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Chew Choy Wan Rina
Age: 22
Status: Single
School: SIM-UOL Business Year 3
Also Studied in Ngee Ann Polytechnic Banking and Finance
"The ideal has many names, and beauty is but one of them,"
so says Ninon de Lenclos whose beauty and wit attracted famous men during
her days.
 If
names were anything to go by, Rina Chew, who shares the same Chinese name
(Choy Wan) as one half of the babelicious VJ twins, is every bit the glamour
queen herself. Over raspberry and caramel frappes (Grande and without
whipped cream, of course), we lounged and flitted over love, life and
online shopping while the world revolved around us.
Rina Chew, 22, looks like a classic porcelain doll; at first glance,
the kind of girl every other lesser being would love to throw darts at
for her effortless chic. A head turner, she could very well pass off as
Vicki Zhao's relation with her long, straight Rapunzel hair that rests
below her shoulders and huge doe eyes that sparkle when the conversation
shifts to her pet topic of online shopping; complete with cherry lips.
Dressed comfortably in a fuss-free black and white ensemble, Rina declares
at the start of the conversation that she is ordinary.
"But you pay your way through school, how many people do that?"
Very many, she assures me, at least in the Singapore Institute of Management,
where she is working towards a Business degree with the University of
London. Less the petite frame deceive you; Rina works two jobs, on top
of school and a vivacious social life.
"Then do you think you are independent?" I asked.
The feisty female explains that while paying her way through school is
an exertion of her independence, she is very much the dependent damsel
when she craves company. Unafraid to reveal lesser-known and potentially
embarrassing facts, the food-lover confesses that she snorts when she
laughs and likes shaking her legs under the table when she is looking
pretty and poised on top. On a side note though, I observed none of this
behaviour over our one-hour conversation. Instead, she leaned over eagerly
and proceeded to give me an animated crash course on the benefits of online
shopping. For instance, if you bought clothes from Forever 21 online,
you save a massive $30, even after shipping and taxes.
Candid and always ready to answer questions that veer into personal terrain,
Rina could have been the next big thing on television. Her pals signed
her up for The New Paper New Face contest and Hey Gorgeous! a reality
program that scouts beauty/brawn and talent in the tertiary campuses.
While she was short-listed for auditions by TNP, Rina garnered one of
the highest votes in a Hey Gorgeous! online poll. But - and this is the
shocker - the Ngee Ann Polytechnic Banking and Finance alum said no to
the opportunity to appear on national television because her boyfriend
was not in favor of the idea. Even when she had legions of friends promising
to stand by her if she decided to compete, Rina felt there would have
been no point staying in the competition if her boyfriend was not keen.
Behind the accusations of "bimbo" and "ah-lian" that
she has heard others say of her resides an inextinguishable never-say-die
spirit.
"What if a guy you like ignores you and decides to hang out with
his friends all the time?"
"Be cool with it, there's always a better one out there."
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