Kem Kaizen - day 1 activities

Upon arriving at the camp, we had an intro to the place, then we were split into our groups to make out team banner. I was in team 3 and called our group OI. Members included kester, joel yeo, johnston, hannah, kaonn, sherilyn, darren, andre, caleb and me. We were given paint n brush to paint our banner but we hardly used the brushes. We just sprinkled all colours of paint oon the banner, and painted different parts of our body and make a print on the banner. After our banner was done we had lunch.

After lunch we prepared to go for some trekking down a stream. We first had to climb up the mountain. But just a few minutes after starting our journey, the hot sunny weather very suddenly changed and it started to rain heavily. A refreshing and cooling shower to repel the heat, but because of it we had to turn back. We sheltered in a hut and played the hand entangling game until the rain stopped.

So we went uphill for a distance until we reached an old WW2 bunker, then we went down a slope and into a stream. Then we walked along and inside the stream, all the way down. Then we made our way up again on another path up a steep slope until we reached a place almost as high as the clouds, where we can see down the mountain a vast green scenery. Then downhill again, where it started to rain again. We reached camp totally drenched. The water track was rough, with uneven depths at each part, shaky rocks, sudden plunges and sinking sand. The land track had thorny bushes, fallen trees, puddles of mud and lots of leeches that can cling on to u unknowingly until it bites. My first secessful bite was by a big one, and i had to endure it through the whole water track and thereafter.

Then until dinner thime nothing much happened.. except for seeing joycelyn propese to kester as part of truth and dare.
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At night we had the night walk. Just a walk through a very short path which leads back to the same place. But theres no light other than the moonlight, and dim lightsticks to show which way to go. A nice opportunity to get in close touch with nature and gaze at stars.
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Then it was time to wash up and sleep in that awful bunk, on those awful beds.

Kem Kaizen Overall review

Date: 14 - 16 march 2007, 9am - 4pm
Cost: $190 singapore dollars.
How can it be so expensive when everything there sucks? If i knew its like that its like that, i wouldnt have gone even if its free. I went because i was told the servers would be 'in charge' so i have to go. Ended up to be a lie.

Campsite
A cluster of huts and haphazard wooden houses. The 3 meeting areas are built above a reservoir. Bunks and a gathering room called a Dewan is located further uphill. Theres an area full of abstacle courses and stuff.. like monkey bar, improper bridges and ropes, along the reservior. The place is in close touch with nature, so u can easily find wildlife intruding the area. The owners keep cats and chickens, which run around and dirty the place with their droppings. The cats not only dirty the place, they disturb us by constantly mating, making loud noises in the process, and coming up to us, rubbing our feet and even going into the bunk and lick our shoes.

Bunks
The worst accomodation i ever had. I rather sleep in tents, pee in the bushes and bathe in the streams. The bunk was a room with a walkway and raised platforms on its the sides. On the platforms, beds were laid side by side from one end of the room to the other. There were 9 beds per platform. The room was very poorly ventilated. No aircon, only 2 ceiling fans. It had 2 windows beside the door, and another 1 on another side, but were always closed. So the room is always very stuffy and whatever stinks cant escape. The only source of air was the main door, which isnt even enough to supply air to the middle of the room, let alone the far end. The floor has a plastic waterproof flooring, same as the platforms. The room is on the same level as outside, so rainwater could flow in and flood the place, like what it was like when we first arrived. The whole floor was wet and full of sand and dirt. And theres no way to get rid of it. Even so, i dunno y, we were not allowed to wear footwear. We are forced to walk barefoot on the filthy floor. The beds were just thin old matresses on the concrete platform. They were smelly, some mouldy and had sand on them. The bedsheets were probably never changed. Its a surprise theres no bedbugs.

Toilets
As for the toilets, its so poorly built that a corner is always waterlogged. There were 5 cubicles, 3 for shower, 2 with a hole in the ground they call a squat toilet bowl. They had rusty metal doors which couldnt close properly. It is opposite the door and has only a 5cm tall opening above for ventilation. Hows the shit smell gonna escape like that?? The whole toilet is only lighted up by 1 small lightbulb. the 2 side cubicles are all dark at night. Theres no flush for the bowls, and no shower in the shower areas. only taps to fill pails to flush n bathe. And the worst part is, theres no drainage for the floor outside the cubicles, and the toilet is built an inch ABOVE the bunk. So whatever water comes out of the cubicles ends up in our sleeping area. These malays are really 'smart' architects.

Canteen
Very poor hygiene. actually i would rather sit on the road and eat my meals, if not for difficulty of holding the plates. The tables are covered by the same plastic things in our bunk floor. Swarms of houseflies can be seen on it, and they hover around us during meals, sucking at our food and drinks when we r unaware. The table is full of lizard and fly shit. Cats come n rub our legs and beg for food during meals. The chairs were made of plastic and were all stained and black. The tables were closely spaced, so theres no space for ppl to walk between them if ppl r sitting on the chairs. (the table is long, not round)

Meals
The food was quite ok. can match some lousier catered foods in singapore, though not a match for most hawker centre dishes. Had food like curry chicken, diffren types of veg, sotong balls, fish nuggets, chilli potato and tofu.

After meals we have to wash our own plates, cups and utensils. And the wash area were also very improper. The bar soap provided was like nothing i used before.. hard like chalk unless its soaked and hard to wash off. The sponges were dirty and smelly. Used for ages by everyone washing their stuff. Prolly alot of decaying food still stuck inside. So the cutlery were never clean enough for me and i have to double wash it before using.

If that doesnt sound bad enough, a real life experience should do the job.