Hiking @ Bt Timah Nature Reserve

My laptop died on me on Sunday. It was the gloomiest day ever. I don't care what happened to the laptop, but I was desperate to retrieve all my pictures. I've saved our honeymoon pics on desktop, wanting to transfer to ext HDD once I'm done with the editing. I whatsapp all the IT gurus that I can think of. Now my laptop is in emergency room, while Andrew performs his magical touch. So, I've taken over Leecher's laptop to continue with the usual blogging, lol! On a separate note, my mood was lifted when I saw an announcement on FB, congrats BFF! So happy for you! Can't wait for the next outing :) 

Headed to Bt Timah Nature Reserve during the long Haji weekend last year with Leecher's relatives. It was extremely difficult pulling myself out of bed that early, esp when it was a holiday! On top of that, I had to kick drag Leecher off the bed as well. A quick shower later, we rushed off in our sports attire to pick up our parents. 

Hello running shoes, haha! The least used pair of shoes in my entire cupboard. Actually, these belonged to mummy-in-law, she couldn't fit into them, so she gave them to me :) Fits me like a glove! A quick breakfast @ AMK before heading to Bt Timah Reserve. The place was surprisingly full of people & it wasn't even 9.30am yet! 

 

It was quite a humid day, but better than rainy days.  
 
My last visit to here was during JC days - I think we had an orientation and we had to walk the trails to get to the peak instead of the usual straight road. 

With the iconic stone with "Bukit Timah Nature Reserve" engraved on it, lol! Proof that I came here and hike up the hill.

Toilet break first before we start our journey up the hill. 

Parents in law came fully equipped in hat, towels and shades. They have went on 2 previous hike before & I couldn't join them due to other commitments. So, this is the first time I'm joining them. 

The first part on the hike was extremely exhausting as we had to hike up a steep slope. No wonder they say the first start is always not easy, lol!

Excited at completing the first part of the slope.
 

Easy peasy for the youngsters and definitely good workout for the elders. 

 

The 2nd part of the path was certainly much easier, just walking on flat road. 

 

Felt pretty much like an official photographer of a marathon. 

 

Someone made a face out of a tree trunk, lol! The forest reserve was formally declared as an ASEAN heritage park way back in 2011. 

 

Kid trying to catch an ant on the ground. It's heart-warming to see kids engaging in activities instead of having their eyes glued to electronic devices. 

Practicing my shots. As much as I like taking pictures, I still can't grasp the photography terms, like focal-length of lens, exposure etc. For now, I'm just trying to take different types of pictures :) Follow me on instagram (@caihonglim) if you haven't done so :)  

Saw these lil green berries-like fruit growing on the tree trunks - think these should be poisonous and inedible stuff.

Headed onto the path ~ Quarry Road. The hill served as a granite quarry for many years, but since the mid-1900s, all operations have ceased & converted into recreational areas and even filming locations.

with Leecher & his extended family.  
 

 Looking extremely unglam with the bag that carried our necessities, like a pregnant lady! 

 

Showing him how to carry backpack with style, lol!  

 Leecher conveniently off-loaded the backpack to me :(
 

More of nature's shots. 

 

Had to bend pretty low for this, but glad that it turned out the way I wanted it to be. 

 

So, we headed towards the trail and it was time for intensive workout! 

It was pretty easy following the path, paying caution to those steep lil slopes.

Leecher emerged out of nowhere with a newly-found walking stick. 

Trying to get phone signal in the middle of the dense forest ... and surprisingly, only Singtel users have reception.

 

One of the biggest challenge was climbing up and down hundreds of stairs. Leecher's towel was drenched with his sweat and I refused to lend him mine :p 

 

Having conquered the last flight of stairs! 

Back to normal path once again and it felt so much easier after what we have gone through.

Finally reached the summit :)  

Leecher & cousin Benjamin.  

A job well-done! *pats own back*

I miss Amsterdam

 

Keukenhof, May 2012.  

This time last year, we went on our honeymoon trip to Paris & Amsterdam. Time flies! I'm working on writing about the trip, but somehow, I always get distracted and blogged about other stuff instead, heh. Will be back with other random updates :) Stay tuned.

Lil Bro's NS journey: Enlistment into BMTC

Having watched Ah Boys to Men a few months ago (which was extremely entertaining & my fave was Lobang!), I've decided to compile a series of posts to document the lil bro's NS journey on this lil space. National Service (NS) is the rite of passage for every Singaporean son as soon as he hits 18 years old. NS was first introduced in 1967, aimed to provide defence for our homeland & also, to foster cohesiveness amongst the male Singaporeans. From the day of enlistment to BMTC, to his 2 overseas deployment, till his commissioniong parade, we've accompanied lil bro on his journey - lending him support and encouragement.

 

I was thankful that lil bro's enlistment date was after our Bali post-wedding honeymoon, so we could send him off to camp. Lil bro stayed with us the night before his enlistment, so it would be easier for us to send him to Tekong. Leecher even got up earlier to prepare an amazing breakfast spread for him *thumbs up for Leecher* Mummy dearest prepared her 爱心汤 for us & we heated it up in the morning. 

 

Leecher did a fantastic job, though the egg yolk looked slightly damaged, but still yummy! 

Reached Pasir Ris MRT station, where we joined the long queue of recruits + family members to board the bus.

Lil bro already went to shave his head (together with 8 other friends) before enlistment. I even chided him saying that he wasted money, should have went in and get to cut for free.

 

On board the coach that will take us to the ferry terminal. I was busy snapping pictures & lil bro said that I machiam come out on a school excursion.

 

Waiting to board the ferry ~ check out lil bro's sad expression, lol! He's getting nearer and nearer to his enlistment fate.  

 

Reading materials given to the family. I still had my bridal nails on (yes, the pics were taken almost 18 months ago!) 

 

Boarding Penguin Tekong that will bring us to Tekong, obviously. I was joking to Leecher that actually the whole journey felt as though we were heading to Batam.

 

Got sun & sea ~ not bad right? Just treat it as a 2wk trip to "Batam"

Across the coast we went to the other side! It was just a short 15 min journey, but I guess the recruits must have wanted it to last as long as possible.
 

I cheekily called these the "chalet", only to be greeted with glares from both lil bro & Leecher. 

Pulau Tekong is the 2nd largest of Singapore's outlying islands, and it is still expanding due to land reclamation. This island is used exclusively as a training base for various army units & home to BMTC. 

 

We got separated as soon as we arrived at BMTC ~ the family members were invited to tour the compound, while the recruits had to head somewhere for their briefing. Lil bro got enlisted with a couple of his Poly friends, so at least they have got company throughout. 

 

While on the bus, we saw troops of army boys marching, overcoming the obstacle course etc - to give the family members an overview of what the boys will experience during their days in BMTC. 

 

Lil bro was assigned to School 4. 

At the auditorium, where we witnessed the oath taking ceremony. I can't remember what was the oath about, but I do remember vividly the last 3 words "With my Life!" A punchy end to a solemn oath.
 

Lunch with lil bro, a "sumptuous" meal of eggs, chicken, vegetables & fruits. In fact, it was quite tasty, lol! Only available during recruitment day, haha! 

 

Then, the recruits got called off to assemble. Time to say bye bye to lil bro ... I was slightly teary when I took this picture. Gonna miss him for sure! 

 
Off they went up the trucks, for their 2 weeks of training course. 

As for us 
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  We headed to town for some shopping :)