A Skytrex Adventure!

“Dup dup..dup dup..” our hearts beat with anxiety as most of us did not know what to expect. It was the 19^th of May 2012 and EAP Malaysia had organized an outing for all of us! After weeks of discussing and organizing, the chosen destination was…. *drum rolls* Skytrex Adventure Park! When the venue was announced, some of us who happened to have a fear of heights thought that there was no way this was going to happen. But it did.

At 7am on that auspicious day, we gathered at our centre. Mixed feelings filled the air, from happiness, to anxious, to nervousness. We loaded canned drinks & snacks onto the bus, took our seats, and off we went! Laughter, camera flashes, and chatter filled the bus. In spite of my fear of heights, I felt it was going to be a good day! The journey took about 30-40 minutes till we passed a signboard that read, “Welcome to Bukit Cahaya”.

Upon arrival we gathered for a short warming-up session led by our very own captain, Caleb. Then we were told to collect our gloves, which didn’t fit very well for some unfortunately. After that, we were divided into our respective teams based on the challenge that we signed up for: Big Thrill Challenge and Extreme Challenge. When this was done, we went to collect our climbing and safety gear. I was in the Extreme Challenge group. *gulp*

We were given a briefing on safety and a demonstration on how to use our equipment. The equipment used includes a waist harness, a carabineer, and pulleys. We were reminded to always have a safety gear attached to a rope. It was so much fun to see our consultants Sien, Sha, & Yu Ying, along with our team trainer, Eccus doing such activities. It was *ahem* entertaining too! When each of us went through the first Flying Fox run, it got us excited to do more! Once we passed the training, we could then proceed to begin the Extreme Challenge.

The entire journey took about 2 hours to complete. There were ‘incidents’ which caused most of us to laugh so loud during the course. None of the 34 tasks were too strenuous but they did involve some physical strength, which was quite tough for those who don’t exercise regularly. Overall it was indeed an activity filled with joy, energy, and not to mention, sweat!

When everyone was done, we caught the shuttle bus from Bukit Cahaya to Bangsar. It was rather quiet journey compared to the one in the early morning. Most of us fell asleep or just had no more energy left to talk. 30 minutes later we reached our lunch venue in Bangsar, ‘The Smokehouse’. Thanks to Rachel, the entire first floor was booked just for us. What I think was a huge surprise for all of us was definitely the arrangement of seats. Each of us had place cards with our names printed on them at allocated seating. I wondered if there was any particular reason for this arrangement. I have yet to find the answer. Oh well.

Lunch was amazing! Our gorgeous Director, Jo, gave a short speech about our success on the recent Autism Walk and about Skytrex. She got representatives from each challenge to talk about their journey throughout their tasks. Caleb and Chloe represented the Extreme and Big Thrill challenges, respectively. After that, lunch was served. This was definitely the moment we were all looking forward to since morning.


During lunch, we got to know more about each other and our lives outside of work. I found out many interesting things about people that afternoon! Then Jo stood up again and announced that there were awards to be given. I for one had no idea what awards she was referring to at first! The first award category was for our new Intern Lead Therapists: Yen Chiew, Rachel, Xinny, Caleb, and yours truly. We are truly very grateful for this opportunity. Then the Service Award was given to a number of people for their years of service at EAP.  Some of these people include Thaya, Nisha, Xin Xin, Nisa, Jasmine, Yi Zhen, and Fern.

After that, we were entertained with a video made by Sarah. This video was a particularly special video. It was about the work we do at EAP. It was also to celebrate Teacher’s Day. There were moments highlighted in the clip, training sessions, team meetings, and the Autism Walk. Towards the end of the clip, we realised that we have indeed made so much difference to the lives of children at EAP. I couldn’t stop the tears coming from my eyes, as I have never thought of being a teacher. Now, teaching happens to be my passion.

In the end, we took a few group photos before making our way back to our bus and head back to the centre when we all bid “Goodbye” to each other, hoping that we wouldn’t have any body aches the next day.




Written by, 
Nur Sajidah (Emma), 
Lead Therapist, EAP Malaysia