A trip to Cameron Highlands

Cameron Highlands is a highland resort located 121 km east of Ipoh and about 214 km north of Kuala Lumpur.  The journey up to the highlands from Ipoh takes about 1.1/2 hours after the Simpang Pulai toll exit.
The roads here are wider and not so winding like the old road from Tapah town and the journey is much shorter.  Travelling time can be shortened by approximately 1 hour.

The highlands is about 5,000 feet above sea level, climate is cool with temperature ranging from 12 deg C to 25 deg C.  Because of its luscious, peaceful scenery amid cool fresh air, it's a very popular holiday destination for locals as well as tourists.  The place can be crowded during weekends and more so during school and public holidays.

We stayed at the Equatorial Hotel, Kea Farm, Brinchang which is strategically located.  The location is good and the view amazing.  The strawberry farm is just round the corner of the hotel and visitors can pick and choose the strawberries at a fee, which is seasonal.  Within walking distance is the famous Kea Farm where there are many stalls selling vegetables, fruits, flowers, souvenirs, food, snacks and tidbits.  Approximately 2 km away is the Sg. Palas Boh Tea Plantations where visitors can go on a conducted factory tour to see  how the tea leaves are being processed.

we arrived there  in the evening and it was misty, the road is from Kampung Raja, to Tringkap, then to Brinchang which is where the Equatorial Hotel is located.

the mist from the moutains resemble somewhat the mountainous tourist spots in China, right out of a Chinese brush painting!

the skies have cleared up a bit ........  all these snaps were taken from the 7th floor balcony of the hotel

in the background is part of the Brinchang township, notice the terraced terrain where vegetables are grown

there's a vast variety of vegetables being grown here,  lettuce, the funny smelly 'tung hu', Chinese spinach, cabbage,  'wong ngah pak', tomatoes and baby tomoatoes, carrots, brocolli, white radish, beetroot just to name a few, fruits are passion fruits, oranges, persimmon, avocado, strawberries and tubers like the different species of sweet potatoes.  I was told that some of the sweet potatoes and corn are cultivated by the Orang Asli, the aboroginies of Malaysia.  Also, the King of Fruits, the Durian, the best species are those grown in the wild in the Orang Asli settlement, with no pesticdes whatsoever.

looking down from the balcony of the hotel, part of Kea Farm vegetation.  Fresh flowers abound here in the highlands, roses, carnations, chrysanthemums, oriental lilies, birds of paradise and a variety of dried flowers are available as well.