Nature at it's best...

Life is all about expecting the unexpected

Life is all about pushing your limits

Life is all about overcoming obstacles

The 3 valuable lessons that I learnt when I conquered yet another mountain...

Why is China so big? Always have to sit on a bus for many hours to reach a destination. And that was what exactly happened on Saturday morning. We sat on the bus for 8 hours (it only takes 1 hour to go from one end of Singapore to another) and reached there at around 2 in the afternoon. We ate lunch at a local restaurant. I seriously think the tour is on a strict budget because almost every single dish was vegetables. What happened to all the meat in the world? Gobbled up by an unknown monster or something?

Once eaten, we were brought to the base of the mountain where we transferred to another bus that brought us up the mountain. Oh boy. The ride up was really one of a kind. Twist left. Twist right. Bumpy. To top it all, the driver acted as if he was driving a Ferrari instead of a bus loaded with innocent people. Thanks for the drive up Mr. Ferrari Driver but no thanks. Roller coaster is way better. We were brought to many scenic spots around the mountain. At one part, we were brought to this aged temple which looked so old yet well preserved. It was just so rich in history and culture. The buildings also looked majestic with elaborate, unique designs of its own. We also witnessed a Wushu session at one of the places. There were even young kids as young as 6 training under the watchful eye of the Master.

With that, we were brought to our hotel. And frankly speaking, I never ever would have thought or even dreamt that we would be brought to such a hotel. It was just so inviting when we were brought in. It had the same standards as Singapore’s 3-star hotel i should say, but much better. Bed was perfect. Toilet was good. Television showed English movies. Goodness. It’s like a dream come true. But our happiness was short lived. First of all, we were only staying over there for 1 night. Secondly, we had to prepare for the next day…

Mr. Wudang Mountain’s middle name is Taoist Holy Land. Standing tall at 1610 metres above sea level, he looks extremely majestic with clouds for his hair. His moustache is made of trees I guess.

We started climbing the mountain at around 9am. Even though we were all mentally prepared, it was obvious that none of us were physically prepared. Nevertheless, we still took up the challenge that was laid in front of us. We were forewarned that it would never be an easy task. Muscle aches, extreme exhaustion & tendency to give up. These were the words that tried to make us fear. We knew we could never succumb to them. We knew that life will never be a bed of roses. We knew we had to overcome those boundaries and beat those fears we had. We knew that if we had each other's encouragement, if we had that determination, if we had that personal goal to reach that summit, then nothing could stop us. And we had ALL of them in our possession. And so..we climbed.

This mountain was a challenge to me as it had staircases, unlike the other 3 mountains that I've climbed before. You might think that it's easy with staircases but for truth to be told, walking on trails and slopes are much easier. First part was smooth sailing i should say. However, at one part, Xin Hui started feeling dizzy probably due to the altitude. We knew we couldn't leave her behind. It was our first test. We waited patiently as she recovered and made sure she felt better on the way up. Now that's what i call pure teamwork. But what i admired the most was that Xin Hui never gave up. I could see determination in every inch of her face. She overcame her obstacles. Now that's something she should add to her 'List of the proudest moments of my life'. Kudos to you Xin Hui! Hats off to you!

After 2 and a half hours, we reached the 'Golden Summit'. Smiles from every direction. Satisfaction and pride welled up in our hearts. A sense of achievement deep within us. It was as if we were on top of the world. What more we could ask for?

And we did something that no one could have possibly done before. We shouted 'The world is very big' in English, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil, Cantonese and Hokkien languages. That should prove how very proud we were of ourselves. Even as the chilling wind pierced our skin like icy cold knives, it could not stop us from taking tonnes of photos. We stayed on the summit for an hour. However, it was extremely crowded. It was like as if 50 people were trying to squeeze into a tiny bedroom. It was that crammed. The locals were pushing like mad as if their life depended on how fast they could reach the summit. Goodness. It's wayyy different in Singapore i believe. We do give way to other people even if we are rushing for time or something. Now that's something the Chinese locals have to learn. Be more tolerant and patient.

Once satisfied, we descended and took the cable car ride down. It was definitely scarier than i thought. But who cares? All i knew is that the cable car was bringing me one step closer to my bed. I was extremely tired by then and i wished for my bed back at the hostel.

My wish came true after 6 hours in the bus. My bed was united with me. It was time for dreamland. Zzzzzz....