After the zoo, our group traveled via bus to Cottesloe beach. Several students ate fish and chips at a beach side restaurant, exposing them to typical Australian beach food. After lunch the group hung out on the beach and took a swimming adventure to a floating buoy off the coast. The ocean was very blue here and there was not a cloud in the sky. Needless to say, much of the group left the beach quite fried. One student insisted on showing his newly found Australia pride and bought an Australian flag Speedo. To much surprise, he promptly displayed this Speedo on the Cottesloe beach.

Credit: Dave P. & Henry D.

 

Day 15 was the final step in our case study competition. We arrived at Leeuwin Estate prepared to present our marketing suggestions to Dennis Horgan, all hoping to have come up with the best idea to increase his sales in the United Sates. Each of the five groups waited outside and wandered around the estate grounds, while waiting for their chance to present. Each group used power points and other props during their presentation. Ideas ranged from information tags affixed to the wine bottles to marketing their wines in exclusive and trendy restaurants. The group that won the competition suggested a marketing inroad into a US firm that owned a chain of golf courses.  

After the winner was announced Dennis and his wife, Tricia, invited us back to their house for a dinner of steak and fish and the chance to socialize and further discuss our presentations. We walked through a short wooded trail to get to their lovely home, and enjoyed appetizers as we unwound. Departing their house just after dusk we returned to our hotel to pack for our upcoming departure to go back to Perth.

The next day we spent some time at the beach in Margaret River.  We then departed on an uneventful trip to Perth (stopping again at the “Center of the World”!).  Tonight we’re watching the Presidential Inauguration at the Perth casino.

Credit: Lisa C. & Simon C.

Credit: Emily H. & Ryan S.

The group then returned to the hotel for lunch and a few hours of leisure time where students caught up on laundry and sleep.  We then continued our travels to 3M.  3M is a very successful Fortune 500 company headquartered out of Minnesota and Texas.  They have invented many products including Scotch Tape, Masking Tape, Post It notes, reflectors for our sneakers, and films that are used on street signs, televisions, cell phones, and computers to increase brightness.  They also have invented the security films that help prove that licenses and passports are authentic.  We were given an in-depth description of their business, its operations, and their business plan.  One interesting thing we learned about their business is that 15 percent of every employee’s time is dedicated for working on projects that are of interest to them.  This method allows 3M to keep their employees motivated while opening the possibility for new innovative products.  We then were given a tour through 3M’s labs which were top-of-the-line and even included a weathering lab where products are put through accelerated weather cycles to show what the effects weather will play on their products.

After our visit to 3M, the students had the rest of the day off and everyone split up to do multiple things on their last night in Singapore.  I personally went with a group of three other students and both professors to the Night Safari in Singapore.  At the Night Safari, we watched a fire breathing show performed by aboriginals.  They even happened to select Andrea Melone from our group to go on stage and give her shot at using a blow dart to pop balloons.  We then went on the safari ride which took us through many African and Asian regions and allowed us to see many animals in their natural habitats at night including hyenas, tigers, elephants, giraffes, anteaters, and many forms of cattle and deer.  After the safari ended, we found front row seats for the Creatures of the Night show.  During this show, we saw many animals performing acts for the audience.  One hilarious part of the show was when the sea otters came on stage to recycle the garbage the raccoons had just spilled.  One otter struggled mightily trying to get his aluminum can in the recycling bin and even fell in the bin himself at one point.  Another student earned his five minutes of fame when Andrew Youssef was selected to be the “macho man” and go on stage to hold a boa constrictor.  Although being very frightened, Andrew stood up to the macho man persona.  Finally, we then traveled through the walking paths that took us to parts of the safari we could not see on the tram.  Our favorite stops were the bat room where the largest bats in the world were flying just inches from our face (luckily, they only eat fruit…).  We also enjoyed walking through the room with flying squirrels that are monsters compared to the many squirrels on Elon’s campus.

Tuesday was a very informative and fun day that really ended our great visit to Singapore.  I know that everyone really enjoyed the country and many are already talking about returning for a ten year reunion!

Credit: Andrew S. & Mike K.

Credit: Chad B. & Currie B.

Credit: Andréa M. & Andrew Y.

After settling in, many of the students ventured out into the beautiful city of Singapore. After our first night in the hotel, we got to sleep in a bit and our wake-up call rang at 9:30. We all made our way to the lobby and enjoyed an abundant (free) breakfast. After finishing up, we made our way to the “Singapore Flyer.” The Flyer is comparable to the London Eye in that it is an enormous Ferris Wheel with 28 baskets each capable of holding 28 patrons. Twenty-eight may sound like a random number but the number 8 is very lucky to the people of Singapore. The number seemed to keep re-appearing throughout the day. Once we arrived at the Flyer we boarded some very interesting vehicles. Similar to “duck-tours” in the states, the truck that we were touring on was capable of traveling on roads and then transitioning to water. The group got off the bus and onto the “duck” (a combination of a truck and boat) and the tour began. We traveled throughout the city and our tour guide pointed out things like the towering skyscrapers, several historic landmarks, and many shops and markets. After a 15-20 minute tour on land of the city, we made the (surprisingly smooth) transition to Singapore’s Marina Bay. On the water we passed some extremely fascinating sights such as the world’s largest floating stage surrounded on one side by 28,000 multi-colored seats. When we saw it, the stage was being set up for an enormous new year’s celebration. Apparently, 2009 is the year of the Ox so many of the decorations found all around the city were themed accordingly. Lastly, we saw a famous statue of a symbol found throughout Singapore, “the Merlion.” This odd creature was made off half lion and half fish. The lion is meant to symbolize the lion that Prince Sang Nila Utama first saw when he arrived on Singapore and the fish is meant to remind everyone of Singapore’s modest beginnings as a fishing village. After seeing this beautiful statue, which was positioned on land but was spewing water out of its mouth into Singapore River, we returned to the ramp and made our way back onto land and back to the Singapore Flyer. We said our thanks and goodbyes to our tour guides, re-boarded our bus, and returned to the hotel.

Theatres on the Bay

 

Merlion

Duck Tour

The students were free to explore the city independently for the rest of the day. Many of us got dinner at one of the many delicious restaurants in Singapore while others rested at the hotel or walked the streets. After relaxing by the beautiful pool at the hotel, we traveled to an amazing part of town called “Clarke Quay.” This area is made up of many restaurants and bars. After a delicious meal and a few hours out with friends we made our way back to our amazing hotel and rested up for the exciting days to come.

Credit: Nick W. & Dylan B.

The Long Bar at the Raffles Hotel is the birthplace of the famous drink “The Singapore Sling”. We all agreed that this drink was really nothing more than a Shirley Temple, but the presentation of the glass with various fruits hanging off the glass made it seem more eccentric. The Raffles Hotel also had an outdoor restaurant that provided a plethora of fish on ice where customers were allowed to pick their meal. The hotel was incredible, and it provided us with a glimpse of Historic Singapore architecture.

Credit: Jack M. & Tim O.

Afterward, we were taken up to the control tower from which we could view 9 different shipping terminals and watch as hundreds of cargo containers were transported.  Modern Terminals provided us with a delicious lunch and allowed us to ride on a company yacht back to Kowloon Peninsula.

MODERN TERMINALS – HONG KONG PORT – SLIDESHOW

Credit: Matt W. & Kevin O.

 Our first stop was a local kindergarten where we met children who sang us songs and showed us around. Next, we went to see the terracotta warriors which turned out to be slightly a tourist trap as they promptly led us to a jewelry shop. After that, we got back on the bus to head to the zoo to see the giant panda. The panda seemed to be more interested in eating than having its picture taken, but the sight was still exciting.

Our two-hour bus ride through rural China to Guangzhou allowed us to get a glimpse of villages occupied by farmers and factory workers along the way. Farmland, housing, and highways filled the view on both sides of the bus on the way to an authentic lunch after our visit to the zoo. Lunch consisted of fish, beef, chicken, and other various local dishes. The group separated to tour the main street of Guangzhou, which was crowded with many local people who seemed very interested in seeing visitors. A trip to the market followed, in which we were led down back alleys filled with vendors. Crafts, food, live chickens, scorpions, and even a street barber shop were among the many foreign sites.

After regrouping at the end of the market streets, Arnold led us through a Buddhist Temple where we were able to get an inside look at the local religion. It was very interesting and different to see monks and the shrine where Buddhists go to pray.

Our final stop was to the memorial hall dedicated to China’s first president. Not much was going on other than a rehearsal for a performance going on later at night, but the lobby had an interesting timeline of artwork to look at.

A short bus ride followed by a two hour train ride ended the very unique and informational visit to mainland China.

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