Trip to Niah Caves

My colleague, M*** organised a trip to bring a group of Form 3 students to Niah Caves. Why? Well, it's just because that they had not been there ever before. 31 students signed up for the trip; but because he was the only one teacher-in-charge, M*** started asking around for other teachers to go along. He needed help and support to watch over the students during the trip. I volunteered because I wanted to wanted to trek, P*** went because she had never been before, and I** wanted to bring some friends along. So in the end, there were 4 teachers to 31 students. Joining us on that day was a reporter for See Hua Daily, A****.

Well, it's not my first trip to Niah. I'd stayed 2 nights there for a camp years before. Plus, I'd trekked into the Caves once before this. I remembered enjoying myself tremendously previously, and hence, I did not hesitate to volunteer this time around.

We reached the National Park at around 9.00 a.m., registered ourselves, and bought tickets. Each student paid RM5.00, and us teachers paid RM10.00 per person.

At the park grounds

Besides that, we had to pay for a short boat ride across Sungai Subis. It was RM1.00 per person per trip. We thought it was a rip-off. The ride was took less than a minute! Lol.

Had to get over to the other side to start the trek

Crossing Sungai Subis

On the other side of the river is the Niah Archaelogical Museum. It displays artefacts that pertains to the pre-historic site that is Niah.


After that, the trail begins. The distance to the caves is clearly depicted. We went in about 9 a.m. and came out about 2 p.m. Hence, we were actually quite slow ;p.

Well, the distance looked manageable

Members of our group leading the way ...

Well, it was a hot day, but the thick foliage and the canopy of trees provided adequate shade. I was sure glad as I hated being in the sun.

The first cave that the trail took us to was the Traders' Cave, where birds' nests were traded or sold in the olden days.

Inside Traders' Cave

200 metres later, we reached the Great Cave. Indeed by then, everyone was tired. Lol. We were really unfit!! Some did not want to proceed further to the end of the trail, where the Painted Cave was. However, us teachers made everyone walk - albeit slowly.

The infamous structure at the mouth of the Great Cave

Well, the trail inside caves were pitch dark, and seemed eerie to me. There were so many steps, and I climbed till my legs ached. There were times when I thought my legs would buckle and I would roll into the abyss! Lol. It was also slippery, and many of us almost slipped. Luckily I remembered to bring my torch light. Otherwise, it would not be easy navigating in the darkness.

Anyway, we managed to reach the Painted Cave. After resting for a while, we made our way back.

It's the birds' nest harvesting season, and we witnessed a skilled collector strung mid-air, poking his long bamboo pole at the ceiling of the cave in a bid to scrap the nest off. On the ground, a few men stood by to collect the nests that dropped.

It was a dangerous job indeed, for the man was only strapped to a rope. We were sure that he would lose his life if he fell! M*** said there were rituals to perform before they would climb up. I wouldn't know, but I suppose it was true. I would love to stay longer to watch him do his job, but we had to make our way back to the Park HQ already.

Everyone was glad when we reached the boat jetty as were all really tired. It was sure a fulfilling day though!

He Made My Day

Last Saturday, I**** won a hamper at the school cultural nite dinner. When he passed me on his way out of hall, I pointed to a mango pudding inside the hamper and told him jokingly that I wanted one.

And indeed, this afternoon, he presented me with a mango pudding.

"Teacher," he said. "This is from our class," he said, indicating the pudding in his hand.

Well, it was such a simple gesture but I was really very touched, simply because he remembered that I wanted the pudding.

So far in my experience, most students attack the goodies in hampers like a pack of hungry wolves and don't give two hoots about anyone at all.

The fact that I**** took the trouble to save me a cup of pudding really touched me.

Thanks kiddo. You made my day.

Not So Special At All ...

Today's breakfast left me feeling unsatisfied. Not because the food was not good. But for the price that I paid, I would have expected more stuff in the soup. Instead, there was a piece of bone. Rib, I think, but the meat was tough. Then there were a few slices of beef, a few slices of tripe, a piece of tendon, and handful of beansprouts. All served in a hot pot or rather a mini wok, with a burner underneath to keep the soup hot. The noodles were served separately.

Beef soup in a mini wok

Dry-tossed beef noodles

For RM10.00, the ingredients in the beef soup were rather meagre, don't you think so? Well, in the menu, that was called "Special Beef Noodles". Honestly, I did not find it special at all ;(

Well, if you hadn't already guessed, I was at Nancy's Beef Noodles, opposite Imperial Mall.

It Happens More Often Than It Should...

It's really testing my patience.

Only 37 Kbps?? Shucks!! The darn broadband is acting up again. It's horrendous! You may want to think twice or thrice when getting broadband!

I Have Almost Forgotten . . .

Students come and go every year. There are so many names and so many faces that pass through my hands, and through time, they fade into the deep recesses of my memory.

This afternoon, while visiting The Reading Bus, I had the opportunity to meet a former student of mine, TK, whom I taught a few years back when he was in Form 6. After catching up for a while, I found out that he's now a temporary teacher at a neighbouring school in Miri.

In the midst of a very chaotic room with lots of children and adults milling about, he came back to tell me that he remembered being in my choir. That was in 2006, when the choir team managed to secure a third place in the SUPP inter-school patriotic songs competition. The victory came as a surprise, but we were of course so ecstatic.

TK went on to tell me that being in the choir and winning the competition was really memorable for him. "Sangat best, cikgu!" TK said to me.

I was really touched and inspired, listening to him, because for all the things that he would not remember about school, he would remember and cherish his experiences he had in my choir because it had impacted him in some way.

I had nearly forgotten about the choir episode. It had after all been four years. However, as I reflect, I am reminded that I can do all things, as long as I put my mind to it. That, and of course a lot of hard work. I am also reminded that teaching is all about making a difference in somebody's life, whether in or out of the classroom - like it had impacted TK.

Of course, at the time, all these notions took the back seat as I was most concerned about getting my team to sing and to sing right.

Come to think of it, I remember quite clearly how the choir came about. Well, I was approached early one morning by my new principal then, about sending a team of kids for choir competition. I was rather reluctant at that time, because there was only a month and a half before the competition. I had no songs to sing, and I had no singers.

Nevertheless, I started recruiting members. I had Form 1s right up to the most senior Form 6s in the team. A leader among them was quickly identified, and she naturally became the conductor. H****** was a really great leader as she could keep the team unified. She arranged practice times, and she made the choir sing again and again to perfect the tune.

We decided to sing Warisan and Sejahtera Malaysia. I had to arrange the songs myself since there lacked music scores. And practice was carried out almost every afternoon. The kids practised really diligently.

The principal popped by one afternoon, and was pleasantly surprised that the kids could actually sing like a real choir. He started dropping by more often, listening to the kids singing. I knew he enjoyed listening to them.

To cut the long story short, the kids did well at the competition night, and our hard work paid off when we got 3rd, behind SMKB and RRSS.

For me, the victory that year was really sweet.

Food & Tea on a Rainy Evening

I was at Food & Tea the other night, and it was raining so heavily that I desired something hot. And hence, it was Claypot Ginger Sliced Beef Porridge that I ordered. Honestly, it was the first time I had beef in my porridge.

See the crackers topping the porridge? I hated that. I failed to inform the waitress that I did not want crackers. Why? Because obviously the crackers were not not depicted in the menu. I went back to carefully examine the menu, and in the pictures, the crackers were sprinkled sparsely, but the porridge that came had a handful of of deep-fried salted popiah or wanton skin (not sure) over it. So what is there left to do but to move those to the side of the pot.

Taste wise, the porridge did not disappoint. The porridge itself was savoury, the beef slices tender and the ginger added heat. It's not bad at all on a cold rainy night.


The girls also decided to try Sweet and Sour Crabmeat with Mantou. There were five deep-fried miniature mantous served. They were quite standard. The dip was indeed sweet and sour, but the girls thought it tasted more like a mixture of ketchup and chilli sauce more than anything else. Hence, the girls gave this item a thumbs down.

Pampering My Legs

My legs have been aching since last week, and I think I know why.

Last week was PMR exam, and it happened that I was on duty at school. On an important week like that, it was my responsibility to ensure that school was orderly, and noise was kept to a bare minimum.

It meant that I had to make my rounds more often than usual. It also meant that I had to stand for 40 minutes during recess to keep watch. In the classrooms, it was no better. It was Trial examination for the Forms 5 and 6, and school policy dictates that we have to invigilate actively. That meant no sitting down.

Hence, my legs got sore. This week was equally hectic, with me trying to get my work done. So, there was a lot of rushing here and there, up and down the stairs. For several nights now, I find myself rubbing my legs with Deep Heating Mentholatum to relieve the muscular pains in my leg.

Tonight, W**** and I went to do reflexology at Yi Kang Reflexology Centre, just opposite Dewan Suarah here in Miri. Business was really good there on a Friday night, and there were lots of people calling to make bookings.

Tonight, an elderly lady massaged my aching toes, feet, calf and knees. It was painful, but my muscles were loosened, and I felt much better after the reflex. 40 minutes seemed just like a while, and it cost RM29.40.