Without a job and almost broke, I couldn’t afford to go on an extended grad trip like some university grads do. Looking through updates on Facebook, I was envious to see friends in all kinds of exotic holiday destinations enjoying themselves and taking a well-deserved break. So when some friends asked me along for a short weekend trip to neighbouring Malaysia, I seized upon the opportunity. A quick weekend getaway wouldn’t hurt right? Or so I thought.

So one fine June weekend, we took a trip to Kota Kinabalu, a sleepy town off the coast of Borneo famous for its seafood. But a lot of tourists flock there for another purpose – Mount Kinabalu, the highest point in Southeast Asia accessible to the general population – the reason why we made the trip too. Certainly, climbing a mountain isn’t going to be a walk in the park but being so commercialized meant that even 70, 80-year-olds could make the summit.

Honestly, the climb itself wasn’t as physically demanding as I thought it’d be, at least in the day. With backpacks weighing in at 6 to 8 kg, and rented hiking poles (best investment), we made our way up to Pendant Hut, our resting point for the night, comfortably. Although I puked a couple of times on the way, I put it down to the effects of motion sickness after a 2-hour ride to the national park from our hostel.

On reaching Pendant Hut, it quickly became apparent that this wasn’t the case. The feeling of nausea grew more intense as I went into continuous vomiting fits perhaps from the dull but inconspicuous headache. It didn’t help that all I had for lunch (and dinner subsequently) that day was an apple and that the accommodation was blistering cold due to a lack of heating. After showering with warm water siphoned from the hot water dispenser, I popped some paracetamol and hit the sack.

Night set in and before long, it was time to for us to make the summit attempt. Fortunately, I felt much better than in the day and decided to continue with the climb. So in the early hours of the night, we traversed rocky steps and steep granite slopes to make the final ascent to the summit. It was not so much physically taxing as it was mentally draining. The thin air made us pant with every few steps while some sections were technical enough to force us to go on all fours.

At some point of time, I thought about throwing in the towel and heading back to the accommodation because I felt out of breath and suffered tired arms from all that hoisting. But the feeling quickly passed as I saw lights in the distance and over the hill, the outline of summit against the moonlight; I was close. I glanced back and found the other climbers closing in too. That urged me to press on with my summit attempt even though I was gasping for breath.

With tremendous efforts, I eventually stepped foot atop the mountain just before sunrise. The glowing orange tint on the horizon and the sun rays breaking through the cloud cover were beautiful sights to behold. The trip up, however, was lonely. In my haste to make it to the summit, I left my friends behind in the dark. And it wasn’t just that. I was left exhausted and cold as the chilly winds pierced through what little coldwear I have on.

After watching the sunrise, I began my descent. I struggled though it was supposedly less strenuous. And just like the day before, the feeling of nausea quickly overcame me and with it, an uncontrollable urge to throw up. It was certainly a challenge and a battle of man against nature as I forged on. Thankfully, halfway down the summit, I was reunited with my friends and the mountain guide. He took my backpack as I trudged carefully down the trail towards Pendant Hut.

Back at the hut, I popped some paracetamol to relieve the throbbing headache and got some rest as the guide suggested we head down early in case I needed more time. My friends shared some of my heavier items as they sought to lighten my load. Surprisingly, from the moment I left the hut, I felt much better and breezed my way down; I ultimately retrieved my items from my friends and even my appetite returned. Of course, we made it down in good time.

In retrospect, I’m now sure that what contributed to the violent vomiting fits and loss of appetite was the altitude. While that cleared instantly once I descended to lower grounds, the other effects of the climb were longer-lasting. It took a week for muscle aches to pass over while the impact on my knees is still manifesting itself today. All in all, this grad trip was indeed memorable and one to remember for a long time. Painful? Yes, but definitely worth it.