by Annelise Lachman (S1 2021)

             “The desert tells a different story every time one ventures on it.”  I would have begged to differ prior to my holiday in Jaipur.  I was not looking forward to a long walk through miles of sand.  My ideal holiday was a relaxing holiday at the beach, not an endless hike through the hot hills of Jaipur.  Yet, the trip was so meaningful that today, I would agree to the quote in a heartbeat.

             I recall the day we had planned for our trip just like it was yesterday.

             “How about Bali?” called out my sister.  My family and I were deciding where to spend our summer holiday.

             “I have an idea!  How about India?  We have always planned to go,” replied my father.  We all nodded and I thought to myself, India seemed nice and maybe I could visit Maia who had moved there last year.  We all decided that we were going to India and we quickly packed our bags over the next couple of days.

              On the flight, my parents urged us not to drink the water given by the airline.  However, my sister had turned a deaf ear on their advice and decided to drink the water they gave to quench her thirst.  Unbeknownst to her, it would cost her greatly.

              In a couple hours, we arrived in Jaipur.  We first decided to drop our bags at the hotel and visited the Pink City.  The Pink City was beautiful and we took many pictures.  Afterwards, we had lunch at the hotel and started to get ready for the night.  However, my sister started to say that she did not feel well.  My mother told her to shrug it off and that she will probably get better by the next day.  Afterwards, we all went into our rooms and fell asleep.

              The next day, I woke up dreading what was coming.  However, we soon found out that my sister was very sick so my mom decided to stay at the hotel with her.  My dad and I soon arrived at the venue where the guide instructed us to meet him.

              “Do you need a hand?” Someone called out to me as I tried to jump to board the camel for our twelve-hour long ride through the Jaipur desert.  I gazed upon the endless miles of orange sand and hills as I thought to myself, “I really wish my sister was here to share this with me.”

              Before I knew it, the camel started trudging through the sand and we were gaining speed.  I could feel the hot air smudge against my cheeks as we continued our journey.  We stopped at many places but the one that stayed close to my heart was the King’s Castle.  The group and I hopped off our camels and we made our way into the abandoned castle.  My dad and I stayed close together as the walls felt like an endless labyrinth.

              Eventually, the group stopped in the old kitchen as the guides started to cook us lunch.  I was shocked that it could actually be used.  Within minutes, I could smell the mint chicken and many other spices being mixed together to form a divine meal for all of us.  We all ate together as the guides shared stories about the castle; some were funny while others were scary.

              When we left the castle, we were on our way to a cave where we would spend the night.  Upon arrival, I could see the millions of stars above me.  They felt so close as though I could reach my hand out and touch them.  I gasped in awe as where I had lived in Hong Kong, seeing stars was a rare sighting.  We all snuggled in our sleeping bags and huddled close to each other as the temperatures dropped to below zero for the night.

              On our way back to the hotel, my father and I were very eager to tell my mother and my sister what had happened.  As we eagerly shared our stories, I felt sorry for my sister who could not try many exciting activities.  Nevertheless, seeing her eyes light up as we shared our stories and the numerous photographs we took was overall, I think, the most memorable part of my holiday.

 

Under Cognitus Academy’s writing programme, your child can write this well, too. Find out how your child can prepare for Continuous Writing in Paper 1 of PSLE English examinations today by clicking here.