Surprise, surprise. It has been quite a while since I have hiked. Honestly, it feels good to ditch school work at times as it can get quite dreadful.

Sundays have always been family days for me, so I ensure that I save the day for my family since we don’t get much time together on the weekdays. This week, we decide to visit Mei Ling (梅嶺) to see fireflies. The experience was quite splendid, I must say. Stepping into nature made me wonder why didn’t I appreciate mother earth more.

We went up to the mountains in the afternoon, had some tea while viewing the city from above, and went around the yard of the family who hosted us. I saw coffee beans for the first time and even tried tasting them! After peeling off the red shell, each fruit contains two white seeds that will be baked and known as the coffee bean we make coffee from. 
Around 6 pm, we began to hike upwards, as shown in the bottom left corner in the collage. The hike itself was actually not as bad as I imagined, but I really loved how refreshing and enjoyable it was. After staying home after so long, I started to appreciate the fresh air that I get to breathe every single day. Around 7 pm, fireflies began to slowly appear in the bushes. It was really a challenge to capture them through the lens, so the best I could do was taking a burst that showed some white dots amidst the dark–perhaps it’s time to take a photography class.

Anyway, the hike was around 5-6 km to and back. The only emotion that encapsulated me was somehow gratitude and serenity. Guess hiking and exercising in general can be so therapeutic without us noticing.