Advertisement
Published: February 8th 2007
Edit Blog Post
For All the Tea in Malaysia
Cameron Highland's Tea Plantations Cameron Highlands: Mayasia's Tea Region
January 24-26, 2007
After 4 days in Kuala Lumpur, we decided to take a bus to the Cameron Highlands. We were happy to be leaving KL for cooler temperatures (25 degrees) and a slower-pace of life. The taxi ride to the bus station was an adventure in itself. At any one time, there were 6-8 vehicles (motorcycles and cars) all "sharing" a 4-lane road. Several motorists cut in front of us with less than a meter of a gap. I was amazed that we did not witness any traffic accidents and that the taxi driver did not have road rage. Incidentally, the taxi driver charged us an extra 10 ringets due to our "extra cargo" (ie., our 3 backpacks).
Immediately after we got out of the taxi, a guy pounced on us to buy bus tickets from his company. We firmly said no, but he continued to hassle us as we walked into the bus station. When we entered the station, we were swarmed by several agents from different bus companies. They were all vying for our business. Fortunately, the first lady that approached us was from the bus company that was recommended to
us. Otherwise, it would have been a nightmare to find a reputable bus company. (Being from Canada, my only bus choice was Greyhound). The next step was finding our bus from the 20 buses waiting outside.
While waiting for our bus to depart, April went to grab a cup of coffee. I was very perplexed when she returned drinking coffee from a straw housed in a plastic bag?!? The typical "cup" of coffee is a BAG of coffee in Malaysia.
We enjoyed the 3-hour bus ride to the Cameron Highlands and were mesmerized by the lush, green and rolling scenery of Malaysia's highlands. April and Heather even saw a monkey on the side of the road Unfortunately I missed it because I was napping (surprise, surprise!). The only pitfall was that our bus driver smoked 2 cigarettes while driving!!! Egads!
We did an amazing 11-hour tour of the Cameron Highlands. The tour consisted of the following:
1. TEA PLANTATION AND FACTORY TOUR
The Cameron Highlands has about 8 000 acres of tea plantations gracing its mountain slopes. Our tour guide showed us a tea plantation and taught us about how to farm tea. I was
A not so Insey-Weensy Spider
Our brave tour guide holding one of the spiders. extremely interested in this because it greatly differs from my family's farm of wheat, oats, and barley.
To make my blog a little more interesting, I made up a quiz about information that I learned from the tea tour. Please give it a try, it may TEAch you a thing or two about tea!
Question: Do young or older tea leaves make the better cup of tea?
Answer: Young, tender leaves produce a tea that is more gentle and flavorful than the older varieties. The more common older leaves typically end up on the grocery shelf! Young tea leaves are harvested from the tea bushes every 3 weeks. The bushes are pruned regularly to ensure that they don't grow any higher than waist level.
Question: Which method makes the best cup of tea: hand-picked or machine picked?
Answer: Hand-picked tea leaves make the best cup of tea. Machine-picked tea also contain older tea leaves thereby dimishing its quality.
Question: How much does a tea worker get paid for picking one kg of tea?
Answer: Tea workers (mostly from Burma or Nepal) receive 20 cents per kg of tea and can pick up to 200-400kgs per day.
Orang Asli Village
The houses are built entirely of bamboo. They make, on average, 40 ringets a day (about $12 CDN per day). This seems like a pittance to me, but our tour guide reported that this is an excellent wage. Workers have extra money to send home to their families after paying for their food. They receive free board from the tea company.
Question: Why would tea workers make more money during the monsoon season?
Answer: The added moisture increases the weight of the tea leaves. (Remember they are paid 20 cents per kg of tea). During the dry season, workers may add a pail of water to their tea collection bags when their boss isn't looking.
Question: Do different tea leaves make different colors of teas (e.g., green, orange, black, etc)?
Answer: No, all colors of tea are made from green tea leaves. Tea color is determined by the type of processing. For example, green tea is oxidized less than orange tea.
2. MOSSY FOREST INTERPRETATIVE WALK
In just a few short steps of walking into the mossy forest, we learned the names of numerous plants and their medicinal uses. Who knew that an entire pharmacy could exist within a square meter of
a mossy forest? The forest even contained a green leaf version of Viagara!The highlight of this walk was eating a green leaf that tasted like sweet cinnamon.
3. RAIN FOREST TOUR
We walked in a rainforest that is home to tigers, rhinos, panthers, elephants, leopards, etc. Unfortunately, we did not see any of these animals because most have moved deeper into the forest secondary to the building of roads. Additionally, many animals are becoming extinct due to poachers. Apparently poachers are on the look-out for a rhino. This rare find is worth a million dollars on the black market.
Of course, every rainforest is also home to some impressive creepy crawlers. I saw about 8 huge spiders in massive cobwebs spanning a meter! April and I stayed in the SUV while Heather snapped close-ups of these remarkable-looking spiders. I didn't want to risk leaving the vehicle for fear that a spider might decide to hitch a ride on my back.
4. ORANG ASIL VILLAGE VISIT
The biggest highlight of the day for me was visiting an Orang Asil Village in the heart of the rain forest. Orang Asil people are Malaysia's original people.
Today there are approximately 60 000 Orang Asli people, of which many live in the rain forests. Orang Asil survive by hunting, fishing and gathering food. They live a very simple life with few modern day amenities. Their houses are built entirely from bamboo. A house can be built within 3-4 hours. This village used to haul water from the nearby river until a pipe line was donated a few years ago. Each Orang Asil village has their own language and they do not speak English.
Orang Asil people use intricately woven baskets to catch fish. They hunt animals with bamboo blowpipes This involves blowing a dart dipped in the poisonous sap of a lpol tree through a long bamboo pipe.
When we entered this 10-house village, we were greeted by many adorable young children. The children smiled and waved at us. They were playful and invited us to skip rope (with rope made from a vine) and to play games with them. Some of the children were shy and hid in their houses. We did, however, catch them stealing glances at us from their windows. The children entertained themselves by running, skipping, play fighting with guns made
Skipping with a Vine
April skipping with a couple of Orang Asli children out of sticks, and splashing in the nearby river. The children attend a nearby school taught by volunteer teachers.
It was a great honor to be invited into the chief's house for tea, mangos, and tapioca, their main staple. I was impressed that the chief himself prepared and served us the meal. He was unassuming and had a quiet manner. We purchased some of the beautiful crafts (bracelets, rings, purses, and boxes) made by the village women. This money is used support the village. I was annoyed to learn that some people will buy these crafts and then resell them for triple the amount in larger cities.
We thought it was odd that we did not see any teenagers in the village. Our tour guide informed us that many of the older children move to the cities, enticed by modern day living. Consequently, this village will become extinct in about 5 years. This struck a sad chord within me. I think it is amazing that villages like the Orang Asli exist today in such a commercialized world. The Orang Asli people's way of life is exemplary and they live with, not against, nature. I could learn a lot
Bamboo Blowpipe
Poisonous darts are blown through this blowpipe to kill an animal from them, especially in minimizing waste (They use every part of the bamboo tree).
The children of this village left a huge impression on me. They seemed very happy playing and entertaining themselves even though they did not have any manufactured toys or computer games. Many of the children never stopped running and playing during our entire hour-long stay. It was difficult to say good-bye to them, especially when we drove away. They ran after our vehicle, waving good-bye.
It was definitely a day that I will never forget.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.09s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 7; qc: 44; dbt: 0.0339s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Pam
non-member comment
Snow Squalls
Celia Benjamin Moore! I'm so happy that you're having such an amazing time. I can relate to so many of your travel adventures and they bring me back to my time in that part of the world too. By the way - coffee isn't the only drink served in a bag! There is so much for us to learn there; it's absolutely amazing. Robert's learned what "snow squalls" are this week; he'd definitely prefer to live in the sauna again.... Take care! Pamela Duncan Donuts Rivera