Ying’s Work On Her Self

Hi everyone! I’m Ying, one of the curious people who participated in the WOTS programme and later in WOR (currently renamed as The First Arena to The Fifth Arena). I’ve been travelling for over 7 months now, and more recently, I spent 3 weeks journeying to and from the world’s largest city accessible only by flight or boat. I chose to make the trip by cargo boat.

I wanted to share some reflections on my journey across the Amazon river—moments that have stayed with me and reminded me a lot about concepts and ideas I had exchanged during my time with Split.

During this time while I was onboard, I was reminded of what Split often encouraged us to do.

“Do it as though it is for the first time.”

This idea was something we emphasised a lot during my time with Split, and it’s stayed with me in my interactions with people and in my daily routines, more prominently now while I am on the road. On the cargo ship, for example, the sight of the Milky Way stretching across the Amazon sky was a nightly event. At first, everyone would gather on the top deck to marvel at the stars, but after a few days, the novelty wore off for many. I made a conscious effort to see the stars as if for the first time each night, which kept the experience alive. I’ve now seen shooting stars from Antarctica, the deserts of Chile, and the various sights during my treks through the Andes, but with this idea in mind, I am very thankful to have been able to experience the nightly activity of marvelling at the Milky Way across the Amazon sky.

The unpredictability of travel also taught me to savour each moment, especially in my interactions with others. The return boat journey from the Amazon was supposed to take 8 days but ended up taking 12. Each night, I’d lie in my hammock, uncertain of when we’d reach the mainland, and I’d take time to appreciate the simple conversations I had with the crew and fellow travellers. The meals were basic—plantains, rice, and occasionally a small piece of chicken or fish. When the crew had to fish for our meals because the protein source ran out, we ended up eating catfish for nearly every meal after day 5. I found myself enjoying the shared experience with those around me, as we all made the best of the situation together, but that was not the case for others around the table whose faces turned when they found out it was fish again.

Letting go was another concept highlighted a lot during this trip, especially when it came to my expectations of how things should be. On my first trip into the Amazon jungle, I was lucky enough to leave my hostel with three new friends and found a boat departing the same day with eight other backpackers onboard. That week was filled with simple joys—playing card games, sharing stories, and indulging in mandarins and bananas from the cargo. On our second-to-last day, a poacher came aboard with a captive baby monkey. After much moral debate, we "kidnapped" the monkey with the help of a kitchen lady and eventually paid the poacher to take the monkey, whom we named Mau. Two of the travellers I made friends with onboard decided to disembark a day early on another town to bring Mau to a sanctuary where he could be rehabilitated and released back into the wild.

As I continued my journey, I realised that holding on too tightly to past experiences or expecting every moment to be extraordinary can prevent you from fully engaging with what’s happening right now. When deciding whether to fly back to civilization or take another boat ride, I initially hesitated, thinking I might never experience anything like that first week again. But in the end, the two-week boat journey back turned out to be just as meaningful. I connected with local friends, learned to fish for my own lunch, and found new stories to share. By letting go of my expectations, I was able to embrace the everyday interactions and connections that truly made the journey special through the monotony of the boat ride.

At Split, we use theatre-making processes, in-depth discussions, movement, and play to help participants to craft their unique places in society. Ying’s journey has been really inspiring for all of us!

Interested to find out more about how you can similarly live a life of focus, intentionality, and of “letting go”? Continue reading our blog to find out more about our upcoming movement and play sessions in Sept 2024!