We couldn't find a direct bus that goes to FRIM so we took KTM to Kepong. We have a no-taxi policy unless we have no other choices or we are running out of time. Drivers were quoting RM15 per trip from Kepong to FRIM and we couldn't find anyone to share a taxi with us. What to do? Bargain and push our luck.
RS: 8 ringgit boleh?
Driver: Ok lah.
RS: Thank you! You are a good man.
Driver: Ok lah I see you also Malaysian.
HM: Malaysia boleh! (Strike while iron is hot) You never go protest ah? (We were in KL on the day of Bersih 3.0 demonstration)
Driver: I wanted to but I need to work lah. You? Where you from?
HM: We from JB. (Pls don't ask which part) You? (Change topic)
Driver: I'm from KL lah. Ok we are here. This is FRIM.
HM: (Phew) Thank you so much! Satu Malaysia!
Bersih 3.0 was held in KL on 28 April 2012 to call for free and fair elections in Malaysia.
Satu Malaysia (or One Malaysia) is a slogan created in 2010 to promote ethnic harmony, national unity and efficient governance in Malaysia.
RS: 8 ringgit boleh?
Driver: Ok lah.
RS: Thank you! You are a good man.
Driver: Ok lah I see you also Malaysian.
HM: Malaysia boleh! (Strike while iron is hot) You never go protest ah? (We were in KL on the day of Bersih 3.0 demonstration)
Driver: I wanted to but I need to work lah. You? Where you from?
HM: We from JB. (Pls don't ask which part) You? (Change topic)
Driver: I'm from KL lah. Ok we are here. This is FRIM.
HM: (Phew) Thank you so much! Satu Malaysia!
Bersih 3.0 was held in KL on 28 April 2012 to call for free and fair elections in Malaysia.
Satu Malaysia (or One Malaysia) is a slogan created in 2010 to promote ethnic harmony, national unity and efficient governance in Malaysia.
While waiting for our food at Sunset Cafe, we watched the sun set. The vastness of the horizon was surprisingly refreshing to my eyes. I realised I had developed a tunnel vision in the course of work and lost my peripheral vision. Gazing towards the sea broadened my horizons, literally.
My first jungle trek was in Tioman. It was raining in the morning and I had trouble getting up. The plan was to walk more than 7km from Air Batang to Juara, a quiet beach at the east coast of Tioman. After a late breakfast, we began walking to Tekek. It was a straightforward route to the masjid before we hit a seemingly dead end. A hand-drawn sign reads Juara and we followed a narrow trail into the jungle. We turned in, brushing past tall grasses and found ourselves in the jungle, surrounded by towering trees. It was quiet, dim and humid. The narrow trail we had followed was gone. Not to worry, follow the power lines which connect the kampongs. After tramping across muddy ground, wild vegetation, rocks and fallen trees for hours, it occurred to me that the ground is never flat. There're uphills and downhills. There may be more ups than downs, some last for a long while but eventually we reach a flat surface. Momentary relief for our sore legs. The occasional fungi and a tiny purple crab break the monotony of the journey. Sometimes, my foot lands in the mud. I slipped and luckily managed to support myself using my hand. After 2 hours, we finally saw daylight as we exited the jungle. I thought this was it but there was still a looooong way to go downhill, so steep my knees went wobbly. I was so tempted to hitch a ride from the many 4WDs that drove past us. We pressed on to Juara Beach (that's the name of a resort), starving but there was no food until 7pm! We gobbled down our ice-cream drumsticks and decided to pay RM60 for the trip back to Tekek by car.
In his words, the trek was boring and not worth the effort. I agree it's not as rewarding as scaling a mountain where a panoramic view awaits at the summit but the process was surprisingly enlightening. Isn't moving through the jungle like going through life? It begins with a clear path. 16 years of education paved for us. After graduation, there is no longer any path to follow. As we venture into the unknown jungle, we have to learn to find our own footing in the dark. We climb, we crawl and we fall. It wasn't easy at first but we got the hang of it after some time. We find ourselves in shitty situations, often not created by us but we end up being blamed and clearing the mess. "Why me?" We complain, we protest and we despair. Even the occasional fungi and tiny purple crab in the form of compliments don't delight or motivate us anymore. Every morning, we think of getting out of the jungle but at the same time we are afraid to deviate from the trail we have been walking on so comfortably. How many times have we missed the waterfall because we had followed the power lines?
In his words, the trek was boring and not worth the effort. I agree it's not as rewarding as scaling a mountain where a panoramic view awaits at the summit but the process was surprisingly enlightening. Isn't moving through the jungle like going through life? It begins with a clear path. 16 years of education paved for us. After graduation, there is no longer any path to follow. As we venture into the unknown jungle, we have to learn to find our own footing in the dark. We climb, we crawl and we fall. It wasn't easy at first but we got the hang of it after some time. We find ourselves in shitty situations, often not created by us but we end up being blamed and clearing the mess. "Why me?" We complain, we protest and we despair. Even the occasional fungi and tiny purple crab in the form of compliments don't delight or motivate us anymore. Every morning, we think of getting out of the jungle but at the same time we are afraid to deviate from the trail we have been walking on so comfortably. How many times have we missed the waterfall because we had followed the power lines?
Third snorkel. I was surprised how much I've improved compared to my first attempt in Australia. By the time we stopped at Renggis which was the third stop of the day, I was able to get into the water on my own. He had already swam off with the rest to look for sharks and I simply took my time to get down and catch up with the rest. I stayed with the pack for awhile and Holland babe kept saying she saw shark but I didn't see any. We went round the little island and reached an area where the corals and black sea urchins were freaking close right smack in my face I was gonna crash into them any time soon. I started to panic a little and I decided to go back the same route from where we had came from. As I turned around, my flippers brushed against the reef. He didn't seem to be scared and continued snapping away in the underwater world.
I went off on my own and finally got into a more comfortable zone. I started to move away from the corals and there weren't many fish around. Suddenly, I saw a shark less than 50m away in front of me. I was really excited and popped up the surface to tell everyone of my sighting. But there was no one around me. I ducked back into the water and kicked as fast as I could to follow the shark. The water started to get murky and it disappeared out of my sight. My shark sighting lasted for about a minute. I was contented nevertheless and decided to find my way back to the boat, avoiding rocks and corals that were too close. I finally saw our boat and he shouted "Where did you go!? I was looking for you!" and I yelled "I saw a shark!!" If I had not turn back, I would not have seen it. I climbed up the boat and both of them (Holland babe and him) decided to go down again for a last ditch attempt. Ajib navigated the boat to another spot, told them where to go and sure enough, they came back shortly after 10 mins, reporting they saw shark. I conclude that the chances of spotting a shark at Renggis is quite high since all three of us managed to spot one :)
Sedap!
