I remember my sons, who were then only ten and twelve years old, climbed Mount Kinabalu, South East Asia's highest mountain with their dad. Andre who was the younger boy did not make it to the summit because of altitude sickness. He was throwing up and had severe headache. However, Luc who managed to get to the top proudly showed off his colorful certificate.

Funny enough a man who has shown interest in me was promising me the world. I said that he must learn to climb trees if he loves cherries. He responded by saying that he would even climb Mt. Kinabalu for me. I was quite flattered but he later confessed that he would rather get there by helicopter. Ha ha.

However we cannot get there by helicopter. The service is only for emergencies . Somehow rather this conversation became a reality for me. Instead I took the challenge to climb it and I flew to Kota Kinabalu with Luc who was too eager to climb it for the second time.

We arrived in K.K at about noon from Singapore, checked into a two star hotel which was pleasant and centrally located. While looking out through the window from our room we caught a glimpse of the Malaysian tourism office. We hurried there to secure our booking for the following day. At the office the staff were certain that it was impossible to climb without prior booking since they were limited rooms up at Laban Rata rest house. However they directed us to the handling agent in another building and there we waited for our turn.

Luck was with us as they were 2 last minute cancellation. We made all the necessary arrangement for the trip with Sutera Sanctuary Lodges (LotG15 Ground floor, Wisma Sabah 88300 K. Kinabalu Sabah). We were so pleased especially for Luc or our four days trip would have been a flop.

 At 7am the next morning we were already at the bus station waiting for our mini bus to fill up with passengers. We arrived at the centre after a two-hour trip at a fare of only M$15 ringgit. I said to myself that this is going to be a big joke after having a peek at the peak of the mountain from below. What on earth! it is so high up and how is it possible to get there on foot! After registering for the accommodation up in Laban Rata (3273m) which is 6km upwards, our appointed guide Doina came to greet us and made us wear a tag around our neck. We jumped into a van that took us to Timpohon gate (4.5km away) and from that starting point we set off for the trail.

Doina was 45years old, storky with fat rounded calves. She advised me to go slow and easy. We took off with some other people and in no time there were out of sight. I was panting like a galloping horse and had to stop to catch my breath. Luc and Doina slowed down for me and were always by my side. I realised that the first km was really tough because my body was not adjusted to that kind of movement like climbing big steps on steep slopes. My heart was thumping so fast and my lungs were grasping for air. After hiking the first km I got the hang of it and I thought of nothing else but a step forward all the time no matter how hard or how often I needed to stop to catch my breath.

 Exotic plants and forest ferns that I had seen in books were everywhere along the trail. I caressed some wild orchids, even talked to giant elephant unfurling fern fronds and nicked a fern which I wore on my hair. I also come across a huge habitat of Nepentis Villosa (pitcher plant) filled with water. Some of them were lying on the ground and some were dangling from branches and tree trunks. The only birds I saw were tiny colorful sunbirds and many fat furry squirrels. They were scurrying up and down the branches scouting for a morsel from the climbers. Fortunately mosquitoes, creepy crawlies like snakes, amphibians in general were not in sight because they didn’t like the cool climate. I was so glad that no one was allowed to pick anything from the well kept park. It was a wonder how awe-inspiring that nature can exude so much positive energy in me to move forward. As we continued to ascend we met a lot of people who greeted us, encouraged us and also those who complained about the rain that was pouring down on them while on their way up on the previous day. The rain made the trail wet and slippery thus creating more obstacles on the way. We finally made it to Laban Rata rest house 5 hours later at 4pm.There we had an early dinner and then off to our bunker beds in a room shared by two other people. Every one was sound asleep by 8pm only to be woken up in our heavy slumber at 2am to be ready for our final 3 hours ascent to the summit which is known as 'Low's peak 4095m'. It was dark and the trail was mainly granite surface. Our only Chinese-made torchlight died on us and I fell into a rocky ditch. My left shoe come off and my pelvic bone and sheen hurt like hell. When I felt better I joined the rest of the people who had headlamps around their heads. I climbed all the way till I reached the summit at sunrise.