It is totally worth it to venture into the wilderness, exploring forest and trees and nature, breathing fresher air and glazing the sun while sunbathing on a rocky cold river.
Going back to nature is my favourite retreat.
I just came back from an overnight camping trip to a nearby waterfall (I guess you can just google Lata Medang). The trip wasn't that awesome entirely, but I kinda remember why is it worth to tire yourself for some kind of majestic view that the nature can offer, as well as the mysterious vibes it possessed.
The journey to Lata Medang took us about 2 hours. 2 hours of trekking, along hills, small alleys, steep slopes, orchards owned by local people (orang asli), and small stream of water. Luck wasn't on our side, the moment we were about to start the journey, heavy rain fell. I guess I couldn't say that rain was a sign of bad luck, rainfall is in fact a blessing from God. But it was pouring down heavily. We started walking. With heavy bag carried on our shoulders (guess how sore it is to bear a beg weighed about 10 kilos for two hours with uneven earth road surfaces). We were drenched and soaked the moment we took our first step into the jungle trail. I guess the track wasn't that bad since I didn't suffer any leg cramps. But with slippery road, heavy bag, and heavy rain, I couldn't say the journey was easy either.
For a brief moment, the jungle was covered in light mist which made the view was kinda breathtaking. Beautiful and mysterious at the same time. I stopped for a while, admiring what was in front of my eyes, but sadly my phone couldn't capture that same view. I savoured, by taking a deep breath.
We continued to walk, shivering, and taking a few 5 minutes breaks, and finally reached our camping site. We were totally soaked. All my clothes were wet, I had a leech bit on my right leg, and the view of the waterfall wasn't as expected due to strong current from the upstream, so the water was kinda cloudy and yellowish in colour (like teh tarik, or we called it 'keruh'). But for the sake of surviving the night, we rushed to set up the tents and hoping the upcoming night is not cold as what we've experienced from our previous outdoor trip. As I had no dry cloth to wear, I just wore one of my dry-fits (dry-fit clothes tend to dry faster) but still, I can feel the cold seeped into my bones and all my arm hairs were like erected (like the chill when you have a goosebump).
We had our dinner, and by 8, everything was covered in darkness.
Darkness that illuminates. It was after the final exam, and we obviously much needed a retreat.
The best thing for me are just plain cracker and good hot coffee. Sitting by the river, hearing crickets sound, sometimes a cool cozy wind blew in, the sound of flowing water, a glimpse of moonlight and stars through the big trees and leaves, surrounding by the sound of nature is a bliss and remedy to the mind and soul.
I want to feel it again, ever and madly.
p/s: I didn't know I still have some few draft posts saved in this blog. This post was written in 2014. Reread and rewritten 4 years later.
