Cameron Highland 2011
One of Cameron Highland Landmark the Tanah Rata Convent School
Cameron Highland, one of the top tourist spot in Malaysia, for both foreign and local holiday makers is well know for it cool weather, quaint British architecture, vegetable growing center, and flower growing center. Having spend some 3 months working at this location some 13 years ago, it’s interesting how Cameron Highland is now much more commercialize, with much touristic base developments, apartments blocks, hotels, tourist shopping center. Has the changes been for the better?
Shop for Durian, Petai, Honey at this Orang Asli stalls
Driving up Via the Tapah - CH Road, there are still the Orang Asli Villages, Orang Asli Stalls selling Petai, Durian, Wild Honey, Bamboo Shoots etc along the side of the road. The Lata Iskandar Waterfall (separate post) is still there and is popular rest stop, with souvenir stalls, malay makan warongs, and a toilet for those who consume a bit too much water. The Road itself, not much difference it still cool, with much tree cover (like driving in a tunnel) narrow, sharp and blind bends, but with much things to observe.
Accommodation
Even Ringlet (what use to be a sleepy vegetable growing hollow) is now a busy commercial center, with Blocks of Apartment! At Tanah Rata, The Convent School is still there, but now surrounded by apartments, housing, shops. Now there are more hotels and apartments for daily rental for Tourist Accommodation. Restaurants (western & local), Mamaks, Malay Warungs are everwhere, there is even a Starbucks in Tanah Rata, However the few chinese kopi tiam that was around seems to have vanish.
(Finally manage to find a Chicken Rice/Bak Kut Teh Stall in a Chinese Restaurant somewhere behind Tanah Rata Maybank, near a big abandoned complex (near Park View Apartment?) for my Lunch)
Driving further up, near the Golf Course, I chance upon the Federal Government Holiday House, which is beside a Strawberry Farm. Those day 13 years ago, these farms were open air (I think) now, most of this farms seem to be cover up.
Traffic has increase tremendously, in Ringlet, Tanah Rata, Brinchang the main Cameron Highland Towns. Even this day, a Non Peak, non school holiday, non public holiday & weekday. Parking is a premium, you can still find places though if you look hard enough or just circle around. I just wonder about Traffic and Parking in Town during the Peak Periods.
As mention earlier, Numerous Tourist Shopping Centers abound, most of them along the Main Road Some call them self Strawberry Farms (Self Picking), rose garden, cactus farms and so on. Now flowers are sold in Pots, (not in individual stocks as in 13 yrs ago). It’s all very touristic shopping.
In this Case a Plant that drive a way Mosquitoes!
Kea Farm (the Highest Point along the main road?) is the place for purchasing local produce, vegetables (now most of them come prepack like in supermarkets), and other stuffs. There are also the Corn on the Cob (Steam and BBQ), Fried Vegetable (Mushrooms) etc. It seems to me 13 years ago there were a larger verity of vegetables then, however the verity of Flowers (separate post) have increase.
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