INTERVIEW | LUMEN 13
While Krison feels most at home at the potter ’ s wheel , Ms Frida Gaya Ho , on the other hand , prefers the challenges thrown at her by the outside world and is more likely to be found with mud on her boots than clay in her hands .
While this petite English teacher has trekked across landscapes on several continents , it is the topography of her native Singapore that intrigues her most of all . “ Savouring the spotted landscape of my country makes my heart swell with pride . At the same time , I feel an aching , knowing that something of what I know now might later shift its shape or take on an entirely different form .”
Frida takes the time to contemplate this tension when exploring the parks and wetlands of this tropical nation . She continues , “ If the French have the flâneur , a well-dressed wanderer constantly at the intersection of public life and private contemplation , making observations about the urban landscape while walking through streets , what could be the Singaporean equivalent ? Given our local temperatures of hot and hotter , the Singaporean travelling paved pathways and joining processions into our National Parks is unlikely to be coated and hatted like the flâneur . I ’ d like to think , however , that we ’ d be no stranger to encounters with the lay of the land , where we situate ourselves in this space , and how we think of ourselves in relation to a national landscape and the narratives that come along with it .” For those of us familiar with her work at SJI , these ruminations will be no surprise .
So what recommendations does Frida have for those of us less well versed in the delights of the Singaporean trekking scene ? Her response is typically creative : “ I highly recommend walking without any obligation to keep to a route .” And when is she most likely to be found tramping through the rainforest , traversing rolling hills or enjoying the more manicured scenery of a local park ? Again her response is counter-intuitive , as she has “ found it refreshing to walk as I wish when I ’ m most weary ” and that this approach “ has come to represent a form of freedom for me ( or an escape , if I ’ m less idealistic with my opinion ).”
One of her most challenging walking holidays was undertaken in the United Kingdom . Frida explains that the route “ spans 130km across Kirkby Stephen , known for its carved stone of the Bound Devil Loki , cuts through the dreamy North Yorkshire Moors , and comes to an end at the craggy Robin Hood ’ s Bay , where the steep inclines very much echo
the intensity of the start of the trail .” This route , known as Wainwright ’ s Coast to Coast West trail , with its “ peat bogs scattered across the inclined walking path ”, was “ nearly impossible to navigate without a compass ”. There were no checkpoints and iconic brown signs , as found on the 36km Singaporean version of the Coast-to-Coast Trail ! In the true spirit of the explorer , however , Frida and her husband soon found that “ deviations from the route led us to life-sized pockets in other people ’ s histories , such as an unnamed wooden seat on our way to our first summit . It was as much daunting in its danger as it was breath-taking in its beauty .” So how does she replicate such an experience in Singapore ? At this point , she develops her theme of spontaneity , and how “ a completely unplanned , random ramble on any given afternoon is quite like the way the mind works sometimes , the way it wanders at will and may reach no resolution even when we walk .”
Robin Hood ’ s Bay , UK