Posted by Belinda, studying A Levels at Bellerbys Brighton

December, the month to remember.
The month of the year where we are constantly reminded of once upon a time and reminisce on how much we've gone through; how much we've stumbled across; our winnings, our losses; our everything that has happened so far.
Towards the end of the month, we celebrate Christmas and be thankful for what we have been given.
And right at the end of the month, we celebrate the arrival of yet another new year, welcoming another new beginning with open arms.
Yet, why do we still have this forlorn expression struck across our face?
Is it because we can't bear to let the memories of 2010 go or are we just plainly tired to start everything all over again?
That's December for you.
So the Winter Holidays are finally here!
I remember myself being so homesick last year, but after a year here, I think I’ve gotten pretty much used to it. Also, this year, there were a few events that made the last few weeks of the term (Novemeber/December) pretty exciting.
And to name a few:
Our Biology teacher, Miss Kingham, has gotten married!
So the day before her big day, we decided to throw her a surprise mini class party and send her our well wishes!
I’ve met her husband a couple of times (when I went to Hove Lagoon with some others to learn how to windsurf and also during the May Ball) and I really think that they look very compatible and sweet together! :)

The class with the cake and present we bought for her!
Next, I went to the Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 World Premiere at London’s Leicester Square too!
(Quote during a history lesson, my classmate came up with this conclusion that "ALL THE HISTORY TEACHERS SEEM TO DISLIKE HARRY POTTER!" haha)
The crowd was so massive over there and it was raining too, not an ideal weather, taken for the fact that you've to stand there and wait for hours for the event to start.
I went with a Vietnamese friend, Linh!
This is Linh!
It was our first time at a movie premiere event, so we were quite clueless at first on where we should be to get the best view/what we should be doing.


Another interesting thing that happened during school time was that we made NYLON during Chemistry class!
It was so cool that even the teachers and lab technicians were amused.
It really was an eye-opening practical in my opinion because we normally wouldn’t think about how our clothes came about/were made and what the industrial processes were.
But of course, the Nylon that we made in class can’t be compared to the real Nylon used in factories, but still… It was really an amazing experience!
(Apart from the fact that all of us got rather frustrated after realising that we are faced with a never-ending thread of Nylon. We had to twirl the Nylon thread countless number of times around the scalpel and it just never ends!)
Of course, I think everyone would agree with me that the most exciting part towards the end of term was THE SNOW!

Okay, but we do have to admit that the two days of school closure due to the snow and following it, another two days off because of the weekend (which sums up to 4 days of holiday!), was pretty much why we were so ecstatic about it. Haha.
The funny thing is that from the previous day, after school closed early in the afternoon due to bad weather forecast of the soon-to-be heavy snow, everyone was practically speculating that school would be closed the following day and all of us got so excited about it.
It only snowed after the term ended last year so we were rather clueless on what to do if in the event of a heavy snow the next day.
Well, I guess technology really works wonders for us.
Because in such times, we ought to be thankful that social networking sites like Facebook do exist for our convenience sake.
Early next morning, notifications of school closure were posted all over Facebook by kind souls who helped to convey the message to people like us, who are living in private accommodation or homestaying.
And last but not least, the end of the term would mean that I had my last ever History lesson in my entire life (prior to the January exams)!
From GCE O level History to now, wow, it’s been years since I’ve first picked up this subject.
And one important thing to note is that because the rest of my subjects (the 3 sciences and maths) are so different from History, I do have to admit that whenever I’m in History class, it’s like a completely different world from the other classes.
Maybe because of its huge contrast to my other subjects, I do treasure and appreciate the time spent in History too because the stuff we are taught/how lessons are carried out/ etc are all so different.
That’s why I do enjoy History a lot!
And of course, I’ve to thank my History teachers Mr. Knight and Mr. Baker for not making me regret taking up History!

Mr. Baker posing for the camera! HAHA
Honestly, because of the fact that he also teaches English, I feel highly pressurised whenever he marks my essays.
His English is REALLY VERY GOOD (P.S he excels in crossword puzzles, HAHAHA). So, I find my essays being checked for grammatical errors too albeit that it is not specifically for an IELTS exam.
I think he does this unconsciously though, HAHA, which is really good because at the end of the day, we’ve to be clear and concise in our essays.
And who knows, because we don't have English lessons for A Levels here, my English would have deteriorated without me knowing! HAHA!
Counting down is really a tiring chore because at the end of each day, you cross out
each day and lament on the fact that there doesn’t seem to be any difference and there’s
still a long way to go.
But… It’s finally here – the long awaited day for me to fly back to Singapore for my winter break.
I guess I’ll see you guys next time in Singapore then!
Belinda is studying A Levels at Bellerbys Brighton