Taiwan Story: The Hot Spring

Contributed by President Toh Harnniann

It was meant to be a relaxing activity. There should not be any sound of screaming yelling or mourning. But those sound were everywhere.

We were told to bring swimming trunks or swimming suits to Taiwan as the Rotaractors of District 3500 had arranged a hot spring bath for us. (I was half relieved and half disappointed with the idea that there would not be any nude scene in the hot spring though).

It was scheduled on the very last day of our visit to Taiwan. How appropriate could that be? After 5 days ordeal of critical deprivation of sleep and severe exhaustion, a nice hot spring bath could not have sounded better.

When we reached there the air temperature was about 10 to 15 degree Celsius which would definitely freeze a naked body. After we got changed, we headed straight to the hot spring pool almost bare naked except the swimming trunks. The cold air almost killed me but our Taiwanese friends comforted me by saying that everything would be alright once we jumped into the hot pool. I did believe them.

The hot pool was 44 degree Celsius and I almost went into shock once my whole body was in the water. My heart felt terrible pain it nearly quitted on me. I stayed submerged in the boiling hot water, trying very hard to adapt to the sudden temperature change. Once I was slowly winning the battle with the hot water, our Taiwanese friends told us it was time to go into the cold water. What?! Have I heard you wrongly?

Like jumping into the hot pool was bad enough, wait till you try the cold one. It was freezing cold. But since everyone (including the ladies) slowly one by one gone into the cold pool, I was too macho to call it a quit. So I did what I had to do.

I stepped into the freezing cold water, I immediately felt a sensation that I will never forget. It was like millions of small needles poking into my skin. I went deeper but I stopped once the water level reached my waist: that was all a man could take at a time. I pulled myself out from the cold pool and I made a silly and just about fatal mistake: I jumped into the hot pool again thinking it will warm me up. But I felt worse.

I suddenly remembered how they cooked Hainanese Chicken Rice: repeatedly hot boil the chicken for few minutes then soak the chicken with cold water. My body was treated like raw chicken meat that day.

Be that as it may, my Taiwanese friends, I am not complaining. I know that was the way it supposed to be. It was a great experience for me who had to constantly endure the equatorial burning hot sun. I could not imagine anyone in Malaysia would want to jump into a pool of 44 degree Celsius after one whole day burning under the merciless sun. We have had our fair share of HOT POOL.