The peaks of Kinabalu

My visitor chart looks like the peaks of Mt K.

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You wouldn't believe this...

... but I actually RAN FOR THE BUS today! Or at least trotted for it. Oh wonders of wonders! Each day just gets better. And that's my new year's wish for all of you: that each day is better than the last.

All this euphoric trotting for buses is making me one to make a resolution list, so here goes:

In the year 2006, I hope to, God-willing,

1. Get to work on-time.
2. Keep my desk clean.
3. Clean out my room.
4. Keep the fish tank clean. (and the fish alive)
5. Run the full marathon in December 2006.
6. Eat less fatty meat and fast food.
7. Make an effort to cultivate/ mantain friendships outside my comfort zone.

And other quiet resolutions only between me and God.

I am such a sloppy girl -- three out of six of the above deal with personal tardiness! Tsk. Aw well... who keeps resolutions anyway? ;)

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Play speed 1/2x

I am having a terrible case of I-don't-want-to-do-this-right-now, even though my other boss just reminded me of an important project that needs to get started by yours truly, I am still sitting here typing, day-dreaming of a day when my legs don't ache, and thinking about going Christmas shopping.

I had a surreal moment last night. A bulging bladder woke me in the middle of the night and I sat up in bed ramrod straight, staring at the route to the toilet. But I couldn't move. I was convinced that between the blessed toilet and I was a series of steep downward steps and rocks that my poor legs could not manoeuvre. So I leaned against the wall and nodded off to sleep again. I don't know how long it took me to figure out that the steps were imaginary (all but one anyway) and mustered the courage to finally get out of bed.

But enough of these embarrassing stories. I figured that if you're reading this, you may have a bad case of I-don't-want-to-do-whatever-I-have-to-do -right-now too, so here are some links to aid you along the way.

• Do non-Christians really make the best "theological films"? Sometimes I really think so. Thom Parham makes an interesting argument in this article. (Thanks Jim for the link!)
• George Barna has gone from being a reseracher to a fiery doomsayer. He says the end of the local church is nigh. Read Barna's summary of his new book Revolution here, and Christianity Today's article on it here. It seems like a somewhat individualistic way of doing things to me.
• What a lot of "churchy links". Aw well. Will do different next time.
  

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Late Christmas Greetings

Feeling a little sick since I got back from Kota Kinabalu: slight headache, feverish, no appetite, no motivation to work or play, cannot stand, cannot walk, cannot climb, and certainly cannot walk down steps. This trip costs one grand, one Christmas, and comes with a lot of side effects; yet, so worth it.

Merry Christmas everyone... Hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed Christmas season.

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Mt. Kinabalu

What, or who, is this mountain?
In 1991, two climbers from Sarawak went missing and were never found again.

In 1994, eighteen British soldiers spent a month lost in the thick jungle.

In August 2001, two British teenagers missed a turning on the granite slope and got lost as the weather conditions detriorated rapidly. Most unfortunately, the 16-year old girl was found dead six days later.

This was the mountain we wanted to climb -- the highest peak of Southeast Asia at 4095.2km -- Mt. Kinabalu.

The local Dusuns treat the mountain with the deepest respect. Every year, seven white cockerels and seven eggs are offered to appease the mountain spirits at Panar Laban, which means "place of sacrifice" in Dusun language. While foreigners like me see a large, imposing nine million year-old granite mountain formed by the movement of the earth and grows at an average of 1cm every two years, Dusuns see the spirits of the mountain.

Even the British-Malaysia team that made the first full descent into the insurmountable Low's Gully in 1998 conceded that it was not so much that they had "conquered" Low's Gully as the mountain "allowing them passage". The team admited that their historic feat would have been impossible without the coincidence of an El Nino which kept conditions dry enough for the descent.

Who is this mountain? This is her Dusun name: Kinabalu -- the "revered place of the dead".

Mt Kinabalu, taken from a suspension bridge by the road

The route to the Park Headquarters
The trip from Kota Kinabalu to the foot of Mt Kinabalu took us about two and a half hours. It is a long and winding route and we had a driver whose idea of avoiding motion sickness is to put your seat down, close your eyes and relax. My idea of avoiding motion sickness is to NOT weave in and out of winding streets and NOT accelerate and brake like a maniac, duh. We passed by a large overturned trailer by the side of the winding road, glass shattered everywhere; it had been going too fast.

If you are not car sick, thank God, the view on the route between Kota Kinabalu and the Park Headquarters is quite something. At one point, I think near Kampung Kelawat, the mountain rises dramatically as you round a corner. The sheer size of the mountain can give an otherwise normal city girl megalophobia, the fear of very large objects. We are going to climb that?!?

We stopped at Pekan Nabalu where our driver got his kopi while we snuck out to get the picture below. Shifting cultivation covers most of the hills here.

Clothes hanging out to dry with the peak of Mt Kinabalu behind

From here on, the weather gets cooler and the mountain peeks in and out of view as you go along. We caught sight of the impressive long trailing waterfall of the Kadamaian -- it looked like a large gash on the side of the mountain. The water on Mt. Kinabalu is freezing, as I would find out later...

Got to the Park Headquarters at 9am and stood around with the other climbers, anxious to start this adventure.

The Climb to Panar Laban
One of my favourite bits of this route is watching the vegetation change. It starts out looking like a tropical rainforest with a thick canopy, and as you climb higher, it gets sparser until you are surrounded by gnarled looking trees. Below are the variation by altitude:

Lowland dipterocarp forest	Rich with fruit trees such as rambutan, durian, and figs.
Lower montane oak-chestnut forest	Above 1,200m, conifers and oaks become more dominant. Oaks and chestnuts are important food for squirrels.
Upper montane forest	Above 2,200m, trees are thickly cloaked and shawled with mosses and liverworts dripping with moisture. Abundant orchids.
Sub-alpine zone	About 3,300m, the trees are gnarled and stunted, forming a shrub community with conifers and rhododendrons dominant.
Nothing zone	Above 3,700m, fierce winds and torrential rains make it impossible for plants to survive. A few bonsai-looking shrubs exist in sheltered places.

This part of the climb is remarkably enjoyable, with breath-taking views both of the peak as well as the valley below at various points of the climb. We stopped at Layang-Layang for a sandwich, chicken wing and boiled egg lunch. The last bit with the granite stones is steeper and more tiring, it gets colder too, especially if it starts drizzling, and it is a relief to see the Laban Rata resthouse finally in front of you.

The picture on the left is of a pitcher plant (Nepenthes), a carnivorous plant that traps, drowns and eats unwitting insects.

View from Laban Rata

The view from Panar Laban steals your breath away. The locals were playing sepak takraw on the ledge against a backdrop of sunset and clouds, undescrible! Literally, it is the same view as from an airplane, only that you were outside with the clouds.

Sepak takraw in heaven?

The mountain that steals your sleep
I couldn't sleep a wink. Nada. I had a headache, felt like I couldn't breathe, couldn't get comfortable, and lay there with my eyes closed and my mind running a mile a minute. I was actually grateful when I heard the first people getting up at the unbelievable time of 1:45am 'cos I was sick of trying to fall asleep. What an ominous start to a long day..

The *cough cough* race to the summit
We were up at 2am for a slice of bread with jam and a hot cup of coffee. I wore practically everything I brought -- one sleevelesss top, one t-shirt, one long-sleeve sweater, one windbreaker and one lined track pants. Met our guide at the breakfast hall and left at 2:30am.

I was a bit worried about climbing in the dark but after a while I realised that it was really just a matter of going one step at a time, and not worrying too much about what you cannot see. A bit like life I guess. ;P

The climb up is steeper than the day before. About one-third way, S got nauseous because of the altitude and took some maxolone. The nausea was worse when we stopped for a break. At one point, because of the dark and the thin air, I found it somewhat hard to breathe, but I think that was more like a mini-panic attack and it went away once I stopped thinking about it. :)

Our torches died twice enroute. In the end, we climbed by the light of the moon. Thank God it was a half-moon night! Because we couldn't see very well, I stepped into a large puddle of icy-cold water. Brr! I yelled at S not to step into it, but the next thing I knew, in her foot went as well. It is amazing how quickly you stop feeling your toes.

I will always remember looking back and seeing the little moving points of light behind us (like The Lord of the Rings!), and the little lights from the villages far below. Without the lights, the landscape is desolate and makes a person despair.

We reached the summit at 5:55am, 5 minutes before the sunrise. We were tired, cold, and wet, but the view was awesome.

On top of the world!

Sunrise from the top

Back down again



The trip down killed me. I have one tip: bring a walking stick. We didn't have one and by the time we got half way down, we needed all the help we could get. Our legs would suddenly buckle and we would laugh -- our legs were that far gone. I thought I would never get out of that god-forsaken mountain! Altogether, we took nine hours up and six and a half hours down, but the journey down feels so much worse.

It was made worse by the rain which made everything slippery. I think I slipped at least five times. One Japanese tourist slipped and fractured her leg and so had to be rescued. How awful!

Back in Singapore
Cannot walk, cannot stand, cannot walk down stairs, feverish, nausea, no appetite, but so worth it! :)

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I didn't get it

Went for an interview for this job and got a letter today that told me that I didn't get it. Now I feel like curling up with my bolster in a corner and flagellating myself with tied up bedsheets for being so useless.

Maybe not. But it is still disappointing.

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brown paper packages

I love the smell of sun on bedsheets. I love catching sight of a bird in a bush, the sound of a mynah's chirping first thing in the morning.

I love watching my parents laugh. I love holding your hand. I love watching people take care of other people, watching your children push you in the wheelchair.

I like being pampered when I'm sick, when you pet my arm and say, "Poor thing!" I like hot soup, porridge and kang kong, salty steamed fish cake and stir-fried pork ribs.

I like hearing you talk.

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Shelob

What has eight legs and is larger than my hand?




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This!



I saw her on the overhead bridge near my place. She had spun a gigantic web reaching from the top of the roof to the bougainvillea plant below and when I took this picture, she was in the middle of her web gloating over her trapped prey.

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blessed

Can't wait to go on holiday. Simply can't wait.

I know I have a good job when it is only 6:35pm and I am feeling that this is an unusally long and busy day. My shoulders hurt and I feel a little scattered and stressed from doing too many tasks at the same time all day, but I am grateful that I can go home now to sit with my family.

This blog is too mushy.

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Elliptical Machine

I tried one of these Elliptical machines at the gym yesterday. They are called Elliptical machines because your foot moves with the pedal in an elliptical motion, with reduced impact on the knees and other joints as compared to the regular threadmill. While this means that it is better on your knees, it also means that you burn less calories per hour because it is low-impact.

I did a 20 minute workout on resistance 9 at varying gradients. Although most people find a regular threadmill harder than the elliptical, I was quite done in by this machine.

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Training to climb Mt Kinabalu

Oh boy. According to Kevin Chia, you should start training two months before your climb.

The typical training programs (relevant if you are based in Singapore) are two months long covering the weekends and they consist of:

(a) Trekking at Macritchie Reservoir to Bukit Timah Hill (About 10 km) and Bukit Timah Hill Parks HQ to its summit (Take the steep slope up, rock path, dairy farm, jungle fall then summit) - This builds up your stamina for the Day 1 of Kinabalu Trek to Laban Rata (abt 6 km).

(b) Stairs climbing at 30-sty HDB Flats (You can choose Toa Payoh Lor 1. There are 40 sty blocks but we felt that the staircases were too short & winding) - This builds up your stamina for the Day 2 of Kinabalu Trek to Summit (abt 3 km).

Crud! I only have one week! If I start training now, wouldn't I be tired by time I get there?

Jame DiBiasio has a harrowing account of her climb up Mt. Kinabalu, all 4,095m/ 13,434ft (and growing) of it. Guess what's the sub-line of her article? "What ever made me think that I could climb Mt Kinabalu?" Ha!

What impulses drive people to go places where they're not welcome? Human beings have no business on mountaintops, even if the mountain is a relatively puny one like Kinabalu. There is nothing to eat, nothing to drink, nothing to shelter us from the wind and the sun, and not even enough air to breathe. The process is expensive and time-consuming and, at times, lonely. It's hell on your knees, your leg muscles, your lungs. Even sleep is denied you by the altitude and the thin air. You are stripped down naked, your willpower exposed. Jame DiBiasio

My only consolation is that I've been training for the half marathon so my cardio-vascular fitness shouldn't be too bad. Am a bit worried about getting altitude sick though. And it strikes at random! And it depends on something called "hypoxic ventilatory response", whatever that means.

Beyond mere huffing and puffing, some people begin to suffer such symptoms as headaches, nausea, and lethargy as low as 8,000 feet. Above 12,000 feet or so, virtually everybody suffers a bit, at least initially. As altitude increases, symptoms can become more severe, including potentially fatal cerebral and pulmonary edema. Oddly, altitude sickness seems to strike almost at random; a vegetarian marathon runner may be laid low while the fat chain-smoking slob in the next tent does just fine. One theory says that one's susceptibility to altitude sickness depends on one's involuntary background breathing rate, or hypoxic ventilatory responses. The higher yours is, the better. A Mountain Climbing Primer

The tips to combat altitude sickness sound just as scary:

The most important thing is to ascend gradually once you get above 10,000 feet or so—ideally, no more than 1,000 feet per day. This gives the body time to acclimatize by building up extra red blood cells and growing more capillaries. Altitude acclimatization days are an inherent part of any mountaineering expedition above 15,000 feet. Acclimatization on Everest takes weeks, with climbers returning to base camp several times to recover before pushing on. Your success as a mountain climber may well hinge on your ability to adjust to a low-oxygen environment.

Secondly, guzzle water like there's no tomorrow. This helps to keep your blood at the proper level of acidity, which affects your natural breathing rate. Thirdly, take Diamox, a prescription diuretic that has been shown to prevent or delay altitude sickness in most people. A Mountain Climbing Primer

Great lah. Laban Rata is at 3,273km (10,738ft) and the climb to the summit is another 822m (2,696ft) which is about 2.7 times above the recommended altitude increase a day.

Since I don't have time to train, I'm willing myself to grow more red blood cells. Does anyone have any tips?

---

Update TrainofThot thoughtfully gave the links to two articles on mountain climbing. This article has good tips on treating altitude sickness, and this article has tips on what to bring.

The article reiterates that above 3000 metres, you should not climb more than 300m a day. Brilliant. It also states the side effects of the drug Diamox, and a second drug Dexamethasone that apparently makes you euphoric!

The prescription drug Diamox has been in use for over thirty years as preventative medication for high altitude sickness. It stimulates an increase in breathing, thus helping to maintain oxygenation and aiding acclimatisation. Many dose regimes have been effective with the most common being 250mg twice daily starting at least 24 hours before ascent above 2500m. However, there are possible side effects that include tingling of the lips and fingertips, blurring of vision and alteration of taste. Dexamethasone is a steroid drug that is also used to prevent AMS, although it is not as popular as Diamox and does not aid acclimatisation. The recommended dose for adults is 4 mg every six to eight hours and should be taken at least 24 hours prior to ascent. Short term use of dexamethasone is relatively free of side-effects, although it is usually associated with a euphoric feeling that may mask symptoms of HAPO and HACO.

Interestingly, lots of water, carbohydrate and garlic helps with altitude sickness. Yep, you heard right, garlic!

This, though, is the clincher. It made me laugh out loud. :)

Rapid accent to high altitudes often results in the syndrome known as acute mountain sickness (AMS). The first recording of mountain sickness was in the History of the han Dynasty (Ban gu) in 30 BC, where Chinese travellers named their climbed mountains "Mount Greater Headache, Mount Lesser Headache and Fever Hill".

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Singtel Internet SMS sucks!

Singtel has apparently outsourced their internet SMS services and there is only one word for it: it sucks!


The log-on screen looks crappy. What's up with the multi-coloured background and the low-res picture of the fella playing golf? It gives an "unable to connect" screen when I try to register for a password. And when I finally get my password and try to login, nothing happens.

I'm still waiting..

... (five minutes later)

... (ten minutes later)

Quite unbelievable that they have turned a simple one-step process into a multi-pop-up window nightmare. I understand that this is a free service provided by Singtel and users don't have the right to complain but these are the little professional touches that sets Singtel apart from its competitors! Easy, efficient internet SMSing was the one reason I would have chosen you over M1.

Hope you know what you are doing.

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Survivor: Down to the final three

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No wonder I feel like crap

I live right smack in the doldrums!

“The doldrums are a belt of very still air near the equator that stalled sailing ships. The doldrums are located between 5 degrees north and 5 degrees south of the equator. The doldrums are also known as the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (or ITCZ).

Early sailors named this belt of calm the doldrums because of the low spirits they found themselves in after days of no wind. To find oneself becalmed in this region could mean death in the era when wind was the only motive force available, and it was certainly a depressing experience to be isolated, in the middle of the ocean in a hot muggy climate.”

Thanks Joan

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Sunday Lunch

Celebrated my mother's birthday by catching a free wind ensemble perfomance at the esplanade, and then heading to Siam Kitchen for a bounteous Thai buffet lunch.

The audience at the performace irritated me with their hooting and other obnoxious behaviour. But it was all put right after a couple of plates of spicy pomolo salad.

Happy birthday, mum.

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