The 2nd batch of Montfortian Giants came up to Perak on the morning of 27th June to emulate the adventurous spirit of their first wave peers by tackling the dark musty Gua Tempurung Cave, fast-flowing Sungei Kampar and vertigo-inducing trek up to an Orang Asli village.
Montfort Secondary teacher, Mr Jasbir Singh, who had stayed behind in Ipoh after the first frame to receive the second wave of Giants filed this report about the exploits of the second wavers as well reflecting the common qualities of the Giants of both the first and second wave:
"The night before our Giants arrived in Ipoh, the skies opened up over the capital of Perak. I was genuinely concerned that this sudden thunderstorm and lashing rain would pose an even greater challenge for the second wavers who would arrive on Friday morning.
The sustained rain spell would mean that the underground caving expedition to Gua Tempurung would be more challenging because the water levels would have risen dramatically in the underground caverns.
True enough, when I stepped into the underground cave on Friday morning with the second wave, it confirmed my worst fears.
The second wavers were caving in waters deeper than their peers from the first wave. But I was thoroughly impressed with the gung-ho attitude of the second-wave boys who were made up of mostly boys from Sec 3E3, 3E4, 3A1, 3A2, 3AA and 3AB as well as a smattering of lower secondary boys who were unable to join up in the first wave.
The heavy rains of Thursday night had also caused the Sungei Kampar to swell and was more fast-moving.
But once again our second wave Giants rose up to the challenge of the rafting in deeper and faster waters. I was lucky to be in the same raft as four boys from Sec 3A1 - Ben Matchap, Lewis Stokes, Stanley Lim and P Aravind. They were a fearless bunch, just like the first wave of rafters from Sec 3E1 and Sec 3E2 that I had hitched a ride with [Thanks to Danial, Saravanan and pals for assisting me down Sungei Kampar.
Now that both frames have successfully completed their TravelBug@Montfort a few things striked me as the co-facilitator of this trip {The other co-facilitators were Mr Faizan and Miss Xu Wanjing}
1) Our Giants Fear Nothing But Respect Everything Whilst In The Arms of Mother Nature - They tackled the caves, rapids and jungles with a gung-ho spirit but always respectful towards the force and awe-inspiring qualities of Mother Nature.
2) Our Giants Are Truly Man For Others - The stronger boys chipped in to help the weaker team-mates, constantly encouraging and giving a helping hand to their mates. Truly a Man For Others.
3) Our Giants Are True Gentlemen - As a teacher-in-charge for Rugby as well NPCC these past decade in three other schools, I have brought many boys abroad for more than 10 training tours and adventure expeditions ranging from New Zealand to Australia to Indonesia. This batch of Montfortian Giants in Perak were probably the most well-behaved and disciplined lot I have ever led. They kept to strict timings and their behaviour on-and-off the adventure sites were impeccable. To the extent that the tour organisers from NOMAD Adventures and Transinex were thoroughly impressed with our Gentlemen and said that they would love to work with Montfort again.
4) Our Giants Are True Nationalists - They looked out for their fellow Singaporeans whilst abroad always mindful that once abroad, we stand united as Singporeans irrespective of race, language or religion."
To cap a great week of adventure, TravelBug@Montfort is pleased to announce that all 29 boys and six teachers (Mr Tan Thor Cher, Mr Danny Ng, Mr Chris Foran, Miss Rashidah, Miss Xu Wanjing and Mr Jasbir Singh) from the second wave arrived home safely on Sunday night.
Many Thanks to Tour Organisers Transinex and NOMAD Adventures (Malaysia) for a smooth and safe 2nd Frame.
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