On to the Cameron Highlands

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After getting ready this morning, I headed to the bus station and got on the bus to the Cameron Highlands - a region developed by the British for tea plantations and also as an escape from the tropical heat.

The loading of the bus provided for an interesting experience. About 15 minutes before departing, the storage compartments were opened and I, along with a Brit, tossed my backpack in and made toward boarding the bus. However, before we made it, the bus driver intercepted us and grabbed the Brit and told him he had to reload his bag - in Chinese. The Brit politely shuffled his backpack a bit, unfortunately not to the satisfactory of the driver, prompting him to repeat his command, with twice the volume for good measure - still in Chinese. The bewildered Brit, clueless as what to do, again tried vainly to appease the whithered old driver. Eventually the driver moved the bags himself, all the while chastizing the Brit - still in Chinese. Somehow I avoided the ordeal and quietly stood my bag upright, only to have it pulled off and put back on properly.

Upon departure, the first three quarters of the trip was uneventful, which changed upon reaching the mountains. As the name Cameron Highlands implies, the terrain became quite hilly, with lush vegetation providing stunning panoramas all around. However, the terrain also prompted the ride to become much more adventuresome. The bus crawled up the mountains with the ancient engine screeching in complaint. As we lurched through the switchbacks the ride soon boiled down to, scrittchhhh, as the curtian on the back window slid to one side, with the bus rolling through a corner all the while dropping down at a perilous angle, causing the stomach to jump and the knuckles to whiten, followed by a fresh scream from the engine, and scrittchhh as the curtain slid again, signaling the start of a new cycle. We repeated the ordeal for about two hours. To add to the excitement, all the while we passed and were passed by other lorries on blind corners, along the winding two lane highway.

However, once we got to Tanah Rata I was pleasantly suprised to step off the bus to a pleasant 75 degree climate. By climbing up in elevation, we escaped the heat and humidity of KL. I promptly got a bed at a charming nearby hostel and vegged out for the rest of the day.

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