A Day to Remember in Cameron Highlands

Cameron Highlands...the first time I read an article about this place, I just fell in love.

The promise of a coooool weather, highland nature experience and a tea plantation tour is a big wow.

I consider our Cameron Highland stop as the 2nd highlight of our Malaysia vacation (next to KL of course :)).

Cameron Highlands is one of Malaysia's most extensive hill stations. Situated at the northwestern tip 

of Pahang,the “Camerons” is approximately 90 kilometres from Ipoh and roughly 200 kilometres from Kuala Lumpur. There are many ways to go to Cameron Highlands. From Kuala Lumpur, there are buses that leave every 30 minutes from Terminal Bersipadu Selatan for RM35. Travel time is around 4 hours, please see my blog last April for the complete itinerary. You can also catch a bus from Amanjaya terminal in Ipoh and from Georgetown, Penang. Cameron Highlands is a popular destination, I knew there are more ways to go there than what was mentioned.

When we went to Cameron Highlands, we took a 2:30pm bus at Terminal Bersipadu Selatan in KL. Shortly before 6:00pm we were already at Tanah Rata in Cameron Highlands. Most of the tourist stays either in Tanah Rata or Brinchang. We chose Tanah Rata because we want to be closer to the bus terminal, public transport in Cameron Highlands is difficult. Anyway, we were booked at Century Pines Resort which is very close to the bus terminal. From the bus terminal, we just cross the street onto a small park and right across the park is the hotel.

After we checked-in and leave our bags, we went out to look for the office of Eco Cameron Travel and Tours for the half day Mossy Forest Tour we want to avail in the next day. The office is not difficult to find and it is open 'til 8:30 in the evening. You can just ask around and the people are more than glad to guide you. We paid RM53 each for the tour that includes BOH Tea Plantation Tour, BOH Tea Factory Tour, the climb to Brinchang Peak and the Mossy Forest tour.

Then we just walk and explore the main road of Tanah Rata while looking for some nice restaurant for our dinner. We found this Kougen Japanese restaurant which is verrrryyy nice, highly recommended. By the time we're finished, it is already dark and very cold, we decided to stop on a convenience store on our way back to the hotel to buy some beer. Heineken it is...cheers :). We have an early evening rest at the hotel, watching movies and enjoying our cold beer on a cold cold night inside our cozy hotel room. Unforgettable experience, the feeling that you are somewhere far far away from home and you are still feeling more at home than ever :).

The next day, after a delightful breakfast in the hotel, we were picked up by the 4x4 truck of Eco Cameron Travel and Tours. The driver which is also the guide is a nice Indian guy that speaks very good english. We were joined by 4 more people, a couple from Germany and from France. We went thru winding uphill road which is sometimes one way only and I admit some part of the road is scary, but I trust  our guide who is doing this everyday for many many years. I'm sure he already memorized every turns and curves. Cameron highlands by the way is famous also for strawberries and flower gardens and there are many stores along the roads that sell strawberry stuffs from pillows to bags to everything strawberry-yyy.

The first stop we had is the BOH Tea Plantation. Spell real world T-E-A plantation, it was so amazing. I was so happy to have the experience, and once in my life got to see what tea tree looks like, how it is planted and grown and yes how it is processed from raw tea leaves to what it looks like when sold in the markets. Our amazing guide made sure of it :) The view is heart stopping, a paradise for me, how I wish I could stay there forever.

Our second stop is the Mt. Brinchang Peak. Mt. Brinchang is the second highest peak of Cameron Highlands but it is more famous because it is more accessible to the tourists. The 4x4 can take the tourists up to the peak but aside from tourists like us who prefer the packaged tour on a 4x4, I see many more tourists who opted to hike the way up, good for them. If I have the time, I would love to try it. On the peak is a watch tower where tourists can go up to get a good view of the highlands.

Our ride.

Our third stop is the Mossy Forest Trail. Okay, I was surprise in this one because in the pictures I saw a real trail under mossy trees. I was preparing myself for a real mountain hike, haha. I was so surprised to see that the trail is in fact wooden bridges with cottages to rest by along the way. At the end, we can suppose to got off the wooden trail and explore the forest but it was not advised so we would not get lost and with the short time our guide gave us, we opted not to do it. Maybe it was the highlight after all, I don't know. But I was not really expecting the wooden trails. It kind of steal the forest adventure I was expecting ;). Anyway, below are our pictures on the wooden trails.

The trail map.

Lastly, we went to the BOH Tea Plantation Centre. It is where the tea processing plant is located as well as a store for their tea products and a cafe that serves the plantation's delight. The cafe was very crowded so we had not tried it, but we went to their shop and was able to buy many many tea :)

The cafe overlooking the plantation.

That concludes our half day tour. In the afternoon we took the bus from Tanah Rata to Ipoh.

Kuala Lumpur Hop on Hop Off Bus Experience

This post is a review on Kuala Lumpur Hop on Hop off bus city tour. So we only have 3 days in Kuala Lumpur and on our last day, we decided to try the hop on hop off bus, to save time getting lost around the city ;) and just to have the experience. This will be my 2nd time to try a hop on hop off city tour, the first time I tried was on 2011 during a visit in Dublin, Ireland. The experience was so good that I had really included this Kuala Lumpur hop on hop off bus experience in our itinerary.

We only have 9am until 2pm for the hop on hop off tour as in the afternoon, we will be taking a bus for Tanah Rata in Cameron Highlands. So after breakfast in our hotel, we checked out, took the train towards Terminal Bersipadu Selatan and rent a 10RM locker for our bags. We took a train again towards KL Sentral for the start of our hop on hop off bus tour. KL Sentral is stop#11, our plan is to start in KL Sentral, complete 1 round and just select the really important stops and get back again to KL Sentral at 2pm to catch a train back to Terminal Bersipadu Selatan. Our bus for Tanah Rata will depart at 2:30pm, so yeah it is indeed a very tight scedule. Below is the KL hop on hop off map. There is a total of 23 stops with first stop in MATIC, their tourism information center and last stop in KLCC where Petronas Tower is located.

At exactly 9:00am the bus arrived in the bus stop in KL Sentral. The hop on hop off bus stop is easy to spot because of its bright pink sign board. We bought our tickets in the bus, some collectors would check the tickets and you can buy from them. There were only few tourist on the bus and I really hate to say this but the hop on hop off bus is not okay for me. There is no live commentary on board so you can't really tell what's there in every stop. So what happened is that in every stop, when we see many people or some special attractions, we step out the bus but if not, we just stay and go on with the next stop. The bus will not stay but will just drop or pick up tourist in each stop.  The interval of the arrival of the bus is 15-20 minutes.

Stop#11 : KL Sentral, start of the tour
Stop#12: National Museum, we did not step out as it did not interest us.
Stop#13: National Palace, the bus stopped for 15 minutes and so we explore the grounds a bit and took some picture. It is a very nice place, the view is good and there are lots of tourists. The tourists are not allowed inside, but the view outside is so picturesque.

Stop#14: Lake Garden, we spend some time in the Perdana Botanical Garden. Lots of orchids, botanical plants, garden of flowers and fountains with benches. It was the longest stop we had.

Stop#15: Bird Park, we saw it from the outside and it seems to be nice. There are man made waterfalls and walkways and bridges but we did not go inside, I think there is a fee. And we were already tired from exploring the garden, very thirsty and looking for water, and yes, really want to cool down so we took the bus again for the next stops.

Stop#16: National Mosque, we took a stop but did not stay long as it was very hot. There are no shades outside while taking the view and the building is white with cemented grounds so yes, I can't even take a good look because of the glare, I do not have my shades that day. Tourists are allowed inside the mosque but has to rent and wear abaya (muslim women clothing).

Stop#17: Pass
Stop#18: Pass
Stop#19: Pass
Stop#20: Pass
Stop#21: Titiwangsa,  we stopped because we want to see the lake but found out that it is far so we took the buss again.
Stop#22: Pass
Stop#23: KLCC, we did not stop as we had already explored the area before.
Stop#1 : MATIC, surprisingly the live commentary began to work. So I assume that they don't know how to sync the player so they have to start playing it on the start or first stop. It is still not good though, it is not in sync and is delayed most of the time.
Stop#2: KL Tower, we stopped but we did not took the elevator ride up as it was expensive. We just took some photos.

Stop#3: Pass
Stop#4: Pass
Stop#5: Pass
Stop#6: Bintang Walk, we just passed as we already explored the area.
Stop#7: Pass
Stop#8: Chinatown, we passed as the traffic is heavy and we don't want to get stucked.
Stop#9: Central Market, passed again because of the heavy traffic.
Stop#10: Pass
Stop#11: KL Sentral, end of our hop on hop off experience.

That was all for a 45RM hop on hop off experience. We were able to see the city from the bus without getting lost :).

Kuala Lumpur : Batu Caves, Genting Highlands, and Petronas Tower in just one day

On our second day in Malaysia, we decided to visit the top 3 places on our priority list around Kuala Lumpur area. We took our breakfast at the hotel before 7 o'clock and by 7:30 we are already on the road. On this day, we will visit Batu Caves, Genting Highlands and Petronas Tower in the evening.
Every stop is just short but in this trip, we are really not into a relaxing pace, we want to cover as many places as we could.

From our hotel (Hotel Sentral Pudu), we walked towards Hang Tuah Station and took the LRT Line 3 or 4 to Bandaraya Station. From Bandaraya it is another walk towards Bank Negara Station and then from Bank Negara, we took the KTM Line2 train to Batu Caves. We reached Batu Caves by 9:00am and spent an hour exploring the cave.

The pigeons greeted us near the gate of Batu Caves. And a beautiful pond on the left side just before reaching the gate.

And finally at the foot of Batu Caves...more pigeons :)

Okay, here's our selfie before we start the 272 steps ascent to the Batu Caves Temple. Guarding the temple is Lord Murugan Statue, the tallest Hindu deity statue in Malaysia, and second tallest in the world.

By the way, shorts are not allowed for ladies inside the temple but it's okay if you're wearing shorts, there are wraps for rent just before you start the ascent, I think the rent is just 3RM.

We have to stop several times along the way to take some rest and enjoy the view below.

The view from above is just so fantastic.

After an hour of exploration, we took the KTM Line2 train from Batu Caves towards Putra train Station. Then we walked from Putra Train Station towards PWTC train station and from PWTC station, we took the LRT Line again (3 or 4) towards Plaza Rakyat station. We will catch the Go Genting Bus from Pudu Sentral Terminal which is just a short walk from Plaza Rakyat station. By 11:30am we are already on board Go Genting Bus for an hour and a half ride towards Genting Bus Station in Genting Highlands. Genting Skyway is just above (3rd floor, I think) the Genting Bus terminal.

We are excited for the 15 minutes cable car ride towards Resorts World Genting Highlands.

That is Genting Skyway Terminal taken from the cable car.

The famous Genting Skyway (2.10 mile long) with the forest below, cable cars travel at ~6m/s.

The fog was so thick when we reached the summit and it was very very cold. I regret wearing a shorts.

We just explore the area, took some photos, had a short rest and lunch and we head back again towards Kuala Lumpur. We did not explore the rides as we don't have time and it is not really part of the itinerary, we don't like rides, we're afraid of speed and height :). We just really want to experience the cable car ride and see this highland resort. These are some photos we had on Genting Highlands:

We left the resort at 4:00pm, took the 15min cable car ride to the Go Genting Bus terminal and we're able to catch the 4:30 bus back to Pudu Sentral Terminal. From Pudu Sentral, it is just a short walk to Plaza Rakyat Station, then we took the LRT line (3 or 4) to Masjid Jamek and another LRT (line5) to KLCC. Around 7:00pm we are already in Petronas Tower, we still have enough daylight for a day view of the tower, sunset in Malaysia is ~8pm.

And the night view of the towers:

This wraps our day. For the full details of the itinerary, please refer to my blog last April. Thanks.

Melaka Guide : A Day Tour From Kuala Lumpur

Melaka is a historic state in the Southern region of Peninsular Malaysia. The state is abundant with heritage buildings, ancient landmarks and colonial structures. Melaka City was listed as one of Malaysia UNESCO World Heritage Site together with George Town in Penang. Melaka is famous for the  imprints of British, Dutch and Portuguese forces left behind in forts, museums, churches and towers.

I am a UNESCO site enthusiast and in my not so frequent trips to some new place, I always search for any UNESCO site nearby that I could visit. So yes, on our first day of our 1 week Malaysia trip, Melacca tops the list :). We arranged our Melaka day tour from Kuala Lumpur on our own and it was very easy. All information we need is available in google, and the very good transportation system of Malaysia did help a lot.

Our hotel is in Pudu area near Bukit Bintang and we are walking distance from Hang Tuah and Pudu LRT station (LRT lines 3 & 4). We are so excited on this trip as this is the first day of our Malaysia exploration. We have read that there is a bus from Berjaya Times Square Hotel (a short distance from our hotel) that goes directly to Melaka and so after our early breakfast, we walked to Berjaya Times Square Hotel to try to get the ride. First lesson learned : bus tickets are purchased either online or from the ticket booths in the terminals (except for local buses and city buses). We know that the bus tickets can be purchased online but we don't know that we cannot buy it from the driver. We have no choice but to proceed with our other option, to go to (TBS) Terminal Bersepadu Selatan Bus Station.

From Berjaya Times Square Hotel, we walked towards Hang Tuah and took LRT Line4 to Bandar Tasik Selatan (BTS). The TBS Bus Station is a huge building, very organized, the first modern bus terminal I've been to so far. It is located just across the BTS train station and accessible via the walkway that connects BTS train station and TBS bus station.

TBS as seen from the connecting walkway

The walkways that connects TBS and BTS. I appreciate that Malaysia is blind-friendly. There are yellow lines as guide for the blinds everywhere.

TBS Bus station has a sentralized ticketing system, I feel like I'm in the airport actually and not in a bus terminal.

Centralized Ticketing System

We bought our ticket to Melaka for just 10RM each and waited for about 15 mins for the bus to arrive in the assigned gate (just like in the airport).

waiting are

The bus would bring us to Melaka Sentral (local bus station in Melaka) and the trip took us ~2.5hrs.
From Melaka Sentral Bus Station, we took the local bus (Gate 17) to bring us to Dutch Square and the fare is only 2RM each. We reached Dutch Square at 11:30am, took some pics on this famous red square but did not stay long as we are already hungry so we cross the bridge to the other side of the river to take our lunch. Melaka City indeed feels like a European city center because of the presence of the river (except for the hot weather of course). I always love the feel of city centers in Europe coz I love nature and seeing a clean river in the midst of the city is so relaxing.

Dutch Square

Christ Church Melaka...an imposing structure in the Dutch Square. All red and all European air.

I love Melaka :)

The river dividing Melaka City

Right after crossing the bridge is the famous Jonker Walk. There was no crowd but on weekend nights, the street is close for the night market. We walk around to look for a good restaurant but it was very hot, the one restaurant we wanted to try is close, and so we just settled for Famosa Chicken Rice Ball.

After lunch we started with our Melaka City Exploration. We cross the bridge back to Dutch Square and use below map as our guide.

We walk up the little hill at the back of Stadthuys towards St. Paul's church at the summit and down to Porta De Santiago.  St. Paul's Church is a historic church building in Malacca, Malaysia that was originally built in 1521, making it the oldest church building in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. It is located at the summit of St. Paul's Hill and is today part of the Malacca Museum Complex comprising the A Famosa ruins, the Stadthuys and other historical buildings.

St. Paul's Church at the top of the hill

It is amazing to be standing in the midst of the ruins of this very old church.

Behind the ruins, there is a path leading down to Porta de Santiago. We followed the path and passed thru some old dutch graveyard.

The old structure behind is the St Paul's Church atop the hill.

Porta de Santiago is a small gate house of A Famosa, a Portuguese fortress in Melaka. It is among the oldest surviving European architectural remains in Southeast Asia.

Porta de Santiago as seen from St. Paul's Church atop the hill.

Porta de Santiago

When we were at the top of the hill in St. Paul's church, we saw this huge old ship in the distance and so we decided to go and explore the area. We found out that it is a Maritime Museum. The Maritime Museum or the Muzium Samudera is a replica of the Portuguese ship which sank in the coast of Malacca while on its way to Portugal. The replica is a staggering 34 meters in height and 8 meters in width. The main focus of the museum is the maritime history of Malacca and the golden ages of Malacca’s Sultanate as the Emporium of the East.

Later, there are other places we have checked like the old streets of Melaka with historical small establishments or buildings. We also passed this cute windmill and fort, I don't know the name, I forgot to check :) .

And to end our Melaka visit, we tried the famous Cendol. 

It is good but I still prefer our own famous halo-halo in the Philippines :).

We walked back towards the end of Jonker Street where it joined Jalan Tokong and there is the waiting shed for a bus that would bring us back to Melaka Sentral, then back to Kuala Lumpur. at Terminal Bersepadu Selatan.

-------------end of our Melaka Adventure ------------------