Then left for the race, and the first situation that happened to me was...'losing my wallet' and frantically trying to find it after getting on to the bus. Lols, I didnt want my group to die because of me...so I was like dam worried. But in the end managed to find it somewhere hidden in my bag. Ok, so we were travelling towards Tiong Baru Plaza, our first stop. There, the station master was really funny, cos she was shocked when she saw us, saying that we were too fast, and got really pressurised that she even read the rules wrongly, haha. So for this station we were supposed to find at least 3 members of the public and play a game of charades with them. The words were all related to the environment, so it wasnt that hard to guess, but I made a mistake in our 7/8th word, saying the word environment, when the were supposed to guess 'environmentalist'. =( Lost 100 points just like that. We then got our next clue, which was for Bugis Junction Fish and Co. Didnt take too long to get there, cos it was just a few stops away. And we also successfully shook off the team that was taking the same route as us at the first station.
The second station was simple. Do a limbo, while holding 2 cups in your hands and saying a word/phrase related to a certain theme given. We got themes like global warming, animal extinction, air pollution, etc. So we got full marks for this and rushed to the next station, which was the Youth park in Orchard.
There, we were given two big sign boards, one with an environmental message and another for signing, lol. So we were to go around looking for people to read and sign and take pictures with us! Lol. Orchard road has a lot of nice people, very friendly. Oh and we even got a HCI guy to help us!
Haha, we also finshed this successfully, achieving the full marks for this station! and then was the Botanical Gardens. The clue:
At the bus stop, we saw this:
Nice ad but wont it cause misunderstandings?
Nice pic we took on the bus:
There was a jam at the botanical gardens, and teams were queueing up on the pathway, lols. The space in front was where the other teams were sitting...
I think this station was one of those that needed more problem solving skills cos we were to retrieve cups (half-filled with water) some distance away while following these 2 rules. 1. ankles, whether raised or not, are not to pass a marker stuck on the ground. 2. No body parts are to touch the ground beyond the marker. So that required some thinking, especially for the last cup. But luckily we had an advantage here cos our group comprised of quite tall people, haha(not including Jim and I). Then we completed this station and the station master told us that his brother in in RI. Haha, and so we had a quick chat with him. Then got a rather difficult clue, but which lead to...
Holland Avenue. It was a tennis court sort of thing, and we had to split ourselves into pairs (Me/Jim in one group) and then for the two of us, we had to tie our legs togather and hold a ping pong ball using ice cream sticks, while for the other two of them, one had to blindfold himself and carry the other guy holding the ping pong ball using chopsticks. Then while doing that, walk to the centre of the court and turn 5 rounds on the spot then continue on. If the ball dropped at any time, the pair will have to restart. So thats it. Everytime we completed one set, we will receive a puzzle piece, which we have to piece together to get our next clue.
Then we went to the Science Centre for our next challenge, which was really difficult. They asked questions which we couldnt answer unless we memorised the Singapore Green Plan or something. So we failed that station. =( But we kept our hopes high, and decded to go for some extra points for finishing early in the race, and headed for the next station, at...
Queenstown. There we were given the task of becoming garang gunis and were assigned two floors (Blk 183 floors 8 and 9) to go and collect old newspapers from. But please there were like not even 10 units? And more than 80% dont have old newspapers or not at home. So we had to play 'smart' and go get from other sources... So we were lucky to have gotten back on time and scrapped the 17kg mark with about 20kg of newspapers.
Haha, so obviously that was our last station. The next would be, the end point Hougang Central Hub! Rushed and on the way trying to complete our quiz well. And so we ended quite well, getting a 5th place in the race among all the teams. And so we went to take a short break and relax, eat and stuff. Then went back for the activities, which were ahem, could be improved on. The rock music was ironic...they played so loudly, while most people thought of it as noise pollution. A waste of electricity too. Apparently not all rock music is nice. Had a nice lunch with my team mates and facilitator! Then we walked around Hougang Mall, while waiting for the other teams to return. In the end, we didnt win. Okay, that's understandable, but we could have if not for someone who backed out the night before the competition, and wasnt even responsible enough to get a replacement for himself. Instead, he said that teams will not be disqualified even if one member did not go. (*takes deep breaths*) The crowd there at the endpoint, with a record-breaking booth for the longest fingerprint chain...
Haha its ok, I dont mind it at all, the four of us with Yu Xuan had a really fun time during the race! No joke. Thank you so much for being there with us throughout the race, Yu Xuan! and also thank you to the organisers, sponsors, volunteers and supporters, etc, too for that fun and enriching experience! Now here's a last group photo!
and...Happy Fathers Day to all Dads! =)
