Random Thoughts about Fraser's Hill

The one and only food court in town is uphill from the mosque. Take the 9 o'clock exit at the mini roundabout and you'll see a children's playground. Next to it stands the food court in a small valley.

In days gone by there were two Chinese restaurants. Kheng Yuen Lee 瓊源利 located near the entrance from The Gap along the same road with SM Stores, the post office and the police station was famous for laksa. Now it seems to be closed, so the only surviving Chinese restaurant is Hill View 山景 that used to be located in the town centre but now occupies a lot in the food court.

Most of the Fraser's Hill local Chinese speak Hainanese. They also know Cantonese and Mandarin.

As of mid-July 2011, the "new" road has been reopened so the old Gap road is now used for uphill trafic only while downhill traffic uses the new road.

The Gap is now a ghost town. The Gap Resthouse has been abandoned for years and the jungle is on the way to reclaim it. Hing Kee 興記 restaurant opposite the road has also been abandoned.

Lovely, cool temperatures ranging between 24 degrees Celsius in the day and 14 degrees Celsius at night when you're above the 1200 metre level.

No petrol station on Fraser's Hill. Nearest petrol stations in Kuala Kubu Baru on the Selangor side and Raub on the Pahang side. So make sure you have enough petrol remaining to reach either town from Fraser's Hill.

Old road uphill from The Gap is 8 km long and takes 15-20 minutes to cover. Maximum speed 30 km/h only due to the numerous bends. New road downhill is 9 km long, maximum speed 30 km/h only for the most part except a few areas towards the end. Takes 15 minutes to cover too.

Three primary schools: one Bahasa school, one Chinese school, one Tamil school. All are quite far from each other: the Bahasa school in the northwest, the Tamil school in the northeast, and the Chinese school in the south. No secondary school so the kids have to go to Raub or Kuala Kubu Baru.

You can see Genting Highlands from two places. One is the part of Mager Road near Kingswood Bungalow, another is the south part of Girdle Road on the way to No. 23 (Kamsiah Bungalow). Both are south-facing slopes. Genting Highlands should be 25-30 km away south-southeast as the crow flies, but the road distance is substantially further.

Water at Jeriau Waterfall seems clearer now. Must be because of the sand trap installed upriver near the entrance. Beyond the abandoned bridge is a deserted golf course and clubhouse.

The 4 km of Waterfall Road to Jeriau takes 12 minutes to traverse due to its numerous bends and bumpy condition.

From the Jeriau car park it's a 15-minute walk to the waterfall. The only public toilets are at the very end of the path near the lower pool of the waterfall. Near the entrance there's an Indian man selling snacks and a Malay man with barbecue grill. Everyone leaves the waterfall latest by 6:45 PM because by 7:15 PM it gets dark and there aren't any street lights.

A little playground near Ye Olde Smokehouse along Waterfall Road offers beautiful sunset views. Prepare your camera and note that colour changes last only for a minute or two before it's gone or transforms into something else.

Two Hindu temples: One near Allan's Water and another one along a bend in Waterfall Road.

Guangzhou Trip Itinerary for December 2008

[I first wrote this on Monday, 15 December 2008, a week after returning from my first visit to Guangzhou, China.]

Thursday, 4 December 2008
: Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport
: Check-in to Hotel Canton 广州大厦
: Lunch at hotel
: Leather goods shopping at Zhonggang Leather City, Sanyuanli 中港皮具成， 三元里
: Goodies shopping at Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Shopping Street 上下九
: Drop by 6th Grandaunty's place at Zhongshan Balu 中山八路
: Dinner at Panxi Restaurant 泮溪酒家 near Pantang Lu 泮塘路
: Back to hotel
: Quick walk to Beijing Road Pedestrian Shopping Area 北京路

Friday, 5 December 2008
: Breakfast at hotel
: Depart for Zhaoqing (Siu Hing) 肇庆 by rented van
: Modern highway from Guangzhou 广州 to Sanshui 三水 , trunk road from Sanshui 三水 passes by Dasha 大沙, Sihui 四会, Lianhua 莲花 before reaching Dinghu 鼎湖
: Tour of Dinghu Mountain 鼎湖山
: Lunch at Zhenbao Hotel, Zhaoqing 珍宝酒店， 肇庆
: Drop by 7th Grandaunty's place near "Sekolah Menengah Bandaraya Siu Hing Ke-Dua Belas" 肇庆 市第十二中学
: Visit to Seven Stars Crags 七星岩
: Return to Guangzhou
: Dinner at Hongxing Seafood Restaurant (Yidu) near the Pearl River 鸿星海鲜酒家 (艺都)
: Shopping at Beijing Road
: Salsa at Wind&Flowers 风&花

Saturday, 6 December 2008
: Breakfast at hotel
: Start off the day tour of Guangzhou
: University City 大学城
: Whampoa (Huangpu) Military Academy museum 黄埔军校旧址
: Tianhe Sky Metro City 天汇城广场
: Museum of the Nanyue King's Tomb 西汉南越王博物馆/南越王墓
: Lunch at Xintaile Restaurant 新泰乐
: Yuexiu Park, 5 Goats Statue 越秀公园, 五羊石像
: Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall 中山纪念堂
: Chan Clan Academy 陈家祠
: Pearl River Cruise from Dashatou Wharf 珠江夜游 / 大沙头码头
: Xinjiang Daxia Bogeda Uighur Restaurant 新疆大厦/博格达
: Salsa at Qba, Westin Hotel

Sunday, 7 December 2008
: Check out
: Last minute shopping
: Computer City, Tianhe 电脑城
: Shangxiajiu and Zhuji Road for pine nut seeds 上下九 / 珠玑路
: Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and return to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Bitten by the Travel Bug

I've been bitten by the travel bug and hence felt the need to explore more potential leisure destinations. Lots of gems are waiting to be discovered. They need not be super far, perhaps an hour's drive away at furthest, yet they're good spots for relaxation, food, leisure etc.

The trick is knowing when to be there and how to get there. Sometimes it involves getting out of one's comfort zone where everything's familiar. Often a spontaneous discovery leads to another new place and so on.

For the first half of this year, I've covered Tanjung Sepat, Hulu Yam, Bentong, Broga Hill, Malacca, Port Dickson, Kuantan, Sungai Lembing, Cherating, Kemaman, and Kota Kinabalu, not to mention numerous small destinations within the Klang Valley.

First Day of July

TGIF = Thank God It's Friday. It's also the first day of July in the year of our Lord two zero one one. Officially the second half of the year 2011 begins and before we know it, summer's over, autumn's here, winter's around the corner and the New Year 2012 begins.

LG = Life's Good. I appreciate the good things I have, the people around me, and am thankful to be in good health.