Love is like friendship set on fire .

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Hello my dear earthlings !

It's been some time since I've last blogged and I tend to make up for my hiatus .

So anyways , most of you should have already know by now that I was at Tambun , Perak , away on a social visit . A social visit that consumed 4 precious days of my holiday .

Now at first , I thought it was going to be a complete waste of time as Tambun was an isolated , deserted and barren place that was only good for Tambun biscuits .

However , spending 4 long days there proved otherwise .

Yes , there weren't any Internet connection that I was able to grab hold and use of unless I go to the nearest McDonalds outlet but I surprisingly found quite a number of activities and characteristics about that place that makes it oh so charming .

For instance , the air was constantly cool and calm as my residence is somewhat nearby million-year-old granite/marble hills that if observed from high above in the skies , I bet it looks pretty much like a giant rock covered in rich lush moss .

Other than that , the fabled food in Ipoh has lived up to it's reputation too ( most of the time ) and I'll tell ya' , we were eating and eating like nobody's business . And of course , whenever one has nothing to do and is bored out of his mind , he eats .

And oh , how we ate .

Besides all of that , I can pretty much say that my trip down to Tambun wasn't all of that waste of time as I also got the opportunity to visit Cameron Highlands !

Yes , Cameron Highlands .. the place where tea plantations grow richly in vast amounts . And particularly , the ever-green and lush BOH tea leaves which provides an outcome of delicious and aromatic tea .


But before I rant on and on unstoppably about how great my trip really was , here are the photos I've taken throughout the visit to the north .

I'll narrate some , so you know what I'm thinking about when the photo was being taken .


Enjoy !

Day One

My family and I arrived and settled in on our first day ( Monday ) with a sunny side greeting , Tambun-style !

We didn't do much on the first day as my dad was assigned to work immediately after dropping us at what would turn out to be our home .

Throughout the afternoon , us three ( my mum , cousin and I ) spent hours and hours of leisure at the Jusco shopping mall in Ipoh . We were merely window shopping as there were few to no sales at all .

We burnt plenty of time at Secret Recipe though , chowing down on their cheesy macaroni pasta and some delicious cake whose name I cannot seem to recall . And to help fasten the process of time-burning , we bought newspaper at the nearby bookstore and started reading about the daily what's-what .

After dinner , we went home and I rested my heavy head on a nice fat pillow . And that's pretty much about it for day one .

I couldn't really sleep till' the clock showed 12.30 as the excitement of tomorrow's roadtrip to Cameron Highlands constantly buzzed through my head ~ And early the next day , we left for our one day trip to the highlands .

Day Two

It was a cold , cool and calm morning with
a slight hint of rain showers .

Spotted a spider eating a fly

Yes , Sunway College Ipoh .
Apparently , Sunway has even spread it's dynamic claws
to the rural areas of Tambun . And where there's Sunway homes and colleges ,
there's definitely a theme park too .
In this case , the Lost World of Tambun .

Sunway here is already preparing for Christmas .

Before we headed towards the high home of Cameron ,
this was my breakfast !
Kai Si Hor Fun
:D

As you can see , it was already starting to get very misty amongst
the hills .

On the highway up there , you couldn't see a damn thing below
due to the heavy mist .

Beyond that mist-filled hill lies our destination .

At one point , we were driving in a blanket of mist that
limits our vision completely .

I have no idea how my dad managed to drive through
this crap .

Our first stop ..

It is clear from what the giant billboard depicts
that this place offers plenty of strawberry products ;
anything and everything from jam to ice-cream , and even
dried strawberries .

God bless Macro .

Aimed my handphone up high ,
and snapped a photo of this exotic flower .

I am lying if I said that I wasn't surprised to see
how huge the hibiscus flowers were .
Some were even bigger than my head !

They were selling small portions of authentic honey combs
in small boxes for a whopping RM 7 each !
And boy , were they sweet .

Almost there ...

Our first glance on the famed tea leaves plantation .

We spent some time wondering around the bushes of these
tea plants . I was determined to see what was beyond this hill so ,
I climbed all the way to the top .

As I reached the summit of the hill , I had a spectacular view of the surroundings .
Especially when this plantation stretches out for a mile or so .

I truly believe that what goes up must come down .
In this case , me . I was at the top of the hill and the only way down was to backtrack my
steps down the steep hill or to detour far the other end to get back down .
As a dedicated blogger , I've just risked my life backtracking my steps downwards the
steep slope just to get that perfect picture .

Lovely as they may seem , these flowers are dead poisonous !

We had teatime at the nearby cafe and had a currypuff , carrot cake
and vanilla cake with poppy seeds as snacks .

Of course , there can be no doubt that the only thing you look forward to
when visiting a tea plantation is , inevitably and evidently ,
tea .

One told me , of China Roses ..

We again , had something to eat at a place that serves charcoal steamboat ,
and the trademark for this restaurant is their watercress .
Watercress , are my all-time favorite vegetable . They have this exquisite and
unique flavor that really makes it all-that delicious .

The restaurant on the left , the watercress plantation
on the right

Told you some of the hibiscus were bigger than my head

Enjoyed a great steamboat under the cool and windy weather

That's how they grow and harvest watercress

We hiked all the way down .
Up there , was where we ate .

Beyond the watercress plantation ,
was a vegetable farm .
Do you see the green bush at the bottom left part of the picture ?
That used to be a car .

Spotted this as we were on our way after our steamboat meal .
Perhaps this is a calling ..

Once we've travelled back to Tambun ,
we settled down for dinner at an open air-ed food court .
Had to take a picture of this .

Day Four

My parents sent me and my cousin off , back to civilization .
We just couldn't wait till' Saturday .

The view from the balcony above

This colonial-style train station also functions as a hotel
which accommodates travellers and backpackers both local and foreign .
Back in the day , this was their version of an elevator .

We had something to munch before leaving for a 2 hour journey
to KL Central .

The names of all the British troops that fought bravely and died
protecting the state of Perak .

There you have it people , one more time .

My cousin and I chose the newly installed electric train as our mode of
transportation back home .
Apparently , this train travels at a speed that allows us to reach back to KL in 2 hours time .

Notice the speed ?
Yeah , we were travelling at 145km/h .
Ignore the Tom and Jerry cartoon . That's the only thing they put on show
throughout the 2 hour journey .










THE END
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So , was this trip a total waste of time like what I've said before ?

Perhaps . Perhaps not . Well , let's see .

For the past four days , I was surrounded by breathtaking views of million year old granite/marble hill formations that surround not only where I'm staying but the whole of Ipoh too . The smell of fresh air from trees of mountains nearby once they have cooled down from the afternoon sun . The residents that jog past one another during the evenings but at the same time peeping at each other curiously .

The place where I was staying at was a fenced area , providing a comfortable and cozy yet secure environment for children to play sports on the wide streets of the compound .

Blocks and blocks of apartments that functions as rooms and spaces to let for contractors , engineers and workers to stay in whilst their project is being completed reminds me a little bit of what university life would be ; dormitory rooms and corridors .

There was a multi-racial community going on , even though most of us carried on with our daily blessings without delay . These apartments also houses MASTERSKILL students who gather in large groups of white uniform every morning at the gated entrance to be transported to their respective campus .

As the sun began to rest its head which signifies an end to a tiring day , I can hear the muttering of people greeting each other with stories of the day .

Other than that , the wide diversity of indigenous wildlife that surrounds the residential area which comprises mostly of birds , insects and wild dogs ( of the many that I can spot ) .




In conclusion , with a pair of freshly aired lungs , a luggage bag filled with clothes in need of washing , my beloved pair of Adidas tennis shoes dirtied by the soil of the lands of Cameron , a whole bunch of pictures ready to serve me as memory lane , I cannot fully say that my trip down here was a total waste of time .

I've experienced a town , no , scratch that .

I've experienced two towns ( Ipoh and Tambun ) famed for its food , witnessed the old and slow rural lifestyle of the retirees going about what's left of their lives , saw the elegant beauty of the ancient marble , granite hills and mountains of the Titiwangsa Range , the colourful diversity of wildlife such as spiders , king fishers , huge grasshoppers and wild dogs that I've encountered throughout this trip to Tambun .

In the end , I was torn apart by the mixed feelings of wanting to stay and embrace the peaceful yet illuminating aura of this place but at the same time , dying to return to the place I call civilization . But a decision must be made , and an action has been done .

Perhaps I've underestimated this place .

Perhaps the glorious town of Ipoh and Tambun does have it's charm ( although it could use technologies such as the Internet ) .

I guess it all comes down to how you spend your time while staying at a foreign place . A foreign place that has attached a bond to me , that will last me months to come ..






- Jaden -