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Camping : The Rainforest Park Genting Highland - Vol 3

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The year did not begin with fireworks or a feast. It began with guilt. Quiet, persistent kind that sits in your chest... I saw Maher and Thalia every day, of course I did. Breakfasts, school runs, goodnights. But presence is not measured in proximity. It’s measured in attention. And mine had been scattered thin by life’s small, relentless demands. So when the calendar turned, I did something deliberate. I took my family camping. A few days before we left, I pulled out the camping gear. The smell of dust rose immediately, unmistakable and accusatory. Equipment that had waited patiently to be useful again. Neglected, but forgiving. I smiled. It was a fair reflection of me. Underutilised doesn’t mean useless. It just means it’s time to begin again. We left for Genting Highlands right after dawn, chasing empty roads and a promise of cool air. Online stories warned of five-hour traffic nightmares. We slipped through quietly, efficiently, luck or intention, I couldn’t tell. This time, conven...
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Knees Trembling, Spirits Soaring: Our Mini Irau Adventure

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I was nervous at first. Four of us, thrown together for several days. Would it work? I had hiked with Ziyad and Reina separately, and Ateh, my partner in crime since university, was my anchor.  Each of them was remarkable in their own way. But together? That was the great unknown. The journey began with a sense of anticipation, a quiet current humming beneath our laughter. By evening, we reached Cameron Highlands, the mist curling in the air like secrets waiting to be told. Dinner was our first test. They teased me mercilessly for confessing a genuine fear:  What if Cameron Highlands had no food?  A ridiculous thought, perhaps, but after years of trekking through remote places where shops vanished with the setting sun, my paranoia wasn’t entirely unfounded. Their laughter was affectionate, and I let it wash over me. For that night, I was the wide-eyed tourist, and they were delighted to play my guides. We checked into our hotel, weary but restless, when fate presented a t...
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Her Heart Finally Feels Safe...

She took the trail alone this time. Not because she had no one to walk with...but because she finally knew where she was going. For a long time, she hiked with others who claimed to be companions. They laughed together, shared water, took selfies at the summit.  But somewhere along the way, the air grew colder. Words unspoken became walls. Kindness turned calculated.  And what once felt like friendship began to feel like a performance.  And she was the only one without a script. There were days she smiled while her heart cracked quietly behind her sunglasses.  She was the one always believing the bond meant more than convenience. But life, as she’s come to learn, has a way of revealing what’s real, and what was never meant to last beyond a season. So she let go. Not dramatically, not bitterly... Just enough to make space for the silence. And in that silence, something beautiful happened. She found her breath again. Her rhythm. Her pace. The trail didn’t judge her pac...
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Chapter 100 : Day 2 of my journey to Annapurna Base Camp

Chhomrong to Bamboo It was 4 in the morning when I peeled myself out of bed. Outside our window, the mountains greeted us like God descending from the skies. The mighty Annapurna stood tall and silent, draped in early mist. Machapuchare, the sacred fish-tail mountain shimmered, mysterious and untouched, as though it was sculpted by moonlight itself.  Our room had an unbroken view of it, as if nature herself wanted us to remember this moment forever. By sunrise, our duffel bags were zipped and ready for the porters. I packed light, carrying only what I needed on my back.  This journey after all, requires shedding of all that was unnecessary, physical and emotional. The trail from Chhomrong to Bamboo is a dance of ups and downs. Not the brutal kind like yesterday's pure ascent into madness, but more of a winding waltz.  My legs began to understand the rhythm.  We crossed another suspension bridge, this one shorter and somehow less intimidating. I even found the courage...
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