Taman Negara, Pahang

Macam mana ye, nak put down into words.. cuz I'm not much of a writer.  Tiba2 jer rasa nak pergi Taman Negara, walhal sebelum ni tak pernah pun nak imagine myself and the kids going there.  Apa yang seronok nya kat sana tu? Dengarnya banyak nyamuk dan pacat. After taking in all the positive considerations and what an mind opening experience it would be, I've decided to give it a shot. Possible things we might need... Baigon, checked!, leech socks, checked! So apalagi, buat reservation lah! Sebab kerana tiba2 jer nak pergi, tak la pulak talipon sana sini tanya kengkawan nak tinggal kat mana, nak buat camna yer?.. cuma harapkan berjam2 tengok blog and google.. Dapat lah jugak a few possible places to stay, tapi nak jugak rasa nak tinggal dalam hutan. Mutiara tu mahal and posh sangat, Woodland macam terlampau commercialized and away from the sungai, and tak kan nak tinggal kat base camp! So after juggling between resorts, we decided to stay at Nusa Holiday Village, reception staff kata we had to get on a 15min boatride to the resort..eerrmmm.. sounded interesting!  So we packed, after a brief stop at Lata Meraung, we arrived at Kuala Tahan at around 4.15pm.

view of Kuala Tahan taken from Mutiara

the merge of sg Tahan and sg Tembeling

important means of getting around

Kuala Tahan somehow looked smaller than the photos i've seen on the net, but the river water flow was swifter! I was really scared of the water when we arrived. Typical of me, always too concerned about everybody's safety. But we had to make it to our resort, after about half an hour waiting at the Nusa Jetty, we got on our boat and experienced our very first sungai boat ride of Taman Negara. And it was awesome!! The scenes along the riverbanks were spectacular and after what it felt like only a few minutes, we arrived at Nusa Holiday Village. Quietly, i gave a pat at myself for being very cerewet with which resort to stay, cos i really heart this resort :) Tucked in a jungle, far from the chaos of Kuala Tahan, this place was perfect for our short jungle getaway from civilization :)

Nusa Holiday Village

Morning in Taman Negara is beautiful and serene.. lucky us being away from Kuala Tahan, the quietness  and peacefullness were overwhelming. Mists coming up from the lush greenaries of the thick jungles.  But I could not helped myself from making a comparison between the jungles we saw along beautiful Gerik-Jeli, the Lower Belum. That was even more incredible.  But I understood now, the lure of Taman Negara are the rivers and the people that lives along these great rivers.  I could just stare at the swift river flow of Sungai Tembeling for hours, but we needed to get ready, for us to be able to catch the 8.30am boat ride to Kuala Tahan and then to Lata Berkoh, our most important mission of this holiday!

view of the mists from the jungle on the Taman Negara side, taken from the hanging bridge at Nusa Camp. River flow was higher, murkier and swifter from previous night's heavy downpour 

morning at our chalet (Malay House unit), basic accommodation but considered luxury in the jungle :) for RM110/night

Mission of the day- to Lata Berkoh! After haggling boat fees with the Nusa boat operator, we were introduced to Dabang, the Perhilitan Officer and an orang asli to be our guides for the 3-4 hours trip. Wow! the boat journey to Lata Berkoh along Sg Tahan was indeed the highlight of our holiday. Although it rained very heavily the night before, it turned out to be quite a blessing in disguise, the water level was higher and all 7  (plus 2 guides) could easily ride the Sg Tahan although for a few times, we felt the bumps and grinds along the shallow rapids ;P

riding the sg Tahan, the best river ride!

Zafree, me, Zachwan and Zafran parading our leech socks!

The sun was high on our heads, it was almost 12pm but we felt the cool jungle air and the trip was mostly shaded by the huge trees along the riverbanks.  Quite unfortunately we didn't get to see many jungle inhabitants cept for monitor lizards, kingfishers and egrets. We've got our leech socks on and we were ready for the less than hour trek to Lata Berkoh.

in the middle of 130 million years old rainforest

The trail was indeed very clear and shady and more like a walk in the park. We've only encountered a few obstacles and steep climbs, but you gotta be careful of the veining roots and tree branches.  It was easy for the kids, it was even easier for the adults. We trekked along the river banks, and were mesmerized by its beautiful mocha colors and sparkling reflections underneath the midday sun.. and I was also pleased to see how excited the kids were to be able to go on a jungle trekking again. We did not bathe at Lata Berkoh, our guide politely asked us not to and took us to Lubuk Tenor to have a cool dip instead.

Zafran posing at Lata Berkoh rapids

Nusa Village rapids after rapid shooting

After visiting the Kelah Sanctuary at Lubuk Tenor (we didn't get to see any adullt Kelah, the water was too murky) and rapid shooting, we chilled at the rapids at Nusa. By now, the rapids at Nusa subsided a bit, and it was safe again to have a cool late afternoon dip.  But then again, we were all soaked up from the rapid shooting already! It turned out that the rapids at Nusa is a pitch stop for other rapid shooters, being the best and safer place to soak in the water along the sg Tembeling. This was our first trip to Taman Negara, we had an incredible time and hope to go there again soon, coz we missed the Canopy walk (closes at 3.30pm) and Lubuk Simpon!!

Nusa Holida Camp : 09-2662369/09-2671752 

(www.tamannegara-nusaholiday.com.my)

Dabang (Perhilitan Taman Negara) : 09-2663070

More photos, click here.

Al Rawsha again!

Daaaa penaaattt! After the long day at Lubuk Manggis, even after we have stuffed ourselves on BBQued chicken, lamb and sausages.. we were still hungry! So where to eat in KL? So many places to choose from, but during the gathering with old friends on Jan, I didn't have the opportunity to really enjoy the food. In fact, I didn't even ordered a single dish, cept rasa cipot2 from other people's plates! So, ke Jalan Damai ler, and after going round in circles a couple of times to park the car, we succeeded in getting a small private room.  We were tired and the thought of melepak and baring while eating were really inviting..

Zafree teruja dengan pengalaman makan dalam private room, tapi keluarga pak arab kat sebelah bising marahkan anak2 yang tak leh duduk diam, and at the other end pulak sekeluarga melayu sibuk bergossip.. camna ye, tengah mengadap rezeki boleh mengutuk2 pulak sampai orang sebelah boleh dengar...

My fav! Hummus ke apa ntah namanya.. But I really love this, and so does the kids..

Our main dish for the evening, gosh I forgot what it was called! But it was definitely not beryani.  The lamb tasted quite bland, but the chicken set was quite good. We ordered 4 set for the 5 of us, but we couldn't finish it, had to tapao home.. the fun part was having our dinner with Barbican malt drinks. Non alcoholic but kinda made your senses tingled a bit and we couldn't help laughing after dinner.. oh yes, Al broke the sundae glass while paying mock russian roulette with the boys!

Zachwan after dinner.. too kenyang! 

NLK @ Nasi Lemak Kapar

What a wonderful way to spend a lazy Sunday! Brunch at Nasi Lemak Kapar of course! The kids never says no to this weekend treat cos they know, its always a short drop-by at Pantai remis afterwards! I'm no expert in Malay cuisine, eventhough I'm 100% malay by blood.. what do I know the differences between authentic Selangor dish and Melaka? One thing for sure, both my parents were Selangorian and I was raised eating real kampung dishes prepared by my nenek of both sides. So what's that got to do with NLK? They serves almost exactly the kind of dishes I used to have prepared by my mom and grandmas, that is! 

plain rice with 'pucuk paku masak lemak dengan perut', 'ayam pandan' and 'sambal belacan'

the nasi lemak is always fresh, and i'd recommend eat it with the spicy fried chicken

Of course, Zachwan's no1 choice is the Nasi Lemak :)  The creamy nasi is prepared through the kukus process and always served hot. The sambal is just nice, chili hot and sweet.

The atmosphere is friendly and have the 'at home' feel to it. Besides the 'lauk pauk', there are also plenty of other dishes such as nasi ayam, rojak, mee kari, laksa asam, soto and many types of kueh. Price range is somewhat you could expect from a small town restaurant, reasonable.

pandan chicken (deep fried chicken wrapped in aromatic screwpine leaves)

There are many dishes to choose from, from bergedel daging/ikan, tempe, fried fish, lovely kerabu, masak lemak, dendeng tempe, dendeng hati/pedal ayam, ayam pandan, lotsa ikan masin, etc...

ikan keli (local catfish), bathed in thick creamy and hot gravy (percik)

But THIS is the reason why we comes here all the time, Keli Percik! Grandma used to grill cencaru with this hot and creamy sauce. Sometimes, they serves Talapia Percik and its really good!

Pantai Remis, Selangor

I have lost count on how many times I have been to this place, after all, its only half an hour's drive from my house.  On most unplanned weekends, we'd like to take the scenic drive to Pantai Remis, stopping for brunch at Nasi Lemak Kapar Restaurant at Kapar town.  Usually on bright and sunny Sundays, it was always nice to take some time off to go kite flying or seashells picking by the beach...

wispy cirrus clouds

things to see and spends money on

Its only this colorful during weekends, and usually swarmed by locals. There are fishermen's villages and jetty nearby, its a good place for photographers and birders too.  About 20+km, its Kuala Selangor and one could take the opportunity to catch sights of the fireflies at the mangroves..

always a spectacular skies over Pantai Remis

no shortage of cold beverages at these local stalls

on a good season, you could get oysters for about RM1-RM2 each

in the distance, you could stay at on one of the 'kelong' to fish

Just millions and millions of black barnacles, creates quite a contrast to the colors and seascape.  These muddy shores are perfect habitat for the shellfish species, and if u have the time and perseverance towards the blazing sun, u could harvest them yourself!

These horseshoe crabs makes a rare appearance! Laden with eggs, said to be quite delicious.. but I'll pass!  But they do look quite interesting, with its' thick armor and pointy legs.

If you come here early, you could get a nice spot under the shady casuarina trees.

Anytime or anyday, always a fun time for the boys :)

More photos, click here.

Fiske Steakhouse

After the long drive from Taman Negara, we were hungry and desperately in the mood for a good hearty western chow.. coz we've been eating nasi putih, telor dadar and daging goreng kunyit almost the entire trip!  Coming down from the Karak highway, we took the route through Keramat and quite spontaneously, decided to have our meal at Fiske Steakhouse.

Opens at 6.30pm sharp

 

Passed this restaurant a few times, and only then had the chance to sample its glorious food! Everything served to us were delicious, fast service and VERY value for money!  Might come again to this place, definitely!

mushroom soup - less RM4

watermelon juice, pineapple assam frappe & chocolate oreo frappe

normal lamb chop with black pepper sauce

beef steak with black peppersauce

normal chicken chop with mushroom sauce

talented chef

The food itself was great, a bit overdone but maybe next time must tell the cook how much we wanted it done.  Very cozy atmosphere, friendly staff and the food served was equally pretty.  Our main meals costs between RM12 - RM15 each and the drinks was less than RM5 each.

Lubuk Timah

It was actually supposed to be an afternoon dip whilst on our way to Sungai Petani, Kedah. Like always, I would plan a couple of stops at nearby waterfalls everytime we would tag along on Al's work trip. So apalagi, rujuk ler site Waterfalls of Malaysia and cari waterfalls di sepanjang perjalanan ke utara nak sampai ke Sungai Petani tu.. so I chose Lubuk Timah, near to Simpang Pulai, thinking that it would be a short stop and this waterfalls was listed to be one of the easiest and most accessible of them all in Perak along the NorthSouth Expressway.

The unique landscape of Perak

So Perak, here we come. Equipped with our trusty road map (nyeh! not enough money to invest in GPS yet..) we set out journey and headed north.  hhmmmm.. Simpang Pulai exit, and then it should not be that far, unless there were signs to the waterfalls.. not! Berpusing2 jugalah mencari junction, we almost given up hope when we saw the exact signs we saw in WOM website.. through some palm oil plantations and quaries, not long enough we came to a spot where there were parked cars and a guard hut.  After almost 2 and a half hours, we have arrived.

 

So we parked under one of many palm oil trees after paying a cover charge of RM2, parked at our own risk and headed straight to a beaten path we assumed would lead us to the falls. It was a very hot afternoon indeed, and you could imagine how terribly humid it was being in a middle of a palm oil plantation.. soon as we started the short trek and saw the murky greenish-terracota colors of the water in the river, i knew my choice of waterfalls this time was a terrible one.. the trail was uphill and you could tell how much it has been 'visited' by the smooth surface of the terracota trails, how 

unmistakenly often it was trampled by human feet and motorcycles.. 

this place IS popular among the locals, obviously. So popular that I think some of them even made this place either their permanent lepak place or their home/hideout..

After about 3-400 meters of walking, we could hear the roaring sounds of the waterfalls and there it was! The twin waterfalls of Lubuk Timah.. it was quite a sight, slightly more spectacular than the photos I've seen on the net.  It was bizarre sight to me because 1) did the people actually built the dam before it was a waterfall then? or 2) was it actually a natural waterfalls and how on earth did they managed to build the dam? .. such a mystery, but not mysterious enough to make me go ask around..

We did manage to climb till on top of the dam, not much of a view, just a slow flowing river of moderate width. It only became interesting when it hit the broken walls and the water started to fall quite aggressively on each sides of the dam. The water that fell created a large and slightly deep pool, suitable for swimming.  But we were warned that it was quite deep for children at certain areas.. the water was warm, the sun on our heads were scorching and besides of all that, there was just this one thing that kept us out of the water.. the RUBBISH!

It was everywhere! At the parking area, along the trail, in the bushes and even in the water itself! There were styrofoams, plastic bottles, broken glass liquor bottles and omg!, can u imagine what kind of idiots would throw thorny durian skins in the river??? A sore and sad sight it was, the kids begged to have a quick swim, and later hesitated when we pointed out to them the possibilities of getting hurt and sick from swimming in the heavily polluted river.  Oh yes, the place was an eternal mosquito kingdom, food containers were discarded everywhere making it a perfect nesting grounds for the blood suckers..

An alarming disrespect to mother nature plus stupidity.. a lethal potion to destroy our nature.. who can we put the blame on? I seriously do not know, after all, it was private property Though its easy to say that both should share the blame, the public and landowner, but it does help if the local authorities would check on these private places that opens to public to ensure safety and public awareness...  

*sigh*.. Lubuk Timah Waterfalls.. quite beautiful, but for how long? more photos, click here.