Our back is weak.

This is the dumbbell I use for my rowing exercise. It is also being done to prepare myself for the next kayak competition that is sometime in October this year.
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No matter how big you are or how strong you appear to be, your back is one of the weakest part of your body.

As a masseur, I have come across numerous strong persons who suffer from a weak back. This weakness could be due to insufficient exercise for the back. Very few people seem to bother about muscles in the back, except for those professional or aspiring body-builders.

When we think of a beautifully, muscled body, we first think of the arms; big biceps, not even triceps, big forearms, chest muscles, and abdominal muscles. Well, man is an egoistic being and those are the parts he can exposed for others to appreciate most often. Of course, those who visit the beach and wear swimming costumes also think of their legs. But the back! Who looks at it? Even the guy himself hardly sees that part of his body. So, not much effort is put in to improve the back.

Imagine a front that has strong, taut muscled chest and stomach and a back that has hardly any developed muscles. A strong front and a weak back. no wonder we see quite a number of the body-building people forever arched forward for two reasons; compressing the front muscles to show them off or the back too weak to straighten the body. So we have a unbalanced body.

A weak back would mean no strong enough muscles holding up the vertebrae. The spinal column is not well supported by strong enough muscles. Therefore, if there is strain upon the spine, something may give way. It could be the weak muscles or the spine. Whichever it might be, there would be pain.

So most people suffer from pain due to twisting or turning the body too fast for the muscles to perform that movement well. So we have a twisted back. See how easy it is to hurt the back? Even picking up something from the floor can hurt the back if the back is weak and the action is wrongly carried out. Wrongly carried out? What do I mean? Well, there are two ways to pick or lift up something; the correct way is to bend the legs at the knees to go down and the wrong way is to bend the back to stretch down. The wrong way with a weak back can bring pain to the lower back. And once a part of the spine has been weakened, the problem can return again and again unless, we do systematic strengthening of the back. Improper method of strengthening can hurt the back. It has to be a slow gradual process and I believe yoga is the best way.

Even bending too long at a certain task can lead to back problems. There are those who sit at computers should get up every hour or so to stretch and straighten their backs. And it is important that we try to sit with a correct posture. There are people who slant their bodies or the angle of their necks as they work away at the computer. To prevent a painful back in future such people have to do something about their posture, straightening their backs or getting a better chair which would not cause them to slouch.

And how many people slouch in their chairs every evening as they relax in front of their television. That curved lower back will with time weaken and be the cause of pain. Why, some people even slouch as they drive around. Imagine their poor cramped lower back and they wonder why their backbone is tight and stiff.

So, the way we sit, move and pick or carry things are important in the prevention of pain to our back. Just as important is developing a stronger back. One simple exercise I use is a rowing action with weights. I choose a dumbbell that I can comfortable row with for at least fifty times. Choose a weight that is right for you without straining too much. Hold the dumbbell with both hands and turn it in a rowing action with your body straight, turning only as and when required just as you would in rowing a boat. The aim is not to build muscles but to strengthen the back. Even when the back is strengthened, use the right action to pick or lift up things and hold the body in a good posture always.

A healthy excretory system is necessary.

Besides the skin which helps us to dispose of our toxic wastes, there is our excretory system which takes out what our body does not need, such as excess liquids and food.

When it comes to food, it goes into our stomach, the food is digested and the remainder that has not been used goes down to the colon either to stay there for a short while or a day or even two or three days, sometimes a week or more before it is eliminated from the body.

How long the food stays in the colon depends upon a number of factors. One is the habit of flushing all the feces down every morning, afternoon or evening. Another is the amount of fibres in your diet.

If you have a habit of visiting your 'pleasure chamber' first thing in the morning,then you have not much of a problem.But there are people who are not in the habit of going to the toilet everyday. Some of them can even last for a week without having to bother about flushing waste down.

If that is the case, have we ever thought what could possibly be happening to the waste accumulated there in the colon, rotting there, emitting all kind of gas and multiplying all kind of bacteria and increasing the amount of toxins as a result. Would the toxins leach back into the body through the walls of the colon into the bloodstream into our body? Would not that add problems to the immune system and our health. That is exactly the reason why we have to remove waste as soon as it reaches its terminal point.

So as to avoid such a terrible occurrence, the best move is to eliminate all waste at the earliest possible, just before or after the next meal. Then, there would be no possible contamination of our body with unnecessary toxins. I believe three times a day is best and I have been able to achieve that with the amount of raw greens that I take together with my major meals.

Excess liquids which are not too much can help dissolve some of the waste to be removed through the kidneys and the liver through the urinary organs. However it is up to us to prevent our oprgans from deteriorating by taking clean water and nutritional liquids which do not tax our organs too much.

When it comes to the kidneys, there are a number of sicknesses that can cause renal failure. Other than those illnesses, we should ensure that there is sufficient blood flow as it is through good blood flow that toxins and wastes are brought to the kidneys for elimination from the body. Poor blood flow could be due to dehydration. It could, of course come about as a result of serious injury, burns, bleeding or even through blood loss from surgery. Therefore we should drink sufficient water.

The liver is another eliminating organ of importance. Yet we never think if its health. It's always heart, heart and heart but never the liver. And because of that the drinkers would take as much alcoholic drinks as they feel they can withstand. What about the amount our liver can withstand? What about the amount that can cause what is known as a fat liver? What if the amount we can stand is enough to burn the liver?

Well, I admit I was an egoistic drinker once during my heady young days. Challenging others just because I was clever enough to know how high I can go and stupid enough to think that I could beat them by secretly drinking some water and urinating out the alcohol. I thought i was great until God showed me how wrong I was. Thank God for that! One day, while I was at the hospital I met a middle-aged policeman who was observing his own shaking outstretched hand with tear-drops in his eyes. I was so moved that i just had to ask him what the problem was. He had a burnt liver from drinking alcohol drinks every evening. Since then I understood that was not the way I intended to go. So, I stopped drinking. But stopping is not as easily done as said. It took me a lot of determination and fighting off the "I know you can drink." that my well-intentioned friends constantly urged. Glad to say I won that round.

Sugar can be also a problem when it comes to a fatty liver. Since a fatty liver can lead to many problems and diabetes, we have to be careful about using too much sugar in our food and fruit juices. Why add sugar to fruit juices anyway? Furthermore, sugar looks like such an unhealthy food. Of course, not all kinds of sugar are bad as research seems to find certain kinds of sugar such as cane sugar and sugar from berries good. Whatever it is, limiting sugar intake is apparently a good move.

Well, obviously, looking after our body and its organs is just as important as the type of food, exercise and rest that we are so aware of.

Sweating for health.

When I was young and desired greatly the company of beautiful girls, sweating was my worst problem as there just wasn't any way I could overcome it. So I faced it by remaining in the coolest places available and cooling down every now and then to remain dry.

Then I got married and my beloved wife accepted this wet guy with so much love that I forgot about the sweat and enjoyed ourselves. Sweating just became a part of me and was accepted. I just had to bathe and change clothes often besides using up lots of handkerchiefs. I also realised that my friends also accepted this hot sweating person as I was and am.

Looking back, I believe one of the reasons I have remained as healthy as I am is my ability to lose litres of water every day. In removing that amount of water, so much more toxic substances from the body is also expelled. And I think it is the largest 'removal organisation' in our body. Well, the skin has the largest surface to perform such a task. The more we sweat, the more we drink. And the more we drink, we either sweat more or create more urine. And the urinary tract with the help of the kidneys is another disposal unit we surely need to rid our body of those undesirable toxic substances.

Ah, before I go on, the man who drank too much water came to mind. There was this man who had kidney stones and went through an operation to remove the stones. The doctor advised him to henceforth drink more water. So, wherever he went he carried his bottles of water and, like the good patient he was, drank the litres of water throughout the day. He drank too much, urinated too much and landed in hospital. According to the doctor he was lucky to survive as too much essential minerals, especially potassium, have leached out in his urine. Without potassium, his heart could have stopped beating and that would mean the end of him. So, be careful! Drink enough water but not too much. Too much of a good thing can be, well, too much.

So those we sweat too much like me should include some dehydration salts in their water. However, I have read that sports drinks, those isotonic drinks may not be the best drink for us. What is suggested is sea salt or Himalayan salt. (I have been trying Himalayan salt but to this day I have yet to know how genuine are the Himalayan salts I have bought. I take it but cautiously. I am still reading up on it and hoping to find a brand in Malaysia which provides genuine Himalayan salt.) Sea salt and Himalayan salt are the natural salts found in the sea or in the Himalayans and are not processed like our white table salt.

Thus far, sweating has helped my body remove most of the dissolved toxic substances and through this I have remained healthy. Thank god for that. Of course, sweating is not the only way and so I will be returning to this removal of toxins in a future posting.

I love the rain.

This morning I woke up to rain-drops pattering on my roof and the window panes. It must have been windy too. As usual I put on my track bottoms and T-shirt for my trek up the H- hill at Taman Semarak as I noticed that the rain was gradually slowing down.

By the time I reached the foothill there was just a drizzle. however, that was sufficient to discourage a good number of trekkers. As I went up I met a guy who would still go up even if it rains, sheltering himself with an umbrella. He is a young man, possibly in his early forties. The first time he saw me going up in the rain without a raincoat or an umbrella, he was amazed at my refusal to use an umbrella. Then, i told him that I love walking in the rain as i have always done in my childhood days. So, there are times he would chide me for having no rain to enjoy with whenever the sky is clear.

I love the rain as I have a body which heats up pretty easily, thus helping to bring on the sweat fast and furious. You know, there are advantages as well as disadvantages when it comes to having a heat-boiler which is too efficient. During my younger days, sweating easily during courting times can be embarrassing. Who would like to hug someone as sweaty and wet as I am. Well, only those who truly love me, of course! So, I can spot the pretenders anytime. Still it is a disadvantage even for a lovable creature like me. As for the advantages, I have to leave it for another time.

Right! Back to the rain. Another thing good about the rain is its washing away all the dirt on our roads and paths. Besides that as it pours down, it cleans the air of dust and floating particles that could be toxic. Thinking of toxic substances, its the chemical fumes and particles in the air which give us acid rain. With cleaner air, our lungs have a better chance to rid itself of stale and toxic substance that we inadvertently suck in as we breathe.

Thinking of acid rain, I remember reading about a time when there was no chemicals in the air to cause acid rain, when rain contains something good for the plants and us, a mild dose of hydrogen peroxide which helps gives plants and us more oxygen in the air we breathe. In fact, when i read that, how i wished I could stretch out my tongue to take in some drops of rain that is not acidic, that contains hydrogen peroxide. That is now just a wish.

With cleaner air and a cooler morning, the hill is certainly a more welcoming place to me and my friends. With such an atmosphere, we are also more relaxed and that is an excellent start to any day. So, it is not difficult to understand why i love the rain, pouring down on my body, cooling it, sweeping along with it all my tensions and whatever nagging thoughts that remain. Rain is indeed so refreshing to our body. It is one of the reasons God gave us rain.

Oh, yes! I almost forget that I have always gone into the rain for another reason. To this day I have hardly suffered from a cold. Even if a cold did come along, it was just for a couple of hours. With the coming of the sun, the cold disappears. Well, that's how it is with me. Thank God for that. I believe it is also because of the immunity that i have cultivated from being constantly exposed to the rain. It is with this understanding, that I got my children to play in the rain when they were at the age of three and four, possibly five. And they are just as immune against the rain to this day. (I have already written about them being allowed to play in the rain in a much earlier post.)

Half-way to Gunung Jerai? Destination: a waterfall.

First a walk across a wide expanse of lovely flowers.


Then, its uphill around trees and palms.



Until we reach a stream.


And we wondered at some of the beauties in the area.


Even streams can come to a dead end- resulting in a pond.


Palms!


Wow! Did you see that! What?


Ferns!


Slow but steadily the water moves towards a waterfall.


Look! The water starts rushing down!


Wow! lots of pitcher plants here. These pitchers are an example of pitfall traps.


These pitcher plants trap insects for food.


Yes, these pitcher plants are carnivorous plants.


Lots of these plants here.


The humid, wet surroundings is suitable for these pitcher plants.


Come! Let's get down closer to the waterfall.


Here is the beginning of the waterfall.



Lovely greens!


And what lovely white 'lollipop' flowers are these?


A pitcher with water in it.


Certainly the right spot for pitchers to thrive.


And finally here's the waterfall. Look at that magnificent rock!


Listen to the water falling down to a lower level.





And back down the slopes to a rocky river down below.


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It was a last minute decision to go to Gunung Jerai at at least part of the way up to a waterfall, as it was already late and we could only get to meet after half past one in the afternoon.

From Sungai Petani we set out to Gurun and at a spot where we were near the mountain, we started. We reached a house, went into the compound and beyond the compound was the vast stretch of flowers on the ground. (The first picture.) From then on it was up slopes with tall trees and some kind of palm along the way.

Eventually we reached a stream with some exotic plants which could only be seen nearly flowing water at the edge of the stream. The rocks at the waterfall were a beautiful sight with its interesting layers. As it was past four o'clock by the time we had explored the area, we decided to retrace our steps as we did not wish to be lost in the darkness.

We returned to our vehicle at about six o'clock, had a drink and some snacks before we headed back after our enjoyable trip and companionship. From the photos in this posting, the waterfall, its fast flowing water and the plants found there were a delight to watch and examine.

Silence may be golden but communication is essential.

Silence is golden as I have shown in two previous postings but good communication is necessary to convey our needs, desires and thoughts to fellow humans.There are many ways we can communicate. There is body language, sign language and verbal language. So, although there are times when we need to be silent and attentive to gain knowledge and gather opinions, we still need to utter something. However, as i have said before, there ought to be no verbal onslaught on the listeners. There should be communication and that means a two-way traffic or exchange of thoughts, ideas and knowledge.

Silence itself may lead us nowhere if no one starts a conversation. The person who intends to learn something may start with a question. Questioning is one of the best means to start a communication. It could be: Can I help you? Is there anything I can do for you? Where do you wish to go? Are you from this area? Where are you from? Can you tell me how this is done? Can you show me the way to .....? Such questions can lead to some explanation or talk on something. In fact, some of the friends I have made started with one of such questions.

Other than starting a conversation, words are necessary to convey our intentions and hopes correctly. Being able to do that in important in our daily lives as we go about our work and social circles. Of course, some people need to be more excellent at communication than others; a salesman, more than most people; would certainly need to be able to convince people with words.

When it comes to communication, no matter what the language, vocabulary and correct expressions are important to give the right messages to the people concerned. So how well we express ourselves depend upon our language proficiency. With better language proficiency, a person will have greater confidence to approach another fellow human. Definitely, with better language skills, there will be lesser miscommunication leading to improved understanding of any communication.

So, talk is required as much as silence in our lives. It is the extremes that we have to watch out for. Talk when necessary and be silent when desirable to do so. In everything there ought to be a middle way.

How much food is enough?

There was a time in my youth when I would have a heavy breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. Of course, i was quite hefty then, weighing something like 130 lbs for a five feet, five inches. Perhaps, that was due to the muscles on my body as I did take up body-building. Although I was thick, a little stout but never fat.

In fact I did try to put on a little once with about eight to ten eggs as well as a plate of noodles for a short period of a month but it got me nowhere. In a way i was lucky that it did not change my body shape as some lovely ladies did mention that I ought to wear T-shirts more often as it emphasises my good shape. Well, like most youngster I was obviously a little egoistic.

Perhaps because of my active life-style, no matter how much i eat, my weight always creeps back to 120 pounds. Light and somewhat slim perhaps but certainly healthy. Realising how important health was, I actually reduce my meals by one; no more supper.

How often I have read that as one grows older, the body gets fatter. With me, that is not the truth at all. In fact I got slimmer! I got so much thinner that some friends even asked me whether I was facing a health problem. This brought me to the realisation that i could possibly be eating too little; perhaps insufficient food. so, I went to two-times breakfast, a heavy lunch and dinner as well as a light supper. My weight stabilised somewhat although my waist remained one inch smaller than usual.

So how much is enough? Perhaps, I have been doing too much exercise, as one hill companion suggested. This could be true as exercise burns up calories and even more calories as the muscles continue stretching and twitching the whole day even when resting. I also produce bodily heat a little too easily and this could burn some calories too.

To ensure I am perfectly alright I checked and discovered I had no diabetes or heart problems to worry about. Since that put my mind to rest, I continue eating everything that I could enjoy besides taking apple cider vinegar, coconut oil and olive oil. So much oil, yet as slim as any girl would want to be.

So I believe I am just blessed. As someone once said, "You must be doing all the right things." So the question of 'how much is enough?' does not arise. It depends upon one's life-style, one's activities and one's metabolism. Everyone of us is different. And that is why no one diet or slimming programme works for everybody. If you come to me, I would look into your life-style, your activities and your metabolism before I make any recommendations. You can do the same for yourself. Think about that, my friend.

Knowledge comes with listening.

As I have written some time ago,I had the problem of inferiority complex very early in life. I knew it was a problem. Realisation helped me to find ways and means to overcome it. In a way I am thankful that it was once my problem for without it I could never be the strong and healthy individual I grow up to be. I would never have gone further to learn more about life than I have. I would never have listened for the gems of knowledge which has helped me to progress to this stage of my life if I had not been born with health problems and an inferiority complex. I faced my problems and won.

One of the things I discovered in searching for knowledge is the need for listening. When I listened I get to learn other people's knowledge and experiences. It is similar to knowledge from books. When we read, we also listen to what the writer has to say. You will be surprised at how much a person is willing to tell you if he believes you are really interested. I have learned so many things through listening.

Through listening, we not only learn we become more popular as many people have stories to tell and therefore need ears to listen to them. The are thankful to have appreciative listeners. So when people need to express their needs and sorrows, they need good listeners.

However, the most important part about the art of listening is the acquiring of knowledge and better understanding of more complicated subjects. Just as the other day when a friend and I were at the summit of Gunung Jerai, I was all ears when a man came to talk to me as I pulled and flicked off the numerous leeches in my socks and shoes. If I had not listened, I would not have been able to have him explain and talk about how leeches could be removed and killed so easily. Had I not listened intently, he would most probably not have revealed how I could prevent leeches from coming near in future. And this morning, through listening, I heard about the soaking of socks in salt solution to prevent leeches from attacking. But then, with the salt solution, you would have to wear wet socks.

The importance of listening was also confirmed by an insurance salesman who went with me during my twenties to a seminar by Mr. Lawrence Chan. He was disappointed with some participants at the seminar who are more eager to voice their own experiences than to listen to Lawrence Chan's gems. He said that we paid to listen to the nuggets of experience and knowledge, not to listen to ourselves talk. Every minute we waste on talking cost us possibly a minute of precious advice or understanding. So if we talk away an hour each day of the five day seminar, we lost five hours of nuggets. Now, there is a lot of truth in that.

See, at the age of sixty-four I am still learning by listening. I hope my mind will remain sharp enough to digest all the knowledge I am able to obtain for many more years through books and listening.

Listening is more important than talking.

This morning, at the hill, Grace told me about the couple who would talk and talk practically non-stop, giving her no opportunity at all to comment on the topic. Well, it was a one-way communication and she was forced to be the listener.

Of course, it is not bad to be a listener. In fact, very early in my life, while journeying three hundred and something miles to Kuala Lumpur to attend the motivation seminar by Lawrence Chan, I learned the importance of listening well.

However, today i wish to concentrate on this problem of some people who could get them into problems with others. It is the strong desire to talk, talk and talk, sometimes repeating the information already given previously. When something is repeated, the listener gets bored. So the talker is boring to his friends. Nobody would want that, I believe. Yet, it is an unconscious urge to listen to the person's own voice and also prove that he is an authority on the topic.

What the speaker does not realise is that when someone dominates too much and most of the things are the same old stories, everyone already knows them and are not willing to ache their ears having to tolerate the boring sounds emitting from the source. This is especially so when the listeners are given no opportunity to take part of the conversation.

It is not just the repetition that we dislike. In order for such people to last a long time talking endlessly, they put in the smallest uninteresting detail into their talk, explaining extensively what is sometimes so obvious, expected and certain.

And what is the result? As expected, most people would avoid such a talker. Excuses would quickly be given to avoid or escape from further verbal torture. Only a very few would tolerate the person and even those few would complain and at the earliest moment disappear from the scene.

I have made a study of such people. I have found that the problem arises from some causes. One of them is a habit copied from the family members. Yes, parents who talk too much or refuses to listen to other people's points of view have a great influence on their children who imitates them and become just like them. So parents ought to be careful not to turn into such long-winded, one-sided talkers.

And old people, me included, have that tendency to elaborate more than others. Especially so when the children have been away for some time and the desire to chat with them is so great. Right! So what can be done. We ought to realise our long-winded talking and do something about it. Realisation is the beginning of change. When we realise something has become undesirable, then we change and learn to allow others to voice their thoughts and help to have an interchange of feeling and ideas rather than to have a lecturer and his/her listeners.

And there are those who needs appreciation or a raise in self-esteem. These need to show others how much they know, to impress others with their knowledge. Of course, self-esteem is important to all of us. So is being appreciated. However, this can still be done without having to dominate so much as to prevent others having their say.

Eventually, the choice is our own. To know who we are, to see if we are the ones who lecture all the way and whether we feel everything is fine. Then, if we find that we do dominate, we must choose whether to change or not. Change is not difficult as realisation helps pave the way to such a change. This part is important as I have come across people who cannot see any problem with their ways despite someone pointing it out to them. Well, if they are happy as they are, we ought to wish them all the best for eventually everyone is the master of his/her own fate.

Humans create most of the problems.

At one point in my life, if anyone were to say that humans are the ones who create the most trouble, I would have protested. But then, with more experience of life, I have to admit that there is truth in it.

There was a time, I studied part of spiritual exorcism through an Indian priest. It first started with meditation, then awakening of the third eye and then exorcism. Through my experiences and this guru's teaching about the spirit world, I had to admit that spirits do not harm people. It is evil people who use those spirits to harm others, just as religion is for the good of man kind but people use or abuse religion for their own selfish ends.

When I realised how evil most of these spiritual masters are I decided not to continue with the study. I did not wish to one day have to tangle with such type of people even though it is to untangle whatever mischief they have done.

And today, I read about a married couple who abused their Indonesian maid so badly that the poor maid died. How the poor lady must have suffered before she found relief in death. What kind of horrible monsters those people were! Someone commented that they were worst than animals. Please, the next time we talk of such human monsters, do not drag the good name of animals into the thought. Animals are never that bad. Animals kill only because they felt threatened or they needed food for survival. They never kill to exert power over others. Humans are the ones who crave for power and perform the world's most horrendous deeds to gain it.

Perhaps that is the reason God gave humans brains so that, hopefully, with such brains they could teach morals and understand that God is always watching whatever is being done. That is also the reason humans, more than any other creature on earth, need God. If not for the presence of God and the teaching of morals, the conscience would be blunted and easily turn humans to monsters such as the above mentioned couple and those known in history.

This weakness of humans to create problems exists to this very day among the ordinary people as well as people in authority and politics. It exists as long as there is inferiority complex and the need to feel power over others is present.
It is a human tragedy that such a creation which possess brains and the ability to think so well can descend so low, indicating an inability to use their brains correctly. And so, with this weakness, there will always be conflicts, cruelty and exploitation of others, even though the holy book of every religion tells us that all living things are His creations and therefore are to be respected if it is just to show respect and love for Him.

A trek up Gunung Jerai from Merbok.

That's the archeology museum in the background


And here's the map at the parking lot showing the route to Gunung Jerai, Kedah, Malaysia.


This is the river we had to cross to the starting point of our trek.





The starting point.


A bridge over that river.


My partner walking into a rubber estate.


Liquid rubber flowing into a cup at the rubber estate.



A living beauty! A little one but full of grit and strength. Certainly adventurous!


We met one of the inhabitants of the jungle.



This is a part of the way to the top.



Art through the light drawn through the trees onto the floor of the jungle.


As we reached the higher parts, light came shining through.


The fantastic view at one part near the summit.




From the jungle into a man-made road about a kilometre from the summit.


And here's a little stream just outside the jungle.


Here is the directions to a number of place about a kilometre from the summit where there are chalets and a dining place as well as a number of attractive planted areas.


This is the Telaga Tok Sheikh.(Telaga means 'well' Tok Sheikh is the name of a person.)


Another part of the Telaga Tok Sheikh.


Here is a spider. Dangerous? Well, harm it not and it will never harm you.


The entrance to Padang Tok Sheikh.


Is this a snake i see on the road? But then, looking at the scales, it cannot be.


This is what i first thought is known as Batu Kapal which means 'Stone ship', but I am told that it is not. According to the friend Batu Kapal is a huge rock very near to Telaga Tok sheikh.


What a beauty! An orchid!


Here's a red beauty!


Have you seen a fern like this!


On Saturday, 11th of June, a friend and I decided to trek up Gunung Jerai (Jerai Mountain) from the archeology museum at Merbok, Kedah - a trek which was approximately 13 kilometres to the top - a route known as 'Jejak Warisan'.

We reached Merbok at eight in the morning and from there crossed a river to a path. Soon we came to a fork in the path and here we chose what appeared to be the more often used path which turned out to be the wrong path resulting in us reaching a rubber estate. Here we saw some campers. We had to retrace our steps and took the path on our right. Then we still had to look for the right way up and eventually found it across the river further up from where we started.

Fortunately for us, since then there was this yellow strip of plastic sign that led us all the way to the top. At certain parts of the way it was fairly steep and one of these parts took its toll on my thigh muscles. The muscles started to cramp and that slowed us a lot. My partner had this liquid known as 'Yoko Yoko' which I applied to the painful muscles. Initially, the pain and cramping became worse but after a short while the pain subsided and it was bearable enough to continue. I also discovered that a stick did help to take the weight off the legs and prevented further cramps.

The jungle was beautiful with its many beauties, some of which I photographed to enjoy at a later date. It was up and down three, or perhaps four, hills before we reached the summit of the mountain. About one kilometre before the summit we exited the jungle onto a tar road.

It was a wonderful trek of calm greenery with great huge trees and a few orchids attached to their trunks which was only spoiled by the wriggly leeches which constantly attacked us all the way to the tarred road. There were so many of those leeches that we had to forgo stopping at half past twelve although we were really hungry then. The sight of the leeches on the floor of the jungle was sufficient to drive us on. At the top, I removed my bloodied socks and shoes to find more than thirty of those fat well-fed creatures, some of them still stuck to my feet. I had certainly donated a good quantity of my blood to them. That was alright except that at the time of writing this i am still suffering the itch that their vampire-type punctures have left behind. In fact my bed-sheet and floor was stained with my blood that Saturday evening and night. My feet were swollen the next morning as a result of my scratching the whole night.

Nevertheless, it was an unforgettable experience for me. Never had I had so many guests in for dinner at my feet. And the itch they left behind will certainly be remember always. And there was a record 29 tiny punctures in my feet! Well, that part of the thrill of challenging oneself on a trek up a mountain. At the end of it, I could tell myself that I made it in five and a half hours, discovered my weaknesses which I intend to overcome as soon as possible and enjoyed the scenery from the jungle and the top of a mountain. That's great for this sixty-four year old - old in number but young in spirit and flesh.

How to prevent leeches from getting to you.

Those who trek or climb hills or mountains have certainly come across tiny, wriggly creatures which need blood to survive. We call them leeches. I have nothing against them sucking some of my blood for God created them to survive on it. However, what i detest most is the itch that I have to suffer for more than a week each time they dig into my legs or feet for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The itch is so annoying as it prevents me from a good night's rest for so many nights. Once I even had to seek antiseptic as the bite became infected. It left a big scar which I have to bear to this day.

Of course, there are always good intentions from people who notice the leeches sticking to my feet. First, there was the suggestion of using a mosquito spray onto the shoes. I did it. Sometimes, or was it just luck, it seemed to work but time prove it not effective.

Then, the other day I went up Gunung Jerai (Jerai Mountain)and was told by my trekking partner to use soap. So I rubbed soap onto my shoes, socks and my pants. It was instantly proved useless against the hundreds, perhaps, thousands, we met all the way up the hill during our five and a half hour trek. All the way we had to stop to pull them off our socks and legs. We dared not remove our shoes to search for those which had managed to slip into our shoes to our soles as the ground was obviously full of them.

Eventually, when we reached the top of that mountain. I removed my socks and discovered not less than twenty of those big, fat, evidently full-of-blood leeches.
My sockes were red with my blood and punctures and more than fifteen tiny punctures on each foot were still bleeding. There was just no way I could stop the bleeding then. So, I merely removed them and put my sock back onto my feet.

Then, the guy who plies the tarred route up and down Gunung Jerai came over to have a look at the great number of leeches I had removed from my feet and shoes. (There are many route up this mountain. There are many jungle paths but one of them is the tarred road which allows cars, vans and jeeps to access the top of this mountain.)He told us that we should have used tobacco juice to avoid attacks by leeches. He demonstrated how we could mix some tobacco, which he had, with some water. The resultant juice was squeezed onto the leeches and after just a few seconds of struggling, they were dead. (Look at the video above.)

From him we learned that we could soak our shoes, socks and the lower part of our pants into tobacco juice before drying them the day before using them for such a trek. The smell of it would be sufficient to drive those blood thirsty breatures away. He should know for he was a soldier who had to move and stay in the jungle at times. So, there you are, the way to a leech-free trek.