Leech fest in Endau Rompin National Park

14 - 17 April 2010

We decided to venture into a national park next and the 4D3N camping package @ RM690 each by Journey Malaysia was just the thing.

Since the pickup was from Kluang, took the opportunity to call up my fav matie Paulie to see if we could bunk at his place. Paul stays in JB but his parents have a place up in Kluang so he said sure, we're welcome to stay. Turned out to be a funny story as his parents gave him the wrong keys and we spent half an hour climbing into the house trying to break in. His dad had to drive an hour up from JB to pass us the correct set of keys in the end. Malu only to let the old man drive so far.

Anyway, that's shy Paulie having breakfast at the Kluang Railway Station. Buns are not as good as I remembered it to be. Sigh.. franchising & commercialisation..

Orang Asli guide Lop & driver Man picked us at 10am from the station to take us on a 3 hour drive to the national park - the last 1 1 /2 hour of the journey was through 30km of half-sealed dirt roads with potholes the size of full-grown pigs. Urgh.. queasy.. almost puked.

Arrived finally for lunch at Lop's house. He led us to a small sampan which would take us an hour upriver to the start of our trek to base camp. The boat ride was my favourite part of the trip.

Our simple boat

The hour trek in to our Kuala Marong camp site was relatively easy although we were carrying our gears with us. The 2 guides - Lop & Choi - carried most of the stuff like our camping gear, food & cooking utensils.

The hour trek in to Kuala Marong camp site

Camp site's pretty basic. So different from the ones in Europe haha. No fancy campervans, laundry rooms or bars. Just a plain ground to set up camp, makeshift toilets, an area to cook and a few gazebos to lepak on. Oh, and no electricity. Besides us, the only guests there were 3 young Singaporean boys who left the next day. We basically had the camp site all to ourselves.

The Kuala Marong campsite

There is a nice part further up the river called Tasik Biru bout 5 minutes from our campsite where you can bathe in. Spent the rest of the day chilling there watching the Kelah fishes which are protected by the way. No fishing allowed here.

Tasik Biru, 5 mins from our camp site

Oooh! The orang aslis brought along a treat for us. 2 huge frogs!!! They skinned and cooked it for us stew-like. Yuums!!! Our meals are really elaborate too for the place we're in. Stir-fry chicken & veges, omelet, curry beef, etc. They even provided us with biscuits and tea during tea time.

Froggies for dinner... yuums!

They showed us how to look for and catch frogs too that night. Had to wade up the river in the dark coz I didn't bring a torch light. Silly me. These frogs apparently grow up to 1.5kg! Freakin huge wei! You gotta catch them at their hind legs. I tried catching a small one by covering him with my palm but let go when he squirmed underneath. Geli le..

We hiked to Buaya Sangkut waterfalls the next day. It's a gruelling 3 hour hike there and another 3 hours back. Trek was infested with leeches and I was so tired by the time we got back but felt good cause I finished it. Great exercise. Can feel my butt muscles tightening hehe. Built a bonfire that night and sat under the stars enjoying each other's company and telling stories.

Bloody leeches. I'm still itching - 2 weeks later. Infected pula.


Buaya Sangkut waterfall

It rained at 6am on the 3rd day and rain started seeping into our tent coz the fly wasn't secured properly. We decided to shift our stuff to the gazebo and slept the rest of the morn there in our sleeping bags. What a start to the day! But all part of the adventure..

Drying our clothes in the sun

Trekked to Upeh Guling waterfalls, quite a nice place 15 minutes from our camp. It's nicer than Buaya Sangkut but we didn't feel like taking a dip so just sat around enjoying the view.

Upeh Guling waterfalls

Trekked an hour after lunch to our next camp, Kuala Jasin. Camp site's not as nice as it's more 'modern' with lots of concrete and chalets (all unoccupied). Again, we were the only ones at the camp so we had an upgrade and set up tent on a gazebo. Place was filled with mozzies in the aft so we decided to trek an hour up the steep Gunung Jasin Barat. My poor thighs... but view at the top was good as we could see Upeh Guling falls (a tiny dot in the distance).

Headed back to KG Peta, the orang asli village on the fourth day. Lop showed us the various traps used by them to trap animals from mousedeers to elephants. Trapped Jerry in a cage too! Played with the blowpipes and I hit the baloon target! It was more plain luck rather than skill ;).

Orang asli devices to trap & kill various animals

It was a pity we didn't bring any money as I wanted to tip the guides. They were very good, friendly and helpful. It was a great 4 days in the jungle as we got to get away from it all and there was absolutely no pollution - machine or people - and the only noises we heard were the natural sounds of the jungle.

Redang - Conveniently packaged

Fri 9 to Sun 11 April 2010

It was the weekend again and we were eager to go off on another adventure. Jerry wanted to go snorkelling. Dilemma time - All the nearby beaches are crap and the gorgeous ones so far away! Trimmed it down to Pulau Payar near Langkawi, Pulau Perhentian, Pulau Tioman or Pulau Redang.

My decision was made when my colleague Yasmin said that she was going to Redang that weekend. Turned out she went to Dungun instead hmph!! But alls good as I've never been to Redang so at least I can say I've been there.

Redang is funny in a sense that it's not convenient to make a trip to the island unless you buy the package deals from the resorts - all similar standard 3D2N deals which include accommodation, full-board meals and 3 snorkelling trips. Mask & life jacket rental @RM10 each is separate
. Here's a good site that has the rates, facilities & location of the resorts.

Being a cheapskate, I chose one of the budget ones at Redang Lagoon for the package deal of RM290 each. Cheap huh? Yea, but you'll see why later.

Our chalet for 2 nights - not bad - quite spacious w queen bed, air-con & attached toilet

Jerry wasted no time chilling in a hammock

There was plenty of food - buffet breakfast, lunch, tea & dinner. All local malay cooking of course but one night they provided BBQ which was quite a spread - fish, squid, chicken, etc

BBQ night - cook yourself

Redang Island has gorgeously fine white sand which is soo soft to the touch. The waters are pristine clear. Was surprised that we can see straight to the bottom as there were a few boats moored by the beach. The boat fuels don't seem to affect the waters much.

Clear waters in Redang



Saw this at a dive shop - hilarious! Why does the fish need an oxygen tank??

Let me tell you why you shouldn't take cheap packages. If it's too good to be true, it probably comes with many catches. At the risk of sounding racist, I would prefer if a resort has guests of mixed races.

Coming from KL, I happily brought my skimpy swimsuit (a 2 piece that is joined in the middle - yes, very sexy mind you) and thus received the stares of the other extremely decently clad guests (long sleeves, long pants. Even the guys never took their shirts off). What more, I was holding a Mat Salleh's hand. :P Poor Jerry was the only white meat there. The rest of the Matsys were staying at nicer upper class resorts.

Oh, and because we were paying budget rates, they packed the entire resort of god knows how many people into 2 small boats. It was a task each time to battle for squatting places on the floor. Made us feel just like refugees.

Check out the over-loaded boat. And this was taken after quarter of us were in the water.

Snorkelling was not too bad though. Went to deeper seas on the first day and the Marine Park and another site nearer to a beach on the second. Saw a puffer fish, a Moray Eel, plenty of Nemos and baby sharks!!! Jerry was attacked by a huge parrot fish who chased him for 50metres. hehehe. That's what you get for sneaking up on a fish enjoying his lunch. Pics taken with my underwater Olympus compact.

Mr Moray Eel.

The best snorkelling site for me was the area just in front of our resort. Plenty of marine life to see and 7 baby reef or sand sharks swim near to shore each day. Had the most fun chasing after these sharks.

Baby sharks - just right in front of our resort very near to shore

Nemo

Colourful corals at a shipwreck just off the Marine Park

Despite the refugee-like conditions of the boat trips, Redang is not too bad. Better go quick before the government makes it unaffordable for common folks!

Made it up Gunung Datuk!

Sunday 4 April 2010

Woke up eager & all coz we were gonna make today a 'healthy' day. Walked down to Be Yoga at Metropolitan Square for the weekly Karma Yoga but class was cancelled that week! Darn. Was so looking forward to that. Karma Yoga is a free yoga class that happens every Sunday at 11am. It's good karma to give back to the community and the only t&c to participate in this class is a minimum donation of RM10 that goes to charity. The yoga teacher doesn't get anything.

Anyway... since yoga was cancelled, called up Su & Edmund to tell them we will pick them up earlier to head to Gunung Datuk in Rembau. This the directions to the place :

Get on the Seremban Highway and exit at the Pedas Linggi toll
Turn left after toll and straight on till you reach a roundabout.
Take a 3 o'clock and straight on till you reach a traffic light
Turn right at lights and continue for a few ks till you see the sign to Hutan Lipur Gunung Datuk
Turn left into the rubber estates and take a left at the fork
Continue till you reach the park.

There are a few parking spaces, a makan store, a surau and an office at the park. It's quite clean and orderly. You gotta register with the park ranger at RM3 per person. That's to keep track of you in case you don't make it down the hill. Ranger told us it's bout 2 hours up & 1 1/2 hours down.

Find a red sign and walk down the steps and cross a bridge at the river. The trail starts immediately after the bridge. We started our hike at 2.30pm.

It's a steep steep walk up. urgh! Was out of breath right at the very beginning. Jerry barged up the hill while I went at a slower pace to wait up for Su & Edmund. Su gave up after a while and told us to fuck ourselves as she sat down to read her book so its onwards up without them then.

Beginning part of the climb.

Su giving up while Edmund accompanied her - awww cho chweet

I slogged up after Jerry after that. That ox is so bloody fit he just kept charging up the hill. I thought I could keep up with his pace but I was sadly mistaken. The hill just kept on going up and up and up! No flat ground at all! If you ever been to Gasing, it's like going up that steep hill for 45 minutes non-stop! Urgh. I almost gave up as I couldn't catch up to him and almost turned back but then Jerry took pity and waited up for me. I would have never made it up that hill if it was not for his support. Thank you darling!

See the annoyed look on his face as he waited up for me? ;)

We passed a group who we thought was resting but as we neared, we saw a girl on a stretcher. Poor thing was hyperventilating as her friend was rubbing her chest to calm her down. Hope the same fate doesn't befall me!

After suffering for almost one and a half hours - remind me why I do this to myself again? We finally reached some huge boulders, an indication that the summit is almost within reach! We made it faster than normal as Jerry's a Speedy Gonzales. :P

The iron ladders were ricketly tied to the rocks with metal wires - not exactly the most reassuring thing at all. The ladders shift as we climbed! Had all sorts of paranoid images of tumbling head first down to the rocks below. It was almost 4pm by then.

Climbing up the first flight of ladders

We reached an open area at after the first flight of ladders only to be greeted by another 2 flights of dodgy metal rungs. These were worse than the first ladders as it actually moved under our feet!

Took a pic at the first open area. See! I made it!

The view was worth the climb. You can see the Straits of Malacca from there and a few ships sailing the waters. Greenery stretched as far as the eyes can see and birdies were flying high in the skies which was right next to us! You can even see the farmlands and dots of houses scattered below.

Chilled there for half an hour enjoying the scenery and each other's company before I got a bit chilly and wanted to head down. Thanks Su for the Snickers bars! The ranger told us it would take 1 1/2 hours to get down and I didn't want to be caught in the jungle when it gets dark.

The view at the top

We practically ran all the way down. Courtesy of Mr Gadd again who thinks he's some sort of sure-footed mouse deer or something. Bruised my leg and almost tumbled down. hmphh!

We reached the bottom in 45 minutes! But legs were all shaky by then.

Paid the price for it days and days later.. walked as though I had it from the back AND the front. Urgh... SORE. And why do I do this to myself again? Guess I never learn :)

A walk in the KL Bird Park

Saturday 3 April 2010

Got up early to watch Anja teach some young girls to jump at Bukit Kiara. Enquired about the riding packages and it would cost bout less than a K for a package of 10 lessons. Hmmm contemplating... lessons would come in handy when I get my own pegasus huh?

We initially wanted to ride the Hop On Hop Off bus but was feeling lazy.. so decided to head to Lake Gardens instead and check out the... KL Bird Park! hahha haven't been there like since it opened in 1991! They were marketing it as the largest walk-in aviary in the world! Trust Malaysia to have the biggest, longest, widest, fattest, etc :P

Anyways, tix was RM15 for Malaysians and RM42 for non. Sheesh. What a price difference. Managed to sneak Jerry in for the Malaysian price hehe.

Birds at the park

The park's pretty cool. Quite a big one divided in to zones, among them the Flightless Birds, Oriental Birds, Hornbills, Flamingo Pond.. and can't remember the rest. Most of the birds are free to fly except for the predators which were enclosed in smaller cages. Weird. The small birds get huge flying spaces and the larger birds, cramped style. Guess they'll be eating all the birds if they were set free.

The park

Walked in on some storks performing some weird ritual

There's this Lory (Buring Nuri) feeding area where the birds will just flock to you to eat sunflower seeds. Greedy little buggers they are. Jerry said the red birds' feet were warmer than the green ones. Enjoyed the session very much.

Feeding the Nuris

We managed to catch the Bird Show where they had macaws and an eagle performing tricks for us such as counting, flying through hoops and riding bikes. Wonder if they enjoy performing tricks for humans like how dogs enjoy pleasing their masters? The trainer said it takes 6 months to teach a macaw one trick. sheesh. that's a lot of time. Thank god dogs are smarter.. but I thought birds were smart? Bird brains..

The bird show

The eagles were fed dead chicks and fish which were thrown into the air for the eagles to catch. We saw them gruesomely disemboweling the chick. Very graphic wei.. looked so pitiful coz can see its head and little feet.. Here's what was left of the chick.

Eagle kill

Park's quite a good place to go if you haven't been there in a while. Hey, a healthy day out is always good.

Instruments of torture from the dark Medieval days

Sunday 28 March 2010

Human beings are sick. Well, you can argue that so am I cause I wanted to go for this exhibition. My colleague was telling me about it and since Jerry hasn't been to Malacca, why not kill 2 birds with 1 stone?

Tortura 2 is an exhibition of torture instruments & methods used during the Medieval days, one of the most violent eras in history. The exhibition has been making its rounds around the world and was featured on History Channel recently. The website said it ends in Feb but when we went there in March, the exhibition was still on (due to popular demand it seems) so try your luck or call them to check. It's at the Malay Museum (opp the square) next to A Famosa.

I don't know why people are so fascinated by gore. Is there a dark beast lurking in all of us? Why does the entire town come out in droves everytime there's a public execution and why do the cheers get louder when someone is further humilated or mutilated? Just think Hostel and you really doubt humanity.

I found this in L.A. Parry's 1975 b­ook "A History of Torture in England" that attempted to explain why people would spend so much time & thought in inventing a device designed to hurt, maim and kill another human being.

­"...What strikes us most in considering the mediaeval tortures, is not so much their diabolical barbarity … as the extraordinary variety, and what may be termed the artistic skill, they displayed. They represent a condition of thought in which men had pondered long and carefully on all the forms of suffering, had compared and combined the different kinds of torture, till they had become the most consummate masters of their art, had expended on the subject all the resources of the utmost ingenuity, and had pursued it with the ardour of a passion."

Some instruments of torture back in the days

Of all the heinous methods, this one was the worse for me - and it used such a simple device. This was simply called The Saw.

It was popular all over the country as tools are easily available and it can be done almost anywhere. Victims, both men and women, were stripped naked and hung upside down with their legs spread apart. It was a cheap way to torture and kill a victim who was often accused of witchery, adultery, murder, blasphemy or even theft.

The torturer will start sawing from the groin and because the victim is hung upside down, blood flow to the brain keeps the victim alive longer. Most pass out when the saw reaches the navel and die when it reaches the heart. The fucking navel! Can't imagine the agony. Don't want to.

The Saw

The rack is the most common one used across Europe, where the victim's hands and feet are tied at each end. A crank will stretch the ropes further, which in turn, pulls on the victim's hands and feet. The muscles and ligaments will tear from the flesh first and after more cranks, the limbs will be dislocated and eventually pulled out of their sockets with an audible pop. Some racks have spike rollers behind the back which maims and paralyses the victim.

The Rack

The Wheel consists of a large wooden wheel with many variations. Victims were tied to the wheel and pushed down a rocky hillside or across metal spikes. The wheel itself could also have spikes mounted on it, so the pain came from all directions. Victims are grilled over fire too.

This one is quite bad - the victim would have the bones in all four limbs broken in two places and the shattered limbs threaded through the spokes of the wheel. The victim might be alive for hours, enduring the agony of his or her mangled arms and legs and the relentless heat of the sun and birds.

The Wheel

The Iron Maiden was an upright coffin with spikes on the doors and insides. Once the victim was inside, the doors were closed and the strategically placed spikes would pierce several vital organs. Two spikes are positioned specifically to penetrate the eyes. The spikes are not long enough to cause death and even blocks the wound, so it might take hours or days before the victim dies an antagonising death.

The Iron Maiden

The Judas Cradle involves placing the victim’s anus or vagina on top of a pyramid-like seat for hours or days. Weights are tied to the legs to increase pain. If the victim did not die quickly enough, they would invariantly die from an infection.

Judas Cradle

On a lighter note, lots of renovation works have been done to Malacca and there are a few new attractions since Malacca was declared a UNESCO Heritage in July 2008. You won't be able to recognise the Portuguese Settlement as they've tiled the pavements, added streetlights, and the wooden jetty is concrete now. Diners sit within a brightly-lit square with proper concrete stalls now. Not sure which one I like better. Oh - and they didn't give a shit about Earth Hour :P

Tubing in KKB

Friday 12 February 2010

If you're into rafting, you might already know that the water in Sg Selangor is way too low to do anything with it. There is another alternative though, although a much milder one. Try tubing instead.

Margy, the River Goddess, from Tracks, offers tubing upriver, somewhere above the dam. Rapids are not as swift (class I & II) as the rafting ones (class III - IV) used to be but it's still a blast anyway. Some pics from our ride before CNY.

More more about tubing here as I wrote about it for Star Weekender.

And since KKB is so near Fraser's Hill, why not make the drive up since you're already half way there?

Surfing in Malaysia? Yea you gotta believe it

19 - 21 March 2010

Yes yes I’ve been lazy! Or busy more likely… My darling Jerry is here and we’ve been too caught up exploring Asia that I’ve been neglecting my blog. Tubing at KKB, hikes at Fraser’s Hill, CNY with the family, Cameron Highlands, Bali, Samui, Phangan.. and now Cherating. Phew.. what a hectic month! Will try to upload if I have time.

Collage of what we did the past month

After a week’s breather in KL where Jerry got so bored he cleaned the house (which was really sweet of him), we decided to head to Cherating to check out the surf. Yes. There IS surf in Malaysia. Did some research and got in touch with SatuSuku Surf, apparently the only surf school in Malaysia. Harun 012-2237546 was so kind to even book a chalet (RM60 a night) for us at Payung Guesthouse.

SatuSuku Surf in Cherating

Our chalet at Payung Guest House

Surfing, mainly left-hander breaks, can be done in Cherating during the monsoon season (Nov-March) and it’s best during low tide. There’s basically just one spot where you can catch the waves and it’s great for beginners as the current doesn’t pull you out to sea.

Was surprised watching the surfers. The local guys are quite good! The little kids especially. Quite interesting to watch them riding the waves without a care in the world. Paddling out against the current looked tiring though.

Jerry waxing his board before hitting the waves

Jerry caught a few waves and I could almost hear him squealing in delight as he rode it with a huge grin on his face. Kk.. couldn’t really see him from so far but I could imagine it! He even woke up early to catch the morning waves in the heavy rain and all.

Catching some waves

Managed to video the last half of his wave

Besides surfing, there’s nothing much to do here. Cherating is really really really quiet! Very surprising as I thought it would be packed cause of school holidays but it felt like a ghost town. We walked up and down several times and kept meeting the same people trying to while away time.

Deserted Cherating

It rained the whole of Saturday, just our luck as the locals said it hasn’t been raining the past few days. Luckily it stopped at night and we were able to go on the firefly trip along the river. The boatman apologized to us saying that not many are out because of the rain but I thought there were quite a lot of fireflies anyway.

It was a pretty sight, with hundreds of tiny lights lighting up the trees as we cruised down the river in our little boat. Our boatman had a red light which attracted the fireflies and we managed to catch a few and watch it blink on our palms. Don’t worry.. no insects were hurt during the entire process..:) He did say the river had crocodiles and a 5m one was tangled in a fisherman’s net a few years back. Hmm..

This was the ONLY pic I that turned out ok. Rest was just pitch black.

Visited the turtle sanctuary (next to Club Med) before we left as it was just 2km away. Nothing much to see there except for the turtles swimming in the pool. Entrance is free but donations are encouraged. We were lucky as we got to see 10 5-day-old turtle hatchlings which were sooo cute! They released the rest into the sea already. Takes 20 years before they grow up & come back to lay their eggs. Long time huh?

Cherating Turtle Sanctuary

That’s all for our weekend in Cherating. Will try to upload more when I have time. Till our next adventure…