The End of Cameron Highlands

Just came back from Cameron Highlands after picking up my sister from her church camp. This would be my third visit, following my own church camp about three years back and my first visit a long time ago (which I can barely remember). Despite not remembering almost everything that happened to me during my first visit, I can tell by the photographs and the way my parents complained that the highlands have changed a lot since then. It is definitely hotter, due to the lack of trees that are being cleared to make room for high rise apartments (all of which have the same type of roof design) and the ‘slicing’ of hills to make more roads. The way up was winding as usual, along the way we stopped by to look at some wares sold by the ‘orang asli’. These include some wild honey and some weird looking plants, one of which resembled a brown furry ostrich egg. We didn’t buy anything because we planned to do so on the way home. We passed the first town , Ringlet that reminded me of Thailand’s Chiang Mai (minus the king’s portraits but with Daulat Tuankus aplenty). Nothing to see there. In Tanah Rata, the next town, there was more activity, due to a permanently held ‘pasar malam’ (yes it’s even there during the day time). Unlike the vegetable markets that the highlands are famous for, this market sells mostly plastic stuff, like pirated kids toys. Then all the way up to the top of the hill. We passed cactus point, which we didn’t visit, as I heard from a friend that all the cacti she bought in the highlands died when she got back to KL. Plenty of markets, nurseries, and fruit stalls, so many that the road was totally congested.

We stayed at the Equatorial Hotel which strangely, was below their usual standards. The building badly needed a fresh coat of paint and the interior was very plain. The room had two televisions but one of them had a faulty remote whereas the other had a battery missing (from the remote- who would steal a battery is beyond me). Luckily it was just one night. The TV did not have Star Sports, so I missed the F1 race on Sunday. Meals were very expensive (considering the fact that they were not included in the package), especially the dinner, some kind of steamboat special, made with ‘sup tulang’ (bone soup?). We spent most of Saturday exploring the highlands before turning in. First we visited a tea plantation, where the roads were so narrow that only one vehicle could pass through at a time. The plantation, owned by BOH, was fairly well maintained and impressive (following Malaysian standards). Next, we checked out the other resorts available in the highlands and my parents realized what a mistake it was to choose the Equatorial. First we visited Strawberry Park, part of my dad’s project last time. Looked good on the outside, but we don’t know how it is inside. Then we checked out an expensive resort just opposite a golf course. Expensive at first glance before we realized that it was actually cheaper than the Equatorial as all meals were provided.

On Monday, we went shopping in the markets and bought several flowers, plants and vegetables (you can’t leave Cameron Highlands without buying some of the local produce). I just admired the cacti, and wondered whether they would still be capable of growing once the highlands warmed up too much. Close to lunchtime. we picked my sister up from the place she was staying (same place that I stayed). Went to this tea shop for lunch, it looked English, but was actually run by Indians, really religious Catholic Indians (they got Jesus stickers pasted on their windows). Finally before we left, we paid a visit to a Healthy Strawberry Farm (yes that is what it’s called). I noticed that the strawberries were no longer planted on the ground but on benches. Hmm, must be some new, energy conserving, profit multiplying method. We took the new road back to KL, which was supposedly less winding than the old one. Unfortunately for my parents, all hopes of buying ‘orang asli’ products were dashed because it was pouring with rain all the way back to KL. There was also a massive traffic jam because of the road works (with non-existent workers). What an end to a pathetic and sad trip to Cameron Highlands. At least I got to see it in it's glory days , that is during the early 90s.