For those that haven't read my previous blog, the Cameron highlands is the food bowl of the Malay peninsula, supplying a large amount of the vegetables in Singapore. It is also reknowned for it's strawberry farms and tea plantations. The are was opened by the colonial powers but has since become a major getaway location for the Malay population for it's cooler climate. For those that have been to dalat in Vietnam, tthe area bears many resemblances.
Turning into the highlands road toward brinchang and tanah rata, my mum was overwhelmed by the scene of strawberry and other covered land plots filling every flat piece of ground available. Not so much of the romantic Cameron highlands as seen in the promotional material. These small agricultural plots continue for the 15 km of small busy winding roads all the way to tanah rata where we stayed.
While mum was admiring the view I was worrying about where we would sleep. I hadn't found anything I liked on the Internet and arriving 3 days before Christmas was fretting about whether we would indeed have a mattress to rest mum's still sick and weary head. My last trump card was the hope that in true Asian fashion we would be hounded by hoteliers offering accomodation as soon as we stepped off the bus.
Weary after three days travel for both of us. We stepped of the bus into the waiting arms of two fine young gentlemen competing for our money. One was representing the guesthouse I had stayed in last time which I wasn't overjoyed about and the other had nice flowers in the front yard. So we went with the latter.
A short 150m mini van trip to the hostel and we were checked in and ready to roll. So what did we do. Well not a lot really. That afternoon we wandered the one street of tanah rata end to end which we would do many more time. Gorged ourselves on Roti Chennai and availed ourselves of some free internet.
By the mid afternoon both mum and I relaxed an read before heading out in the evening for some Nasi.
The main event for me was to go to the Tea plantations. Now the easiest way is to take a taxi, but that is too easy. Unfortunately, that is about the only easy way to get there. The public bus that travels through the area stops at the entrance to the plantation, and from there it is either walk or hitchhike. Being a newly invigorated traveller I was keen to try a combination of walking and hoping to hitch a lift on the way. What I failed to consider in this was the illness my mum was carrying. So once there we tried to wait for a taxi to pass by to save us the walk. However contrary to this advice given to me, no taxi that did not have people in it. So resigned and a little bit bitter we headed off on the 2 km walk to the plantation.
20 meter up the road our prayers were answered and old beaten up jeep offered us a lift to the plantation. Seated in the tray of the jeep we bounced along the road passing a couple that had taken the same bus and decided to walk. The kind driver dropped us off at the entrance and we walked the last leisurely 300 meters to the tea plantation and tea house. Morph exhausted we sat down for some tea and cake before visiting the factory and attached exhibition. While well setup the factory tour was finished by the time we were caked out as the workers had gone home. However the informative display gave a good overview of the history of the tea plantation.
It was then that we needed to solve the second problem of the day and get out of a place that was difficult to get into. I asked one of the bus drivers for a lift who said sure, but we had to wait for his tour group. Unfortunately when the time arrived 30min later he drove straight past us apologetically as he had been overruled by the tour guide. But this stage light rain had set in and mum was staring ominously at the long walk back to the road. I inquired with a few drivers if they were able to give us a lift with no success leaving us the only option to ask another taxi driver to call in another taxi. As the taxi's are based In tanah rata it would take another 30 min for the taxi to arrive and so we sat down for more tea and cake to pass the time. The taxi meandered down the hill almost on schedule and we hopped in and returned post haste to our hotel for some more rest.
That evening as recommended by my house mate we indulged in a Steamboat meal for two. With prawns, chicken, crab, fishballs, egg, fish and more we ate and talked and are for a few hours though unfortunately I over cooked the prawns and they went floury. At the end of the meal we walked home in a light rain.
The next day we got up early to see the sunrise after making arrangements with the taxi driver the night before. Leaving the hostel by 6:30 to climb the second highest mountain in the area. It was lucky that there weren't too many others on the road as it was not built for two lane traffic. The taxi fought its way up the mountain but it didn't feel quite at home. At the top of the mountain there is a small tower that you can climb up to get a better view. Now as we were driving a light rain started falling reflecting the general overcast nature of the sky so we were a little nervous. However the mountain top was clear and there were shades of blue hinting amongst the clouds overhead.
As luck would have it when arriving atop the mountain the sunrays reflecting off the cloud created the brilliant orange and yellows that we come to expect, which was enough to over come any disappointment we had about the sun never quite showing itself. At the top of the mountain
We burned a candle and sang a quiet song in memory of Marlene, a keen singer and lover of life, who had her funeral that day.
We once again returned to our hotel and did nothing. In fact the amount of time that a I have slept read and not really done much on this holiday is really starting to add up. My only excuse being that it is a holiday.
The rest of the day passed uneventfully. We read, tried unsuccessfully to make it to a teahouse for tea and scones and ended up in a roadside restaurant playing yahtzee while we waited for an impromptu storm to pass over.
The rain did pass as the battery in my phone died, forcing a timely end to the game of yahtzee.
As dinner time arrived we found ourselves in a Dutch themed cafe owned by a Chinese Malay man who had previously owned a restaurant in Assen. The whole cafe is decorated in Dutch football paraphernalia including a scarf with 'Sparta naar vooore!!'. There we ate another substantial meal including ice cream.
That was the end of our highland travails as we would descend the next day. Leaving the cool climate and land of double blankets to a world with no blanket required.
Stay tuned
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