Chynna’s “Quest” to Make New Friends

OR: I survived Nusa Lembongan, and all I got was this shirt.

The shirt in question. It’s a tie-dye, reddish-pink. Quite oversized, but comfy?

7:45 AM, I arrived at Changi Terminal One to a group of students–some were by themselves; others, in the process of waving goodbye to their parents–all dressed in bright pink Quest shirts. I awkwardly stood while my Dad chatted with the teachers, dreading the inevitable small talk I’d have to make. Though I don’t hate asking for people’s names, meeting new people was uncomfortable. And here was a group of new people.

Here, I was a bit intimidated…

There were some familiar faces on the Quest trip; of course, I’d seen these people in the hallways at school. But most of these kids I’d never even talked to!

Still, I realized that these were the people I’d spend the next week with, and resolved to try my best to enjoy the trip. And enjoy — I did :D

A photo I took at the beach at Nusa Lembongan. We watched the sunset, and as you can see, everyone had their phones out to snap a pic of the setting sun. My roommate and I had a lot of fun taking photos for Instagram.

I have a couple of stories from the trip:

I tried a coconut for the first time. My classmate was so excited to drink from a real coconut, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him I didn’t like coconut water. He bought me a coconut, and I sipped on it and realized: coconut water tastes WAY better fresh than in a bottle. Back at the villa, I walked around holding my coconut, and everyone was asking, “Chynna, where’d you get that?” I felt so smug and popular that day. My coconut outing prompted others to buy coconuts.

ABOVE: Some of the girls with coconuts. The lady selling them used a little hatchet to hack away at the coconuts. It was really cool to see her carve out the coconuts…I wish I could buy fresh coconuts on the street in Singapore like in Bali.

I also have a really fond memory of all the girls grouped at the beach, gassing up one of the guys, and making him pose for photos. Doesn’t Harry look so cool with his coconut and sunglasses?

We took our obligatory photos at the beach.

I got to know so many new people through the trip and made many new friends. Beyond snorkelling with a manta ray, touring the seaweed farm, and making smores at the bonfire, the most valuable gift of this trip was all the new friends I made.

I learned from the trip this: You can find friends in almost any room. Just talking and being friendly with others can get you so far. I’m so glad I came on the trip not knowing anyone…because I left the trip knowing twenty-five more.