We finally made it here - the cameron highlands. After a bus ride which was meant to last 4hours it took about 6.5 hours and through a bit of drama. We, being budget, opted for the cheapest bus from KL to our detsination. Along the way we made a 20minute stop in a bus graveyard where it looked like our bus was broken and they were trying to salvage spare parts. We then had to transfer from the bus to the local town bus at the bottom of the highlands in a town called Ipoh. The bus was so old and crappy, it was full of school kids and locals. It was a 69km ride up something like Paekak hill. Along the wasy we nearly crashed into an oncoming truck, we swayed on a bridge right across to the other side, the radiator overheated and fogged up the entire front windowscreen and water bottles were waiting in a basket (it must happen every trip), our original bus driver fell asleep at the back of the bus....it was quite a journey - but well worth it!! We shared the experience with 2 scottish girls and an Aussie guy which meant that we weren't the only foreigners on the bus.
We arrived at the local bus station about 2.5hours behind schedule and were greeted by about 6 different hostel/accom. workers. We all jumped in a minivan and headed the hill to 'Fathers Guest House'.
Its much cooler, there are so many trees and bush, and the town is small. 'Fathers Guest House' is on top of a hill overlooking the area. Its a lovely spot with gardens, a good little place to eat and hang out and the rooms are pretty god too! Wonderful owners too which helps (he wants to live in NZ).
We spent the whole day yesterday (Wednesday) on a tour around the region. We went in a range rover (me and Dave were crambed in the back facing sideways with a Swiss Couple) up a hillside which was fun in the mud. We did a three hour return trip to see the Rafflesia flower (a big red flower that blooms for 5-6 days once a year (good timing eh), swam at the base of a waterfall, and we stopped in at a local tribe's village where we had a go at blow piping - a method they use for hunting. It was dun, and surprisingly powerful, accurate and quick. We wanted to buy one to bring home but figured that it wouldn't get through customs :(. After that it started raining - which was good - and made us seem even more at home, as we drove to a Tea Plantation. Its one of the smallest at 600 acres - the largest is over 3000 acres. Its amazing how they grow all over the hillside. We just had to have a tea!! We then went to a bit of bush and went for an hour long walk through a 'mozzy bush' - where our guide (Francis) rattled of all these names of flowers and plants and all these survival tips. There were some amazing views and we got some good pictures. There was lots of moss - hence tha name. We also drove up the road a bit to the highest accessible point in the area where we climbed a tower. After a 10hour day we made it back to the guest house - boy what a great experience!!
We are currently making plans to go to Penang tomorrow (NW Malaysia) which will be our first island experience. As we can't upload pictures onto this blog please see facebook.
Adios
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