Trip to the Highland of Tea

Went up to Cameron Highlands with several office colleagues recently. My last time up there was way back to 17 years ago. So,that's explain why I said yes immediately when Jeri, a female colleague popped the question (no no, it's not a proposal but invitation to the trip) Being a tea lover, I was already dreaming away about drinking my fave hot teh tarik, overlooking the mountains with rains drizzling away... & I could hear someone singing "Raindrops keep falling on my head..." Ahhh..

The "participants" consists of colleagues from Port Klang-Raj,Hafiz,Bobby,Ummu & hubby & Liza and HQ offices-Stef, Jeri & Chow while I'm the only representative from KLIA airport. A truly muhibbah bunch indeed. Started moving at noon after work & reached Brinchang at about 7.00pm. Along the way, I looked out the window, telling myself how much this place has changed over the years. Strawberry farms were sprouting everywhere, mainly catering for tourists with their "pick your own strawberry" promos. We checked into this Star Regency Apartment Hotel which is located at the central of the Brinchang town. Our apartment unit was a cosy one, complete with 3 rooms, Astro & a big hall area (to the extent we cud have a picnic on the floor,really!!!)

Morning view of Brinchang town from apartment balcony...

Went for a steamboat dinner outside the hotel. As it was raining heavily outside, we're unable to take a walk in the night market, situated just in front of the hotel. It was chilly cold even in the apartment. Naturally, staying indoor is the one & only option for the night. Ended up playing some poker games & talked cock till wee hours while enjoying fine red wines. Managed to gain small profits from the poker games & that makes a perfect sleeping potion for a tired me.

The next morning was perfectly breezy & went for breakfast in nearby restaurant. First stop of the visit is the Sunday market, situated somewhere near the Equatorial hotel. Looking at the fresh veggies/strawberries on sale at too-good-to-be-true prices, the spontaneous response is to call back home & said "Mum, dun go to the market today & I shall buy the veggies which can last us the whole week!!!" Where cud we find the selling price of RM 10.00 for 16 big packs of different veggies. Maybe the seller has overstocks that she happily gave me another 3 veggie packs for free...

Superfresh veggies on sale

Nature's answer to mosquito coil & Ridsect

Next stop is the Cameron Bharat cafe in Tanah Rata on the way down, perfect place to fulfill my dream. Ordered the teh tarik & sat down with rest of the peeps chit-chatting away,breathing the fresh mountain air while waiting for the shopaholic ladies to make their round..:) Minus the rain & the song, it's still a relaxing moment. With the stunning & breathtaking view of the plantation on the mountaneous area, I had a field day clicking away my camera. Last stop was the Lata Iskandar waterfall, which makes a perfect place for a group photo.

Cameron Bharat plantation

A MUST - group photo with scenic view as background

Now back to the drawing board, ppl said the highland has lost its lustre & not attractive enuff to the foreigners / tourists. My saying is the place has not really changed much in term of attractions. The tea plantation/veggie farms etc have been there for generations...trust me, people here really know how to brew tea with perfect blend & "ngam ngam" amount of milk...Solutions shud be searched to keep ppl coming back. The point here is the biscuit quality could still remains the same after many years but it's the matter of re-packaging/improvised marketing strategies for the products that will keep going a steady flow of customers. Got the idea Tourism Ministry staffs, if u happen to be seeing tis?

Now, let me sip my self-made Cameron Valley tea (bought from Bharat plantations) first before talking about other trips soon....

Being Multi Racial

"Multi-racial" has to be one of the widely used word in M'sia. It's always included in every messages by all politicians for any major occasions such as New Year, CNY, Raya, Deepavali etc etc.

Now...why am I talking about tis multi racial thingy when I'm here in M'sia, a melting pot for all cultures that u know of?? In recent times, we could hear politicians telling how can we integrate all races, uniting everyone with a single language, single aim, creating a Bangsa M'sia etc etc...Just sharing my pieces of opinions based on my personal experiences.

To create a single bangsa will take us generations to achieve it. We're just too different with our own beliefs, values etc. To follow the Indonesian concept, whereby everyone are forced to have "Indonesian names" and other languages are prohibited will be disastrous & go against what's stated in our Constitution. Instead of banging heads to come out with solutions, we should leave it as the way it is. Take a peek at the Tourism M'sia "Malaysia - Truly Asia" promo and u will understand what I'm trying to say. Diversity should be seen as a strength instead of barriers. We dun really need to be ONE to be united.

It's the basic values that need to be taught to the children by parents, educators etc. When ur loved, u will learn to love. When ur respected, u will learn to respect. When u have respect & tolerance for other people, u will get to understand the person. When all these are in places, unity will naturally follows. From primary skool up till working life, I'm pleased to have frens from all walks of life.

My recent trip to Cameron with bunch of colleagues (of different races) was a classic example (Shall talk bout the trip in next blog). Despite not knowing each other well, the trip turned out to be fun. Of cos people have certain religious or cultural restrictions that could deter our personal indulgences (eg eating pork/beef), the best thing to do is to recognise & accept. Mutual solutions can then be sorted out when we're being "sincerely frank" with each other. When we learn about give and take, personal sacrifice (eg on food) is only a minor thing to do.

Tis weekend will be eventful with me attending Emma's engagement evening function and the MU vs Gunners crunch match after that with my bunch of muhibbah frens from Fifth Formers. till then...