High Life : A WEEKLY FORUM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS : Getting Lessons in Diplomacy : Travel: A Fullerton student shares diary from Singapore trip he and others won through academic competition.

A five-member academic team from Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton recently took part in a eight-day trip to Singapore.

The trip, sponsored by Singapore Airlines and administered by the Los Angeles Times in Education Program, also included teams of students from Ayala High in Chino Hills, Carlsbad High, California Academy of Math and Science in Carson and Harvard-Westlake in Los Angeles.

The school teams won the all-expense-paid trip in February through the Ambassadors to Singapore Competition, which tested knowledge of current events and Asian culture.

Following are excerpts from the trip diary kept by Andy Yoon, a junior at Sunny Hills.

Sunday, March 8

Stepping between the sliding glass doors of Singapore’s Changi Airport, I shared the excitement of my teammates Robert Chan, Atsushi Kawamoto, Neha Gupta, Andrew Lu, Sophia Lau, and my team’s adviser, Richard Reed. After months of study and preparation, we were finally here, ambassadors to Singapore.

After boarding the bus, I gazed with wonder at the towering skyscrapers and the bustle of the city streets. Despite the familiar urban setting, many things reminded me I was in a foreign country.

For example, the cars drove on the left side of the road, all of the people I saw were Asians, and the city was incredibly clean.

By the time we reached our hotel, the Carlton, everyone on the bus was exhausted. It had been 21 hours since we left Los Angeles International Airport. Stumbling to my room, I collapsed and spent my first day in Singapore asleep.

Monday, March 9

Today we visited the Airline House, Singapore Airlines’ international headquarters, where we toured the facilities.

The most memorable event was when we rode along with the trainees in a crash simulator. The mock airplane rolled from side to side, and smoke poured into the cabin.

As a door flew open, the trainees hopped out onto an inflatable slide. Our lack of insurance prevented us from joining them.

Tuesday, March 10

After a brief discussion with members of Singapore’s Housing and Development Board, we toured an apartment-like flat.

Afterward, we had Chinese food for lunch. Playing it safe, I stuck to beef and chicken. Some of the braver ambassadors tried squid, sea cucumbers and cow intestines.

After visiting the Parliament House, we were briefed on Singapore’s legal code in the attorney general’s chambers.

Singapore’s legal system is much harsher than the United States.’ The possession of illegal drugs leads to immediate execution by hanging.

Several weeks prior to our arrival, the government banned chewing gum to prevent pollution and the jamming of public doors.

Wednesday, March 11

The intent of our trip was to let California teen-agers represent their country as ambassadors to Singapore. We did that today when we visited Raffles Junior College (RJC), a two-year school comparable to the 11th and 12th grades of U.S. high schools.

After dispelling the notion that California life is anything like “Beverly Hills 90210,” we discovered that the teens of the two cultures had much in common. For example, Singaporean teens have problems with too much homework, a problem I could well sympathize with.

That evening, RJC students were invited to our hotel to share a buffet dinner hosted by Singapore Airlines. Exchanging gifts at this time, I gave my gift to Shawn Chen, a student I had met earlier in the day. Wanting to give him something distinctly Californian, I presented him with a Lakers sweat shirt.

Thursday, March 12

The most eagerly awaited day of the trip had arrived. Returning to RJC, we, the ambassadors, discussed common concerns and problems with Raffles students.

A major topic was AIDS. The Singapore students were curious about our reactions to it, since the problem is nonexistent on their island.

Other topics included gun control, capital punishment, political corruption and racial tensions.

After lunch in the school cantina, we bid farewell and left for Sentosa, an amusement park island off Singapore’s coast.

Our stay on the island was cut short by a storm. We left after visiting several indoor attractions, including a museum of history and a marine life exhibit.

Friday, March 13

The morning was spent touring ethnic areas, including Chinatown, Arab Street and Little India. Bargains could be found everywhere, and I was able to buy some Thai silk for a cheap price.

After lunch, we boarded a bus for a six-hour trip to Malacca, Malaysia. Realizing this was one of the last nights we had together, I stayed awake until 3 a.m. talking with the students from the other California high schools. My own team members grew a little homesick and ate out at a local Pizza Hut.

Saturday, March 14

Our stay in Malacca was spent immersing ourselves in Malaysian culture. Among the places we visited were St. Francis Xavier Church, a Portuguese colony and Chang Hoon Temple, one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Malaysia.

After a dim sum lunch, we boarded the bus and headed back to Singapore.

On the return trip, we stopped at a supermarket, where a student bought some durian candy. For the uninitiated, durian is a spicy fruit that smells like skunk and tastes even worse.

Earlier in the week, Sandra Thomas, a student ambassador from Carlsbad High, bought some durian and left it in her hotel room. Within an hour, the entire floor was flooded with the stench.

The same thing occurred on the bus. After a few minutes, people began yelling, “Who bought the durian?” The entire back section of the bus was saturated with the nauseating odor.

Getting to sleep was impossible as the obnoxious odor overwhelmed us.

Sunday, March 15

Our final day in Singapore. After joining my teammates for pre-lunch shopping, we checked out of the Carlton and left for the airport.

Some of the RJC students were at the airport to say goodby. As the time for departure drew near, everyone tried hard not to cry.

Trying to capture the spirit of unity we felt, several of us locked arms and began singing “We Are the World.”

The final boarding call came, and we knew the time for goodbys had passed. One by one, the ambassadors left for the departure area.

As the last to go, I looked back with tears in my eyes and waved one final goodby to the island and its people I had grown to love.