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Published: October 6th 2007
There are two pages of pics and Mouton there is one of a snake - just to warn you!
Day 192 (03.10.07)
After getting up early for the bus we decided to walk to the bus station (trying to make back some of the shoe money we'd spent yesterday by not getting a taxi!) and left plenty of time to get there. The guy at the ticket office had told us where to go and it took less than half an hour to get there so we had about 40 minutes to wait and got some brekkie. With 15 mins to go before it was due to leave, Mark went over to one of the drivers to see if our bus had already arrived and if we could put our bags on. The question drew blank looks and then the driver imparted some confusing and unerving news - the bus was actually leaving from another bus station - the man at the office had sent us to the wrong station! Looking on our map it wasn't far away so we both grabbed our stuff and had a mad dash across town. We made it there in the nick of
time and...found that the bus hadn't yet arrived - phew - we then proceeded to wait for another half an hour for it to turn up - so glad we'd run all that way with our packs!
After the initial excitement, the rest of the day was spent catching up with our books traversing the country from Kota Bharu to Ipoh. We got there at around 5pm and were unsure as to whether there would be another bus to the Cameron Highlands that day or if we'd have to wait overnight and catch one in the morning. Luckily there was one 30 mins later and we were off climbing into the hills and the cooler climates.
After a beautiful journey the sun went down and we arrived in Tanah Rata in the dark. Finding the guesthouse (Daniel's Lodge) that had been recommended by Anna and Kathryn we checked in, went out for dinner and spent the rest of the evening chatting around the bonfire they have outside the bar serenaded by a talented (but a little strange) guitar playing local.
The Cameron Highlands are noticably cooler than lowland Malaysia and when we went to bed we really
felt the temperature difference. We had a blanket to keep most of the chill out but, unaccustomed to cool weather, we both had a pretty restless night and found oursleves reaching for spare clothes in the middle of the night! Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Day 193 (04.10.07)
One of the things the Cameron Highlands is famous for is having the biggest flower in the world (the Rafflesia) and we wanted to find one. To make sure this was the case we booked on a tour of the area which included a trek into the jungle to find the plant. It turned out that there was only three of us on the tour and we were joined by a kiwi called Brendon.
After a pretty long drive we stopped at a local Orang Asli (original malay tribe) village and our guide Vino (who was quite a character) told us about village life as we were joined by the trekking guide who was to take us through the forest in search of the Rafflesia. It was a stunning 2 hour up hill trek into the jungle and when we rounded the corner to find the plant it was well worth the effort.
Us and the plant!
"They may offer you fortune and fame ..."It is actually a fungus and grows on the trunks and roots of trees. It was amazing and looked like it had come from another world. The plants flower all year round however when they flower they only do so for around 5 days. We were lucky enough to have a huge one that had just fully opened. Amazing!
Back along the track we stopped off at a waterfall and cooled off with a quick dip - it was absolutely freezing but very refreshing. We were then treated to some 'Bamboo water' which collects in the sections of certain types of bamboo giving it a slightly sweet taste and keeping it cool even in scorching hot temperatures.
We made our way back to the village where we were met by a local who gave us a demonstration of using a traditional hunting blowpipe still used by the men of the village. We were then handed the pipe and were allowed to have a go. Over the short distance we ried it we found it was relatciely easy with our first and second efforts on target - I wouldn't trust us to catch your dinner yet though!
We
stopped for a curry for lunch before continuing to one of SE Asias first and largest tea plantations. As we would our way along the road into the plantation it seemed to go on forever with rows of tea bushes as far as the eye could see. It was quite an amazing sight - especially for tea drinkers like us! We were then taken around the factory where we leanrt about the process where the leaves are converted from their raw state to the finished product - very interesting. After the tour we went to the cafe which had unbelievable views of the tea plantation estate and sampled a couple of different teas, they were delicious!
The climate in the area makes it perfect for growing plants, fruit and vegeatbles so we stopped off at the local fruit and veg market for some healthy snacks before heading back to Daniel's Lodge and the end of our tour. Although it was pretty expensive (and in our eyes a little overpriced) it was a great day.
We managed to squeeze in a film in the lounge area before we met some of our fellow roomies for dinner and once again
visiting the bonfire and the crazy guitar playing man, this time accompanied by a man jamming on a...recorder, very ' ummmm' entertaining.
Learning from the previous night we dressed in more clothes to keep us warm which helped to give us a slightly better night's sleep.
Day 194 (05.10.07)
Today we had reserved a moto to go and do a more independent tour of the other sights in the Highlands. We were joined by two others James and Carmel to make a bike duo. Picking up the bikes we went for some brekkie before going up to one of the biggest peaks in the Cameron Highlands province. After a pretty steep drive with some stunning views of the tea plantation valley (including a near driving off the road wheely by James) we reached the limit of our not very powerful bikes. Parking up we decided to have a walk for the rest of the way.
About 5 mins into the walk we managed to hitch a lift in the back of a local truck to the top saving us a steep half hour climb stopping to pick up some more walkers on the way. To say
thanks we wanted to give the guy a couple of ringit (about 50p) for the ride but he wouldn't accept it saying the ride was a 'present'.
Walking up the last section on the path we found a couple of amazing look outs and admired the view before making the walk back down to the bikes. Back on the road we went down toward the same tea plantation we had visited the day before to show James and Carmel the factory and had a well earned cup of tea and a slice of chocolate cake - very British what?!
After waiting out a bit of a down pour with another cup of tea - well we were at a tea plantation - we got back on our bikes to head to the Butterfly Farm. The first section was lots of different types of bugs, beetles, frogs, lizards and snakes (etc) where we all had a turn holding a huge beetle and a massive scorpion - Chrissie was very brave (but terrified of the scorpion nonetheless!).
We then looked around the butterfly enclosure - there were hundreds of them. After this visit we went to the market to
pick up some strawberries before noticing that we still had enough petrol in our tanks to continue our tour. We drove on down a fantastic winding road thorugh the hills to a little town for some dinner and then managed to make it back to Tanah Rata just as it got dark. Perfect timing and a great day.
Day 195 (06.10.07)
We decided to spend the day relaxing around town, reading and watching a couple of films at the hostel. This turned out to be an excellent plan as it chucked it down for quite a while and we were glad to have missed it! Tonight we plan to have our last night around the bonfire and try to watch the England Australia game at the hostel. Tomorrow we are off to Kuala Lumpur - big city here we come!
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marney
non-member comment
world tour scam
harry that photo of you holding the scorpion in chester zoo...you are starting to look like a vietnamese refugee...have you been to twisters make up artist?Best get a frock and a purple wig before you pretend to go to australia so you will fit in with all the dame ednas.xxxxxxgive me luv to maryxxx