On the road

Me with beloved students

As a women with a shelter life, i decided to try new things after getting a new car in 2010. I ventured out around Malaysia in my car which I named Froggie. My kids liked the name I gave my Myvi. The journey started by travelling to Kuantan. OMG..... it sounded so far away on my own driving. Madness.

End of April 2011
I invited a female friend to go along on my plan. I drove non stop to Kuantan using the East; West highway. It was okay not too bad. Reached Kuantan late afternoon and had a good tea in Kemaman Kopitiam. Nice keropok but a bit pricey. Then only we started looking for a room. We picked d phone n called all d hotels... No rooms kept on repeating . We then realised that tomorrow was 1st of May. I freaked out.. asking her where are going to sleep tonite.Seriously, i dont have such experience. Then we drove to Balok, a nearby town with beautiful beaches. I drove from chalets to hotels looking for a room. Failed mission. Sat on the beaches sad n had to make decisions. Do I drive back home to Klang ?

wandering at balok beach......

My brave fren said lets eat seafood in Tanjung Lumpur which is famous for seafood! I had no mood to eat the delicious sotong or even siakap. I wanted to go home to my own comfort zone.

After dinner at nearer 10pm, we went to a nearby mall and I had a nap. My crazy fren got tickets to watch a midnite movie. She said lets go n sleep in a safe situation. Paid Rm 10 and slept till 2am. What next?Outside of the cinema on  way to lift, we saw a pool of fresh blood on d floor and on d walls. Talking abt crime rates. We saw police cars outside of the mall. Quickly walked to my froggie n locked d car.  Went back to Kemaman kopitiam for supper and decide... No room and very tired.Luckily, saw a lot of people in the kopitiam.

Yummy...

From Ana and only RM2

Next at 3.30 am, i drove to the nearest rest stop to sleep n wait for the sun . In d thick fog, arrived Gambang , parked d car in front of a lit toilet. Took out sweater... sleep. Trust me.. d sleep did not come so easy for me. I was afraid for own safety after seeing d gang fight in Kuantan. Thank god.. there were many people sleeping in rest stop.

Day 2.... woke up at 8.15 n drove back.... Survived .
Lesson learnt: do your homework abt d places of visit
                      it is okay if you didnot bathe for a day or two.
                      sleeping in d car in rest stop is only d last solution.
                      Make reservation during public holidays.
Conclusion: We became much braver after this experience.

Next Adventure... Around Malaysia
Hello  Jerantut.Day One

Left right after work... bye floppy n girlie( my dogs)... be good. Mama has gone to see malaysia with my fren. This time , wiser.. did our research thru internet n make reservation. Drove abt 3 hrs. A small n sleepy town. checked into Wau hotels for two nites. Friendly n helpful staffs.
Had dinner in a small stall in town Quite nice. Saw a RM 2 shop. Decided to shop since the price was too good to let go. I told my fren that luckily there do not have such shops in Klang... if not i will buy everything... so murah.
The room in Wau had hot water... so nice and d Tv was big. My fren is a TV addict. No TV No Life!
Day two
Had quite a bad nite... dogs were barking. Wau provided breakfast... Nasi lemak n coffee.. Nice. Then we decided to see what Jerantut has to offer. Drove to Lata Meraung. On d way, make sure stop by near d market at the Malay stalls.. found delicious pulut with coconut for only RM 1.

Lets face the truth.... interesting places like this waterfall is diffucult to locate and the road leading to it is winding and narrow. The roads were seriously narrow but you will be rewarded if you go in June or July. Why? Your saliva will meleleh cos many durian trees on d way there.

The water was freezing cold n d best part of all, we had the whole waterfall to ourselves.. Soaking the tired feet. Saw many colourfly dragonflies. Had our tea on rocks. So refreshing away from people.



After Lata, went to Kuala Tembeling, a stop to board boats to Taman Negara which was our next destination.Dinner was good. On Saturday nites, there will be a pasar malam nearby the main market in town. The nasi kerabu is  good n cheap. Only RM2 to fill your hungry tummy.Nearby, you will find a delicious yong tauhu stall which is halal managed by two sisters. A big portion for less than RM5. My fren liked the chicken murtabak for only RM 3 which is good.

Mat Leon.. my guide in Taman Negara

Day 3... My fear
Many times, i asked myself , am I prepared ? I am timid n afraid of the dark since young. Drove to Kuala Tahan abt an hr from Jerantut. The road were quite winding for me. I had reservation in Mat Leon Chalet.After locating the chalet, i had to continue half of my journey on foot since it was not accessible by my froggie. The chalet is in a hill surronded by trees. My heart sank when i had to use a small wooden bridge ( a titi joined by a few planks) the gouge was deep. I crossed not looking down.Fear One.

These are the ONLY stairs leading to the chalet.. A good way to overcome FEAR.

Look inside the barren homes of Orang Asli.. Be THANKFUL

The chalet given was clean with two beds and mosquito nets which are obsolete. The toilet was not too good for me. But when i sat down talked to Mat Leon, the owner, my fear went away. A very capable young man who also worked as a guard in Taman negara. By the way, the wife is the cook in the chalets with two beautiful sons.

First stop: Canopy walk. Quite nice but be prepared if you fear high.. Do not look down.
Second Stop;;;the most interesting boat on Tahan River. The water is superb cold. The sampan is so small. Went up river to see the rapids. Be prepare to get wet( thats the fun part).

Look carefully at the lady in the background.

Third Stop... I believe that people touches n leaves print in our heart to change us .My next stop took to an Orang Asli settlement along the river. They are the Batek people . I was told that about 2000 of them in Taman Negara. When I first the women folks, they were shy and quickly walked into their huts. The men folk were welcoming us in a friendly manner so used to have tourist around them.

This hut was used to film the series Survivor some time back in this village of Orang Asli

What touched me was the simply way that they led their lives without all the basic neccesarities that we take for granted like electricity and modern day clothes. The women only covered themselves in simple sarong.It struck me that I am too pampered since i have cupboards full of clothes.Always complaining that i don't have enough.So maybe it is good if I had the chance to bring my kids to see.They looked so happy and contented!

The simple homes of Orang Asli.

Forth stop:
The night walk was supposed to view wild animals in natural habitat but what i saw was holiday folks walking and talking loud like a night market. So I didn't get to see much but a bird- eating spider which was blue in colour.

Lata Berkoh

Awesome place. Going there is better than this picture.

Day2 in Taman Negara
I was asked to be ready for my morning tour. Right after breakfast, boarded the sampan and set sail to Lata Berkoh. The journey to this paradise would open anyone's heart about the peaceful surrounding and the atmosphere that takes your breathe away. Then only you will realise why the Orang Batek choose to permanently along Tahan River.
No camera shots will be able to express my feeling but along the journey, I felt so calm and serena. This ride is worth much more than a thousand words.Take it!

These are the steps leading to Bukit Teresek.

NEXT>>>> Bukit Teresek

Look how huge is the root this tree !

Since I exercise daily in the gym, naturally I assumed that I am fit but this climb challenged me. Started in the late afternoon. Beginning was okay but it got more steep with only narrow steps leading to the summit. We climbed without a guide but it was cleared marked to follow. It is best to go on dry days cos the path is only clay and lots lots of trees of enormous size with roots hanging over your head. Some parts were spooky and I kept on prayer... Be Brave. This is not my comfort zone.
Finally after more than an hour reached the summit, in my heart I told myself that I just might from exhaustion and ten times tougher than running a marathon.Anyway, i survived without killing myself or an animal.
Conclusion: ;: Visit Taman Negara with open heart.
                      Go during dry season .
                      Be prepared to walk.