This post is long overdue—it's about my video adventure at Jurong Lake last Sunday! I revisited the Chinese Garden to shoot some short clips for my Shorts and TikTok pages, and I figured I'd feature one of the best spots on the west side.
As for my progress on mainstream social apps (YouTube & TikTok), it’s been slow so far—slow like a sloth 🦥. My goal there is to expand my reach by simply letting the videos speak for themselves and attract the attention they deserve. I’m talking about views, likes, and comments.
Over the past two weeks, I’ve noticed that more people seem to be watching the videos. One of my Shorts even reached 1,700 views on YouTube! That’s a nice surprise, considering my usual average on both TikTok and YouTube is somewhere around 200–400 views—which is relatively high compared to Hive, where even my trending posts usually get just 50+ views.
When it comes to likes, I’m starting to get a few on both platforms. Likes are a key metric on TikTok, where it also shows the total number of likes across all my videos. My numbers are still pretty low—especially when you see users with hundreds of thousands or even millions of likes—but that’s expected. I’m still new, and I haven’t really gone the extra mile to promote my videos yet.
For now, I just want to see if the content alone can gain traction and help my page grow organically (fingers crossed for that viral moment! 😂). I know consistency is key, and I plan to keep improving the quality of my videos over time. I’m giving myself a 2–3 year runway before expecting to monetize my YouTube and TikTok pages.
I guess that’s all for my update on my socials outside of Hive. Now, it’s time to share my adventures at Jurong Lake!
Although the weather was cloudy and looked like it was about to rain, I still went ahead to test my luck. Turned out to be a good decision—the skies started clearing up just as I arrived. It was perfect timing too, since it was already late in the afternoon and the lighting was beautifully soft.
Entering Jurong Lake from the Chinese Garden MRT station brings you to the entrance where the tallest pagoda greets you—the Cloud Pagoda.
Some time ago, visitors were still allowed to climb all the way to the top floor to enjoy a panoramic view of the surroundings. Unfortunately, that’s no longer the case. Due to structural concerns, access has been restricted until necessary repairs are made. Hopefully, they’ll fix it soon—it’s definitely one of the best parts of visiting the Gardens.
I took a bunch of photos and videos of the Cloud Pagoda, trying to capture the best angles to showcase. What’s interesting about pagodas is that they have eight identical sides, making them a fascinating subject—no matter where you view it from, the structure stays the same, but the surroundings make each perspective unique.
Here are the videos I created and posted on my mainstream social accounts.
I’m not sure why, but the second video turned out to be more popular than the first. I guess the composition and the added close-up shots made it more inviting to watch.
Exploring Jurong Lake and capturing the beauty of the Cloud Pagoda was a refreshing experience, even with the unpredictable weather. It reminded me how every visit offers something new, especially when viewed through a creative lens. I’m excited to keep experimenting with content and sharing more moments like this on both Hive and my social platforms.
