P3 Learning Journey to Malacca 29-30 May 2008 (by Mr Chia, Principal)

This was EDP’s first trip outside of Singapore. Malacca seemed near and safe enough. On the whole, the trip was very good. The itinerary was planned well. The pupils came back with rich eyes. We (21 P3 children, 5 teachers, one grandparent, 9 parents, and two siblings) set out on Thursday morning, leaving at about 7.00 a.m.

The First Day (29 May)
By 9.00 a.m. we had arrived at Yong Peng town for breakfast. At 11.00 a.m. we reached the first stop (Bee Farm). The pupils were quite excited. Our lunch (12.00 - 1.00 p.m.) was at Orna Country Club. We had a good lunch.
At about 1.20 p.m. we reached the Malay Village. This was a significant part of the journey. The pupils learnt about Silat (the Malay art form of defence) and tried a little of it.

They then had a hands-on lesson on Batik painting. They also visited a Malay house, and went on a village walk. It was a great experience. It was tiring though for the children.At 5.45 p.m. they checked into the Mahkota apartments. Each apartment had two rooms and could accommodate 4 pupils. Only one had five (with an extra bed).

At 7.00 p.m. we had a special Nonya dinner (at a very quaint restaurant). This was something new to many of the pupils, but they enjoyed it very much. The night (8.00 – 9.30 p.m.) was spent at Mahkota Parade for everyone to buy some souvenirs. Back at Mahkota, we had a quick de-brief. It was lights out at 10.30 p.m.

The Next Day (30 May)
Breakfast was served at 7.00 a.m. After checking out, we set out at about 8.30 a.m. for the main historical site. The climb up St Paul’s Hill was interesting. The children learnt a lot about Malacca’s history. At 10.30 a.m. we set off for Jonkers’ Walk. The visit to the museum revealed another part of Malacca’s rich history. The Chinese inter-married the Malays, and the Nonyas came about. Quite fascinating.

Lunch was at Straits Meridian Hotel. The buffet lunch was received well. The children enjoyed the free ice cream.

For me, the last but the best part of the journey was our visit to Komplex Anak Anak Yatim Fatimah Al Zaharah. We arrived at about 1.45 p.m. The hosts welcomed us warmly. They had a reception area, and they were waiting patiently for us. Due to the language barrier, it was a little awkward in the beginning. We must thank the parents who accompanied us on this trip. They helped to break this awkwardness, and very soon the children from Singapore were happily and excitedly mingling with the orphans they had come to meet.

We had taken books with us that we wanted to donate, and this was received with warmth. The orphans showed us their living quarters, and we could see that the entire place was kept very well. We were impressed. We have invited them to visit Endeavour Primary in the future, and we hope they will come one day.

At about 4.00 p.m., we set off for Singapore. We stopped at Yong Peng, where we bought some souvenirs. By 6.00 p.m. we were near 2nd Link. We reached school at 7.30 p.m., safe and feeling exuberant. Somehow, the children found their ‘third’ wind as the bus neared Endeavour Primary. It was quite a memorable learning journey.