Ending the holiday

We began our day a little later than usual. Hew Yen and Yuh Fun were too fit to feel any pain but Hew Chui, Fui Ping and myself were still feeling it. We checked out from Marina Court and left our luggage at Pacific Sutera Harbour. A 30mins speedboat ride brought us to Sapi Island - one of the islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park. It is the island where all the water activities take place. A few of us took this opportunity to try the discover dive thingy. It’s pretty cool actually. Well, the dive master, Christian had to drag me around but it was good exposure. Now I can seriously consider getting a real license. We got back to the hotel for a nice swim after that. We had a beautiful sunset that day. A consolation since there wasn't a real sunrise at Mt. K.

I managed to meet up one more time with Janet and Eric. We ate at this little restaurant in Beverly Hills. Qing Zhou Xiao Chai. They serve Taiwanese porridge. Quite nice actually. Tasted like home cooked. We ended the day with VedaBlu ice-creams.

On our last day, we went for a walk around the shopping complex. No one bought much of the souvenirs. It was before going to the airport that I spent a bomb on fishes. I had specific instruction from family to get them. :-p

After all that excitement and fun, the flight back was pretty sad. I was already missing my it, my 1st holiday. Can't imagine getting back to work. Well, it is my passport to my next adventure. Can't wait for my next holiday!

Padas River, White Water Rafting

Some people would think that it is crazy to do anything the day after you descended from Mt. K. Bum, legs and thighs are expected to ache unless you are pretty fit. But I found out that Steve's group was also planning to go water rafting the day after they descend. Plus we met another group of people along the climb who were going to do the same. So, I guess we are not that crazy after all.

I was told that Padas River is one of the best places for river rafting with rapids Grade III-IV. We were given the option earlier for Kiulu (Grade I-II). It is less rough but hey, we came this far for the best!

We woke up and got ready to take the 8.30am bus to Beauford. This time I’m applied a thick layer of sun block AND I brought it along to reapply during the break. The skin on my nose was turning black and peeling.

The company that was engaged by Nelson was Riverbug. We were provided with a simple breakfast of sandwich, fried chicken, banana, bottled water and chocolate waffle on board the bus. The bus journey was slow. Maybe it was the long up hills. The bus stopped along a road with a rail track crossing it. Our guide, Canon told us we have arrived and to leave our things in the bus.

The bus luggage compartment was filled with life jackets. We all took one each and walk along the track until we see little wooden platforms with wheels.

I finally understood what Esther was trying to tell me about the “trolley”. We were seated on the trolley and one of the “drivers” will push us with a stick. Almost like rafting on land. It took us almost 50mins on the trolley to finally arrive where the rafting will begin. Fui Ping mentioned that this should complete most people’s 3rd world experience. I thought it was quite interesting as well, considering we are missing the famous train ride. The trolley is an alternative to the train ever since the service was stopped due to the constant land slides.

Our guide mentioned that the only train using the track now is the one used for the rail track workers. So I wondered what happens if the train do come? It will be like cartoon! Well, it did! Suddenly we could see all the were "drivers" trying to stop their trolleys. They told us to get up and stand aside. :-p After the train passed, they very coolly replace the trolleys and told us to get back on them.

When we reached the briefing area, we were served watermelons and given bottled water again. I guess they were afraid we get dehydrated. Canon briefed us on the commands and rules. He then divided us into different rafts.

Canon and Tony were our river guides. In the photo below, Canon was showing us how to whack the person next to us with the paddle. The 5 of us together with another 3 person were sharing a larger raft. I told Canon we should flip our raft. He had a smirk on his face so I guess he would. I thought that the experience would only be complete if we all fall into the water. I was anticipating it. But it never happened. We did witness one other raft flipping and we had to "rescue" some of them. I guess the people on our raft were crazy enough. One of the girls even sat at the edge of our raft, dangling her feet into the river and through a few rapids…Canon was encouraging her. :-pAfter about an hour, we stopped for lunch. There was a short preview of the video so far. We continued on our journey when suddenly Canon asked if any of us liked swimming. I guess he noticed that we wanted more. One of my friend noticed that actually they tried flippinf the raft but I guess there were too many of us - too heavy. He jumped off the raft. I looked at my friends and without much thought, we jumped as well. We left Tony to mend the raft on his own. Hehe.

As expected we went through a few rapids and drank some murky water. As we neared tougher rapids we were told to swim and get back on the rafts. I was still expecting more when I saw the 2 speedboats reading to bring us back. It was slightly disappointed. I told Canon on the way back that I was really hoping to have our raft overturned. The speedboat journey was almost another 45mins back to where our bus was waiting. The bus ride was a lot faster returning. We left at 6.45pm and arrived around 8.15pm.

Conquering Mount Kinabalu II

The Great Ascend
It was because of this final ascend, I didn’t wear my jacket and gloves the day before, fearing that they might get wet and not dry in time. We got back our shoes, cleaner than before and absolutely dry!

Many grab a quick bite and started on their climb. Initially, there was a human jam at the beginning. With thin air, some people (like me) had to stop more often. We couldn’t really see where exactly we were walking, so I tried to follow the person in front closely. Din suddenly appeared on my side when I was resting. Told me he had walked a friend back. Well, that meant I was the last one. He had to wait for me.

There were a few parts that we had to pull ourselves up by the rope. Many part of the mountain has little waterfalls even without rain, so parts of the rope will always be wet. Waterproof glove are good here. But after the check point, I noticed that many were climbing without the rope - especially the guides. Having Din with me really helped. I told him to just walk slightly ahead of me and I will follow his steps. It was easier. I guess our biggest challenge was breathing. Our legs were ok, but it was getting really difficult to breathe. Plus we were getting quite dehydrated. Somehow we were silly enough not to bring any food and water. I was also a fool not to take Jee Ing’s advice to bring sun block along. I wanted to be free from holding anything except my camera.

The other guides were also very helpful. Even when Din wasn’t around, they were checking if I was ok, and asked where my friends and guide were.

The last few meters took us really really long. The other guides who were around pretty naughty. They kept telling us to hurry before it rains. They were also teasing us by offering to carry us for that last few meters. By the time we reached the peak, most people were already on their way down or many have decided to call it quits. Hew Chui and I were glad that there were very few people waiting for their turn to take a photo with the Low’s Peak signage. :)

I wasn’t taking that much photograph. Had to remind myself to keep breathing! The view was great. No sunrise but it was a great feeling of being above everything. It was a great feeling knowing that we have achieved our goal. The other side of the mountain is really steep. But looking down the path we need to go through again kind of dampen our spirit a little. We also encounter the ugly Malaysian right up on the peak. Paper wrappers of chocolates and candy were thrown around the peak. I noticed that the porters and guides were the ones picking up the trash along the trail.

The descend to Laban Rata
It felt so good at the peak; I could just sleep there and not move. I was telling the guide that they should offer sky gliding from the peak. A real fast way to get down! The air didn’t get any thicker. So we were still breathing pretty hard. But we really have to thank God for a fantastic weather. No rain, no strong wind. I was thirsty and asked Din if I could drink from the puddle of waters on the mountain. He told me "ada cacing" (there are worms) and only if I really had to. As we follow Din’s steps we realized our toes were hurting. It was a slow journey down. We met a couple of other people who didn’t dare go down. The part where we pull ourselves up with the rope looks pretty scary in day light, but like abseiling, as long as you hold on to the rope, all is cool. I had really good gloves as well. They dried up after I slide down the rope.

When I reached the checkpoint where the silly highest phone booth and toilet are, I found a pipe with flowing mountain water. I drank from it and I’m still alive to type this post. So, I guess it is safe to drink.

I finally reached at 10.15am. They stopped cooking food by then. Good thing I brought my instant noodle. We were advised to make our final descend before 12pm. Just in case we took too long and it gets dark. I managed to have a quick meal and we descend by 11.30am. I thought I saw the kitchen prepare some fried noodles for the some people who descended after us. Not sure if they had to pay.

The final descend
It was definitely much easier without the rain. We decided to take the Timpohon trail down. It is shorter but steeper. It wasn’t easy on our knees. But hey, we needed to get down whatever it takes. We reached the Timpohon check point at around 5pm. I noticed Din’s face was pretty red, so I asked the rest what happened to him. No one seems to know. But I found out later… when I looked into the mirror. My forehead and nose was as red as his! We got sun burned! I think it was probably during our descend from the peak to Laban Rata. The rest didn’t get it as bad as Din, Hew Chui and myself. So silly. We didn’t put on sunblock. I figured if I applied at 2am, it wouldn’t have lasted till the morning anyway.

By the time we took the ride and get back to Marina Court it was after 8pm. Thank God for Nelson, he bought us dinner. We couldn’t possibly walk more to find food.

Conquering Mount Kinabalu I

Mount Kinabalu is part of Kinabalu Park located in Kundasang. After having our breakfast at 7.30am, we proceed to the Mesilau gate for registration and to meet our guide, Din. Hew Yen said that by right I should carry my own stuff to fully experience the climb. I knew that if we engaged a porter, he will probably run up with my stuff. That meant that I had to risk not having my winter jacket and long pants if I really need them half way through the climb. So in the end, I ended up carrying most of my things. I weight it. 5.5kg. Only gave the a few less important things like extra tshirt and beanie to the porter. I packed everything I have in plastic bags. Not very environmental friendly but it was the only way to ensure my stuff don't get wet when (not if) it rains.

Because we only needed one porter, our guide doubled up as a porter. I was too lazy to repack so I tested my own strength. It was actually ok. But I guess it did slow me down in someway.

And the climb begins...
We began the ascend at around 8.30am. As mentioned by various people, this trail is less steep, very scenic but almost a whole 2 km further. We passed waterfalls, walked along the side of the mountains and there were up and down hills along the way.

I tried to take photos of the km markers along the way but I missed a few. The rain started quite early in our journey but we had a lot of trees to shelter us.

At one of the rest area, we had a squirrel running around. I thought it was running away when it suddenly circled my leg. For a minute, I thought it was going to attack me! Haha. Din offered Mentos and it grab it from him.

Along the way, we met many other climbers and we offer each other encouragements and snacks! I realized it is also very important to pace ourselves – know our own speed whether it is fast or slow, I saw people who tried to climb too fast and got cramps quite early of the climb. I was about to get cramps as well when I slowed down too much. I had to keep moving. As the trail changed to more steps consistently, I felt like I was walking up mini waterfalls.

I was told by Aaron that I should never sit or stop for more than 5 mins. It seemed to rain heavier and heavier. When I reached the trail where Timpohon and Mesilau combines, a porter commented we were considered fast. But I was so deceived by this sign. There was still a loOOoong way to go.

The very lonely path
My most unforgettable part was when I passed this path where there were no trees and the path was like a huge stone. I felt like I could slip anytime. Somehow, that very part of the trail has no railing and neither was there rope. There was absolutely nothing to hold on to. The wind was blowing furiously and it was raining heavily and my poncho was flying! All I had was the walking stick. I felt like I was going to slip and roll down if I took another step. I stood at that one spot for a very long time…it seems forever as I prayed for God to stop the rain or at least reduced it to drizzle. It didn’t. It was almost like God ignored me or telling me that I should get out of it myself. *sob sob*

It was weird as the people who were in front of me disappeared. I knew my guide and Fui Ping was still behind but they didn’t show up. Where’s everyone?!!! As I stood there, it was also getting colder and colder. I finally told myself I needed to move or die. The wind was getting stronger. I will most probably get blown away (despite my weight) and no one would ever find my dead body anyway. I continued. Just to find another rest stop just in front where a group of people were seeking shelter. -_-

Reaching Laban Rata
I rested at that shelter for a while. But the rain didn’t stop. Standing there didn’t help, I was feeling colder and colder so I force myself to continue the climb…the "waterfalls". By then my socks and shoes were getting wet, my hands were wet and cold. Surprisingly, the poncho did keep my body warm. I have totally stopped taking photos. The camera did get a little wet earlier and I didn’t want to risk bringing a faulty camera to the peak. I thought the markers were getting confusing as I remembered passing 5km marker on the Mesilau trail. The markers after the 2 trails combined are for Timpohon trail. Some fella actually offered to help me take a picture at one of the markers but I couldn’t bring myself to remove the poncho in the rain to reach into my bag for the camera. I was going to give up, why would I want to take another photo?!! The guy offered to take with his camera phone. I couldn’t recognize him and most people on the way...everyone were in their poncho, so everyone looked alike :-p

The higher we were, the more rocks and stones there were. I was practically crawling. I hold the walking stick on one hand and my other hand grab to hold on to anything I could get a grip on.

It was a huge relieved when I saw a container. But it wasn’t Laban Rata. I kept walking and I saw another structure. I wasn’t sure. A boy in front of me said we have arrived but I was so skeptical I asked if he was sure because it looks higher. It was…it was Laban Rata Hut. (Note: I didn't even see this sign till I was descending the next day)

The little heaven of Mt. K. I looked into the doors and saw my friends who have arrived earlier. Hew Yen came running with the towel and it felt like sooooo good. I was shaking like crazy. The warmth of the room was so nice. I couldn’t even feel the hot cup of water in my hands. And the smell of food was too good to be true. Then I remembered I didn’t have a real lunch, just energy bars, raisins and snickers.
The best thing to know then was that were staying in Laban Rata, above the restaurant itself. One of the guide “Ah Tung” also offered to dry our shoes. He charged us RM20 per shoe but it was worth it. We can’t possibly climb in soaking wet shoes.

I know many have said that it was too cold to shower but I was already too cold to begin with. A nice hot (not exactly hot but warm) shower really helped since I was covered in quite a bit of mud from the waterfall climb. They had shared showers and toilets. Since I arrived pretty late around 5.30pm, there weren’t any queue. They stopped serving food at 7.30pm so I had a quick dinner. Somehow everything tasted really good.

We had heater in our 6 bunk bed room. But it didn’t work. It was ok since there were actually 7 of us. A couple decided they wanted to squeeze on one of the bed.

A few of us weren't that well. Some didn’t feel like eating, some felt like throwing up and I felt a sudden fever. Panadol helped. I didn’t really sleep that few hours but it was all quiet by 8pm.

The rain hadn’t stop. I was getting quite disappointed as I knew that guides will not allow us up in rain. Praise God it finally stopped around 10.30pm.

My real KK trip

15th - 21st April 2009
Finally, my very 1st holiday! After almost 10 months of planning (or after purchasing my “free” flight from AirAsia), I am finally going for a real holiday trip to KK. This is my 4th trip to KK but the 1st time I’m going to do what most tourist do. Climb Mt. Kinabalu and White Water Rafting in the Padas River.

After arriving in KK town, we had a late lunch and walked around in Centrepoint. My friends did some shopping at the Nike and Adidas outlets. They seem to have 50% for certain items.

I managed to meet up with Janet and Eric for dinner. We took a drive quite far from town. I think it was at least 40mins from KK town to Gayang Seafood Restaurant. We ate so much seafood on the 1st day of my trip. Wow, the shrimps were huge! We stayed at Marina Court Condominium, located very strategically near the malls.





On the 2nd day, our van took us to Kinabalu National Park. It is almost 2 hours away from KK Town. There, we visited the Kinabalu Park exhibition. We also went for a 30mins walk on the Poring Treetop Canopy Walkway. We were told this should be a little warm up to our long walk up Mt K.

After that we get to soak our legs in the hot spring water. The water was really hot but nice and relaxing. We then check into the Kinabalu Pine Resort. The view from the resort was really magnificent. We got a good view of our “target” for the next day.

On Easter

One of the speaker for this Easter weekend, Rev David Pawson certainly gave many of us a new perspective to the bible.

He believes that it is very important to read the bible by books. Not just by verses or chapters because it simply can’t be understood in the right context without reading the whole story.

I was also pretty enlighten about the period between the Good Friday and resurrection Sunday. Critics argued that between Friday to Sunday, it is just no 3 days and 3 nights as stated in the bible. However, our calendar today is based on the Roman calendar. According to Jewish calendar, a day starts at 6pm. So the timing here is confused because of the different calendar. Hmm, looks like I should read more.

Yet another interesting note. Not every word in the bible is the word of God. A good example is Ecclesiastes. God will surely not say this.

while I was still searching
but not finding—
I found one upright man among a thousand,
but not one upright woman among them all.

Written by Solomon. A man with 700 wives and 300 concubines. :-p
Every word in the bible is placed there for a purpose. What we can learn from this is a man with so many wives can't possibly know how to respect a woman.

Interesting huh?

Before the Sanhedrin

SCRIPTURE
MARK 14:53-65

53They took Jesus to the high priest, and all the chief priests, elders and teachers of the law came together. 54Peter followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. There he sat with the guards and warmed himself at the fire.
55The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find any. 56Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.
57Then some stood up and gave this false testimony against him:58"We heard him say, 'I will destroy this man-made temple and in three days will build another, not made by man.' " 59Yet even then their testimony did not agree.
60Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, "Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?" 61But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.
Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ,[ad] the Son of the Blessed One?"
62"I am," said Jesus. "And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven."
63The high priest tore his clothes. "Why do we need any more witnesses?" he asked. 64"You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?"
They all condemned him as worthy of death. 65Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, "Prophesy!" And the guards took him and beat him.

OBSERVATION
Mark 14:58
58"We heard him say, 'I will destroy this man-made temple and in three days will build another, not made by man.'
Matt 26:61
61and declared, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.'

This verse was a result of twisted words. What Jesus actually said…

John 2:18-20
19Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."

He was referring to his body that they will destroy. But because they twisted His words, the false witnesses said Jesus had intention to destroy the temple.

APPLICATION
When a sentence is told using even with one additional word, truth can be twisted and altered. It becomes a lie.

PRAYER
Lord, it's funny how this verse appears on the page of my devotional today. Surely, it saddens you when people lie and your children are accused. You understand this as you were in this very picture. It surely hurts you more when these things still happen today... Help us to believe there is still hope, justice and you are mighty over all things. You are still in control. In Jesus' name, amen.

Mount Kinabalu Preparation

Thought I better post my preparation for the climb here. That way, when I intend to climb again, I don't have to make a new list. There were many things I would love to buy. But I can't afford everything. Thank God for friends who are generous in lending me their stuff. My most important investment? My Columbia Tagori.

To Laban Rata
Towel
Disposable Rain Coat
Slippers
Socks x3
Shoes
Shorts
Tshirts x3
Toiletries
Water 600ml x 2

And stuff all the way to Low's Peak
Waterproof jacket
Head Lamp
Extra set of batteries
Gloves
Disposable Rain Coat
Panadol
Hansaplast
Waterproof camera
Phone
Wallet
Water
Lip Balm
Sun Block
Beanie

My 1st and most likely last Malaysian F1 Experience

I haven’t been following the sports much since Mika Hakkinen days. So when Mei Peng asked if I was interested to watch, the 1st thing that came out of me was, do I need to pay? Even after being told that it is a free ticket, I was pretty skeptical. I could imagine the hot sun. But none of us really thought about the rain. We had a little bit of drama of forgetting the tickets and car overheated and stuck in the jam for many hours even after the race started. But in summary, I think Sepang, Malaysia totally failed in putting together this event. Here are my reasons.

1. There were no proper traffic control will traffic police instructing traffic into emergency lane and some pointing furiously at those who are in the emergency lane. So? To use or not to use?
   
2. The parking system was horrible because we queued and they decided in the last minute that we should just go directly to the parking lots.
3. For RM50 a car, the parking facility is a total crap. Cars were to park on mud, that means spectators had to walk through mud. With the rain, many cars actually got stuck.
   
4. There were many speakers around the hillstand but none were working. Many of us had no idea what was happening when all the cars went into the pit stops. We could only call our friends on the grand stand or at home for updates.
   
5. The shuttle service to and fro car parks to the party were terrible. No one knew which bus goes where. Bus drivers could not speak English so many foreigners were lost and confused. The buses were not labeled. Even the bus drivers weren’t sure where the car parks were as it was badly labeled. None of the car parks were fitted with lighting. Many of the roads around the circuit had no street light. Thank God we found one driver who was willing to drive us around in darkness to find the pitch dark car park.
6. The F1 party is not exactly for public. The spectators were only allowed to watch from a screen outside the barricade. The party was for VVIP. The path leading towards the party was bad, people were pushing and none of the authorities did anything. The whole area was all muddy and filthy.

No more F1 experience for me unless I have free super VVIP seats.

-->It’s been 3 weeks now. Tee Hui and I have infection on our feet from walking in the mud and it is still itching. Any lawyers want to offer free service? I want to sue Sepang