By Clara Chow

ON OUR family vacation on Bintan island, while my husband and son were having their afternoon nap, I snuck out of the room and joined the circus school.

After five minutes of practice, I was sent up the outdoor trapeze. Halfway up the 4m-long ladder (those narrow rungs are killer on bare feet), I ran out of breath and decided I'd been too hasty.

Too late. A nice young man hooked me up on a safety line, gave me a bar to hang on to, and sent me swooping and screaming, into thin air.

Welcome to Club Med, where one tagline goes: 'Have a taste of everything.'

I was having a taste of pure terror. Someone on the ground told me to tuck my legs over the bars and hang by my knees. I bellowed: "I can't!" After a few swings, I was instructed to drop down onto the safety net on the count of three. I flopped down without waiting for the count.

A man, aptly named Hiro, had been straining at the ropes to take my weight on the safety cables and had been yelling out instructions. He indicated a pole I could hug and slide down. I clumsily did so with relief, only to get pole burn on my arms.

Good-naturedly, Hiro stoked applause from onlookers, while I slunk off.

SPORTING ADVENTURES OF MANIC MUMMY

MY TRAPEZE act wasn't without its merits. My arm muscles felt stretched like they've never been before, and I went around for the rest of the day with a pleasant and relaxed gait.

A little background here: I received an invitation from Club Med's Singapore public relations agency to check out its renovated Bintan resort, which was celebrating its 10th anniversary.

My three-day, two-night visit also coincided with its Family Festival 2008, on until next Wednesday.

The festival boasts special sports tournaments, workshops like mosaic art-making and science discovery labs, and other events to keep youngsters happy during the June holidays.

After 15 months as an unfit - in every sense of the word - housewife, I jumped at the chance to go on a real holiday with Manic Tot and Supportive Spouse.

And so began the sporting adventures of the Manic Mummy.

Compared to the trapeze, archery - which I tried next - was a walk in the park. Shooting with a bunch of strangers at the gallery, I fared quite well. By that, I mean I sometimes managed to land an arrow on the blank fringes of the target boards. The feel of string vibrating against bow, the springing forth of slim projectiles, and the satisfying thud as I landed a shot, all made for a pretty addictive experience.

NOT YOUR AVERAGE BEACH RESORT

WHEN I went back to our room, I found that the two main males in my life were still asleep and had no idea of the thrilling double-life I'd led all afternoon.

A Club Med holiday means that all sporting-cum-recreational guided activities - along with three international buffet meals daily and most bar drinks - are included in the price of your package.

And, as Sha - the Malaysia-born staffer who gave me a personal tour around the 311-room Village (as the resort compound is called) - pointed out, guests come ready with a compulsion to participate in the activities.

"Otherwise they lose out," he added, alluding perhaps to the Singaporean kiasu mentality seeing as how we make up 90 per cent of the resort's visitors.

That compulsion was certainly evident, as I come across sizeable groups around the village: A yoga class doing Sun Salutations at the elevated Panorama Bar one morning; a bunch of swimmers happily engaged in Water Aerobics to loud music come evening.

Unlike your average laidback beach resort, this one constantly buzzes with physical pursuits.

One of Club Med's main draws for frazzled parents is how it assists in getting your kids out of your hair so you can enjoy a true break.

The Baby Welcome service provided baby supplies such as baby cots, bottle warmers and small bath tubs for infants up to 23 months.

The Petit Club for children aged two to three years was a separately-charged service (from S$20 to S$50, depending on half- or whole-day sessions, weekdays or weekends), rather like a childcare centre or playschool.

I toyed with the idea of leaving my two-year-old son Julian at the Petit Club for some couple time with the Spouse.

But it seemed to defeat the purpose of the family-bonding exercise we came for.

As a compromise, we rang the business centre to arrange for a babysitter (S$5 an hour) to watch Julian as he slept, so we could have a leisurely dinner.

Unfortunately, he woke up just as the sitter - a lovely lady named Juliana who works days in the resort's boutique - arrived, and we ended up carting the sniggering boy to the restaurant instead.

NO MORE PARTY PLAYGROUND

BESIDES the Petit Club, there is also a popular Mini Club with activities to occupy kids aged between four and 10 years old.

I wandered into a throng of kids next to the petanque field, as they pieced together costumes out of garbage bags and crepe paper for a fancy-dress contest.

Another day, there was a bake-off, and then a mini-motorised-car race. At night, staff put together entertainment ranging from fashion shows to amateur Cirque du Soleil-type routines.

Molin Maulina, the Mini Club's manager, turned out to be a dynamo. The 31-year-old Indonesian ran the kids' programmes with the help of 21 others. Dealing with the concerns and demands of paranoid parents (like me) were all in a day's work for her.

There were rewards, too. Molin recalled how one special needs 12-year-old joined the Mini Club for a simple juggling session, and how her parents were moved to tears when they saw how happy she was when interacting with the other children.

The family focus was all in line with Club Med's bid to shed its party-playground image of the 1980s and 1990s.

Earlier this week, the company, Europe's largest resort operator, announced that it planned to sell its stakes in Jet Tours and its Club Med Gym business to focus on its goal of becoming the worldwide specialist in all-inclusive, upmarket, friendly and multicultural vacations.

Added Molin, who has been with the Bintan resort for six years: "Until two years ago, some people still had the negative idea of Club Med as a place for swinging singles going wild. We used to throw people into the pools, even families.

"Nowadays, maybe 5 per cent of these crazy things remain, but everybody prefers the new structure."

BACK TO THE MAIN MALES

SO IF Manic Mummy tried to shed what remained of her post-pregnancy fat by sampling the recreational offerings (and then promptly putting it back on at the buffet meals), what were the Main Males doing?

Pity to say that, for the entire trip, the Supportive Spouse was quite happy lazing in the room with Julian, who was too young for most of the activities.

The twosome ventured out only to immerse themselves in the swimming pool and clown around at the beach.

Occasionally, my husband would make a tipple-eager face and ask jokingly: "Where's the bar?"

But by and large, the recalcitrant guy refused to even practise his swing at the resort's driving range or accompany me to the archery gallery.

Oh well. I'm intent on going back with Julian in tow in a couple of years.

Hopefully, he'll make a better trapeze artist than I did.

Packages start from $912 per person for 4D3N at Club Med Bintan. For reservations, call 1800-CLUBMED (1800-258-2633) or log on to www.clubmed.com.sg. The packages include ferry tickets and transfers from Bintan Ferry terminal.

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