We met up at the famous morning market in Cameron Highlands. We headed to the popular Sungai Palas Boh Tea plantation in Brinchang. The road leading into this tea plantation is very hidden. You really have to pay attention to sign boards in the surrounding area so as not to miss it. One prominent land mark would be the Bee Farm opposite the junction to the tea plantation. Anyway, Cameron Highlands has only 1 road running through it. If you miss it just do a U-turn and try to look for it again.
I always enjoy the drive into the tea plantation due to the vastness of the tea plantation. Seas of tea plants blanket the slopes and valleys. From afar, it looks like the whole mountain is covered by green carpets. The only risk while driving is bumping into the oncoming cars as the road is extremely narrow and winding. At the winding corners, you cannot even see the oncoming cars. Therefore, as you drive along with your windows screened down, you can hear blares of car honks here and there. And, if you hear one close enough to you, it means you have got to slow down and "negotiate" your way through. If given the chance, I would enjoy walking along this winding road rather than driving. With the cool chilled wind and fresh air, it will be a joy to do so. However, not many would be up for it as it is quite a distant from the junction to the tea plantation. For those who has plenty of time to spare, do take it slow and walk in while enjoying the scenery along the way. You definitely cannot miss 2 English Colonial style houses perched on the mountain slope facing the tea plantations. If you are walking, perhaps you can even find a way to get there and share with me more stories about that place. I have no idea if it is private property or an inn or some sort of attraction.
Sungai Palas Boh Tea Plantation lives up to its name. 6 years ago when I visited, there were tables and chairs placed on the plains right beside tea plants for us to sip tea and enjoy scones. Back then, it was very pristine, quiet, relaxing and calm. Even though there were other patrons but the fact that we were practically enveloped by tea plants all around made us lower our tone and respect nature. It was paradise. Fast forward to 6 years after, Boh company has built a glass-surrounded platform extended out from the edge of a slope. This platform allows you to fall into the arms of valleys and hills of tea plantations.
Since we were visiting a tea plantation, it would only be reasonable if we ordered tea. We had the earl grey with tangerine and scone, banana carrot cake, sandwiches, butter lemon cake to go with the tea. The scone didn't taste that wonderful. I have tried better scone elsewhere in Cameron Highlands, ie in Bala's Holiday Chalet in Brinchang. However, the butter lemon cake and sandwiches were tasty. If you are interested in finding out how tea leaves are produced, you can have a quick tour at the factory. The noise can be a tad deafening though.
Accommodation in Cameron Highlands is aplenty. You never run out of choices but they do run out of rooms during peak season like school holidays, public holidays. If you are planning a trip to Cameron Highlads, do plan well. For my family of 6, we rented a bungalow that is pet-friendly. It turned out to be a huge bungalow that has been renovated to accommodate more guests for business purpose. Imagine a large bungalow sub-divided into rooms so that these rooms can be rented out. But, i do not have complaints overall. Toilets are clean, so are the rooms.
Our next stop was MARDI short for Malaysian Agriculture Research and Development Institute, i think. MARDI is situated opposite the bungalow we rented. It is so near that we could just walk there without breaking into a sweat even though the bungalow is situated on a hill top. This park demands RM3 entrance fee for adults but students get to go in for free. The attraction over here is the beautiful landscape and also the vegetable, flower and fruit plantation. It did not awe me since I have visited my friend's own vegetable and flower plantation. The one in MARDI is very small scale since they concentrate more on research. We had a wonderful time snapping photos of the beautiful landscape though whereas my parents were so fascinated with all the flowers, herbs, fruits and vegetables planted there.
Not to be missed out is the Smokehouse Hotel. We weren't the patrons of this hotel but I just have to show my parents this colonial style hotel with perfect landscaping.
Our last destination was one of the best Strawberry Farms that i have been to. It is called Big Red Strawberry Farm located very near Brinchang town. This strawberry farm has hydroponic vegetables too and they sell a wide variety of strawberry snacks like strawberry sundae, strawberry with whipped cream, strawberry with honey and yoghurt etc. Besides that, you get to purchase 3 huge lettuces for RM5, a combination of green coral and butterhead. When you're done filling your tummies, you can take a peek at the cactus valley below the strawberry farm.
We have come to an end to my Cameron Highlands excursion. The trip didn't spell lots of excitement or adventure. It was more towards enjoying the chilled and fresh air up there.
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