My weekends in the countryside

By Jasmine Sim (4 Setia) 2012

Sometimes during the weekends, my family and I would make a trip out of the city to the countryside. We always travel to Lundu, because the journey takes only one hour and our family owns a summer home there. We would spend a day there to relax and unwind, and to escape the hustle and bustle of the city. Lundu has a small town with no Internet connection, but I love it. The place has more trees than the city, and the air is cool and refreshing. Our summer house is exactly five kilometres away from town and five kilometres away from the nearest beach. Our summer home has many fruit trees, especially durian trees, which I avoid during harvest season. My mother plants many flowering plants around the place, so we always have plenty of gardening to do. I always help my mother with trimming the plants and raking the leaves, but I am always careful, because I have seen pretty large spiders and centipedes crawling around. The area used to be part of a jungle until my father bought the land and turned it into a summer home. After the gardening was done, I would go to a little stream that runs through the land and submerges into its crystal clear waters. The water is blissfully cool and sweet, as it comes from the mountains. After swimming for some time, I would grab a bucket and a net to catch tiny fish that are no bigger than my little finger. The water is so clear that I can see the river bed, and that makes it easy for me to catch a couple of fish. Occasionally, I can catch a prawn or crab. I never take the fish back home, since they will die in a few days, a lesson I learnt the hard way. On rare occasions, my father would take me to a beach called Pandan Beach. It is a beach filled with coconut trees loaded down with coconuts, just waiting to drop. I am always careful when I walk under the trees. On the beach, I like to walk barefooted on the warm sand, watching the waves crash onto the sand. I do not like to swim in seawater, so I would just walk along the beach, chasing tiny crabs that cross my path. After walking, I would go to a little stall and buy an ice cream, especially on a hot day. For dinner, we would go to a restaurant not far from town. We know the owner of the restaurant well and we like the food there. We always order their signature dishes such as fried wild boar, jungle vegetables fried with garlic and when they have it, fried terrapin. My

favourite dish is the sea cucumber soup, and usually my parents would order it especially for me. The food is excellent, and it is not too pricey. Dinner there is also an opportunity for our family to talk and bond with each other. During the journey home at night, I like to look out of the window and watch the sky, as it would be full of stars, much more than you could see in the city. Once on a recent trip, I spotted the Crux, which is also known as the Southern Cross, and Orion, The Hunter. I think that it is absolutely amazing how the people of ancient times used constellations to navigate the seas and keep track of the seasons. The night sky looked like someone from above had thrown glitter all over it. To me, that sight was magical and filled me with awe. I like spending the weekends in the countryside, even though it means getting bitten by numerous mosquitoes and not having any access to the Internet, because that is the time when I can get away from the busy city and temporarily forget all my worries, as well as getting to know my parents better. I am very glad and thankful that we can always spend our weekends in the countryside.