Hiking @ Tai Tam Reservoirs

🎶 A-hiking we will go, a-hiking we will go 🎶

That was the song that I played in my head while I went hiking with my colleagues last November 7th, the Saturday before I headed back to the office after more than 3 months of working from home. 

Now, I’m not a fan of hiking, but my boss convinced me to join the group because she felt it would be good for me to talk to other people.

I did end up enjoying myself, though I did not immediately think that during the first couple hours which involved steadily climbing a paved but inclined path. Though the air was cool, the sun was out in full force, so it drained me. I was so out of breath that I felt like I wanted to die at several points. The view going up wasn’t even that great. 

Then, we reached the top and had a group picture taken by a couple of adorable old men who seemed like they were best bros having the time of their life.

From there, we descended, and then whoa, everything changed. This second part of the hike was more enjoyable not only because it was going down and not as tiring, but also because the views (and not the hike itself) were breathtaking.

I’ve seen reservoirs in Singapore, but none can hold a candle to this. That bridge scene reminds me of a scene from Harry Potter. So magical!

And my boss was right, it did do me good to talk to other people. I particularly enjoyed chatting with my Filipino colleagues Adrian and Mico, and Mico’s wife May.

Then when I showed my friends the above pic, a funny thing happened. Gelle and Joey recognized Mico and May. We had friends in common!

“I wanted to ask you if you knew Gelle, once you mentioned where you were from,” I laughed as I told May. “But I decided not to, because one usually wouldn’t.”

“Yeah, I thought about Gelle, too, when you said you came from Singapore,” May replied. “But I didn’t ask because with so many Pinoys in Singapore, what were the odds that you would know her?”

But apparently, the odds were in our favour.

“I’m really glad Mico brought me. He’s shy and would never initiate conversations,” May continued. “If I hadn’t joined, I might not have met you.”

I’m glad I let my boss convince me to go, even though this wasn’t my thing. Sometimes, it pays to step out of your comfort zone.

🎶 It’s a small world after all 🎶