Cameron Highlands

We spent this weekend in Cameron Highlands in an effort to escape the heat.  This is about 200km north off us and about 5000ft above sea level.  It ended up being one of the nicest weekends here.  The weather was gorgeous.  On Saturday we had some intermittent rain, but the temperature was in the 60s.  Cameron is famous for the 'Boh' team plantations and the many, many fruits and vegetables grown there.  Most of the vegetables are grown under green house coverings, but no supplemental heating or cooling is required.  There were a handful of things we were told were 'must sees': Strawberry picking, tea plantations, and sweet corn. 

The highlight of the trip was definitely the tea plantation.  To get to it, we had to take a winding road up to the top of the hill.  The road was mostly one lane with a few pull over locations.  All of the corners were blind corners and the entire drive was along a steep slope.  It was beautiful but I had to white knuckle it the whole time so Kristen enjoyed it more than I did.  At the blind corners, you are supposed to honk before proceeding so oncoming traffic will hear and move over.  After making the trip twice and noting all the damaged guard rails, I think the system could be more robust.  Nevertheless, we made the trip and were glad we did.  For breakfast, we ate at the plantation diner that serves tea and pastries.  It has a beautiful view overlooking the tea fields.  Since they are continuously harvesting the leaves, the tea fields looked like huge shrubbery fields.  In fact, they look almost identical to the shrubs outside our house.


When we went back to our room to collect our things for checkout, we found the floor drain cover near the toilet was popped off.  The floor was wet and the toilet and wall completely covered in water (the top of the toilet, not just the bottom).  I am not exactly sure what happened but glad I wasn't there to witness first hand.  At checkout, I told the concierge about what happened.  He said, "No worries...small problem".  I would hate to see a large problem!

This was our longest road trip so we got some snacks for the ride...squid chips!  The kids love 'em.

A photo taken from our balcony.  All of the crops below us were vegetables.

For lunch we went to a German style restaurant that served British food.  It was the best meal we have had since we left Texas.  The restaurant was designed to feel as if you were dining inside a home.  Since we were the only ones at the restaurant, it added to the feel of a private dinner.





At the top of the tea plantation, we pulled over to look.  There was a couple there that wanted to take a picture of the kids so we talked them into taking this picture for us, also.

One of our last stops was to get some of the sweet corn.  The kids loved it and were right at home eating the corn on the cob.  They felt like they were back at the Whitesboro Peanut Festival!

Rachel's 3rd Birthday

Today we celebrated Rachel's 3rd birthday.  After lunch, we sat down to open her presents and the door bell rang.  It was a package from Rachel's grandmother for her birthday...very impressive timing.  She said she could hardly wait for her party, although I am not completely sure she really knew what it was. 

It is hard to believe how much she has grown, even since we have been here.  It is the first time that we have had a 3 year old without having a younger child.  I think it made Kristen a little sad. 

Back to Genting to Ride the Cable Cars

We have been to the Genting Highlands before but I did not know how to find the cable cars.  This weekend we went again with our friend, Bruce.  They say that these cable cars are the longest in Southeast Asia.  That statistic does not have any meaning to me but they were quite impressive.  We drove about half way up the mountain before pulling into the lower station.  It was a great relief as my little Perdua car has no power.  I was tired of getting passed while having the hammer down.

From the lower station, the cable cars carry you over the top of the jungle, up the mountain, and into the clouds surrounding the Highlands Resort.  Each little car only holds 6 adults so our crew filled the entire car and gave us a private ride.  Inside the car you are free to move around, take photos, or whatever you like.  For  over 90% of the ride, there were no signs of civilization other than the cable car system.  We went above water falls, beautiful foliage, monkeys, wonderful birds, and even what appeared to be a wild donkey.  Once on the cables, there is no motor so the ride was silent, other than the noisy kids!

Upon arrival, the air is cool and moist.  The last time we went we were freezing cold.  This time we were more prepared but the weather turned out to be not so cold.  Nevertheless, it was still cool and a welcome relief.  We went to see the indoor amusement park.  It was very impressive and they had a nice Starbucks in the middle for us to enjoy.  After that...back down the cables and to the house.  The entire car ride was probably only 15 minutes each way but absolutely worth it.  It was gorgeous.  The last picture is a publicity photo from http://www.rwgenting.com/ that I included to show where we went.