abdul, Yoshi and myself agreed to meet one of our friends, Matt at a location not far away from our destination.

The journey took us along a slightly different route to usual and now means that there are only eight stations on the MRT map that I have not passed through or stopped at.

We arrived at HarbourFront Station, and whilst waiting for Matt decided to solve our hunger by taking in a quick snack.

As I had done on both my trips across to the island, we took the Boardwalk which, with the sun going down, was actually quite pleasant.

Having seen all of the attractions available on Sentosa, there wasn't too much to stop and take photos of, and this meant that we arrived at the beach at virtually the perfect time.

The sun was just setting below the water as we nade our way on to the beach. We stopped to take some photos whilst dipping our toes in the water and also kicking the football which we had brought around on the sand.

As late afternoon became evening we placed ourself on the sand to watch darkness descend before getting an ice cream and heading back to the MRT station via the monorail.

What we spent time doing today was relatively simple, but enjoyable. For the first time since I did my first bout of exploring it actually felt like I was in holiday. As I described before, being on Sentosa gives you a totally different feel to being on mainland Singapore, and it was fun to spend time in that environment.

I wouldn't say I'm really a 'beach' person, but I enjoy walking along the sand and also dipping my toes in the water. The beach wasn't anything totally spectacular, but it's in dramatic contrast with the rest of the scenary here so it will made today particularly stand out as an enjoyable experience.

The days are now dwindling down towards my return to the UK, and its hard to believe that I have been here for almost four weeks already.

When I came out to Singapore I was very excited, but also slightly concerned about the challenges that would face me on my return to the Far East. Moving to Korea was such a daunting but enjoyable experience that I was worried that this trip might not quite live up to its billing.

Admittedly it has been much different to what I thought it would be, but Singapore has plenty to offer, and I am so pleased that I got the chance to come out here and experience life here.

Tomorrow will be the start of my last weekend as I slowly count down the days, hours and minutes to my return. I feel that outcome of my experience has been slightly different to what I expect, but it will be another story to tell and another stamp on my passport I'd nothing else!

I am hoping to be able to finish of my trip with some positive experiences of Singaporean life that will allow me to leave with the best memories possible about this island.

And me, I still believe in paradise. But now at least I know it's not some place you can look for, 'cause it's not where you go. It's how you feel for a moment in your life when you're a part of something, and if you find that moment... it lasts forever...