By Lee Wei Fen

WE LEFT for India without any expectations, and returned to Singapore amazed, nostalgic, and eager to return.

I was one of five students from Singapore on the recent 10-day trip sponsored by the Indian government.

In all, over 50 students from 10 Asean countries visited India as part of an initiative at the behest of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to create greater awareness and ties with Asean.

Personally, the trip was a very special experience for me as a South Asian studies major. I peeked behind the closed doors of India?s best industries and education facilities, making my textbook studies come to life.

It was a surreal experience visiting the Indian Institutes of Technology and interacting with their students after watching documentaries about this educational institution.

We also visted Jamshedpur where Tata Steel is located and were impressed with the factories and the community projects.

Having frequently read the Chennai-based newspaper The Hindu online, it was yet another special experience being able to meet the editor N. Ravi, and have an exclusive question and answer session with him.

In northern India, the trip took on a different slant as we were taken to cultural heritage sites and dined on hotel rooftops, sampling different types of Indian cuisine.

We passed by the street where Rabindranath Tagore lived in Kolkatta, read the letters between Subhas Chandra Bose and Jamshedjit Tata in Jamshedpur's Centre for Excellence and paid our respects at Gandhiji's memorial in Delhi.

They were special moments for me.

I was also given the chance to put the Hindi I had learnt into practice as I spoke to shopkeepers, bus drivers, and newly-made friends. Watching the news in Hindi every night, and falling asleep to Bollywood MTV was in itself an experience and a joy.

The architecture, street scenes and places of interest we visited were truly unforgettable. The Taj Mahal gave me goosebumps and made many of my friends shed tears.

In 10 days, I visited six Indian cities, took five flights, two train rides and countless bus rides and fell in love with the country. I shall return.

Lee Wei Fen is a 3rd year National University of Singapore student