Cameron Highlands (27-29/6/13) Day 1

We started our journey at 5.30 am on 27/6.  The traffic along the north-south highway was light as it is a weekday, we stopped by Restoran Jejantas Ayer Keroh for a light breakfast at KFC am.  The food was nice but the coffee needs improvement.  We reach Simpang Pulai at around 12.00 pm, where we had our lunch before starting the ascend to Cameron Higlands at 1.00 pm.  There are actually two roads leading to Cameron Highlands, one from Tapah and the other from Simpang Pulai.  Unlike the road from Tapah, the road from Simpang Pulai is in way better condition.  Not only is the road wider with better surface, the turns are also not that sharp compared to those along the Tapah-Tanah Rata road.  Here are some pictures taken along the road:

 This kind of mountain can be frequently found around Perak, forming beautiful scenery along the road.

Formed by limestone or granite I guess?

 So like I said, the road condition from Simpang Pulai is quite good with wider road and less sharp turns, reminded me of the East-West highway from Jeli to Grik.

The view of the mountains are amazing, and it was not long before we wind down the windows to enjoy the cool air from outside.  

Though nobody get nauseated or needed a rest, we still stopped by halfway, eager to enjoy the cool breeze and the scenery, and of course, to pose for some photos =)

It was drizzling when we finally reached Heritage Hotel, Tanah Rata at around 2.30 pm.  After checking into the apartment pre-booked for free courtesy of my aunt, we settled down and tried to acclimatize ourselves to the lower-than-tolerable temperature.  The climate of Cameron Highlands might not be as cold as several years back, but it still makes your teeth chatter especially during rainy days, so yes, jackets, sweater, blankets and socks are in the must-bring list.

Despite the drizzle getting heavier, we went out at about 4 pm, with no specific destination in mind, we drove along the road and well, see what interests.  Though we cannot manage to visit many places, we still took some photos along the way. 

Some of the most beautiful flowers I saw in my entire life: a hibiscus, a rose and a chrysanthemum.  Cold climate with plenty of rain, Cameron Highlands is no doubt a paradise for them. 

My last encounter with pitcher plants was in Bako National Park, Kuching, in their natural habitat.  It was only when I was in Cameron Highlands that I found out that they can be grown in our gardens.  Wondered if it is grown for the purpose of eliminating small insects like flies or mosquitoes, hmm...

One of the most famous success story of Cameron Highlands: The strawberries!

After driving around for almost 2 hours, we decided to have an early dinner and head back to the hotel.  With us being starved in this cold weather, some hot soupy food in a hot pot sounds like a good idea.  So we head to Brinchang and enter a restaurant based solely on our intuition.  Nevertheless, it was a satisfying dinner.

We went straight back to the hotel after dinner.  We did go out again after that to pack some supper from a nearby restaurant.  We were all tired from the whole day journey and went to sleep after supper.  Anticipating for tomorrow =)