What do Football, Trains and Jungles have in common? Kota Bharu and Taman Negara, 19-22 June 2011

Kota Bharu

Following an incredibly violent boat journey back to the mainland and getting smacked squarely on the face with the lid of a cool box which got blown off in the wind, Barbara and I were on a bus heading north to Kota Bharu for a quick visit and to embark on the Jungle Railway to Tama Negara.  The weather was appalling, raining from the moment we arrived in the northern border city.  The only other thing that drew me to the town was the cultural centre which regularly performs shadow puppet shows.  Of course, when I looked at the programme I discovered that I had just missed the performance by one day.  Typically my luck, but there was another performance on which I wouldn’t mind seeing.  First of all, we needed food and were recommended an Indian restaurant called Meena Curry House the other side of the city.  My god it was worth the walk as it had absolutely wonderful food with excellent service. 

What are those westerners doing here Mummy?

An hour or so later we were making our way to the cultural centre to see the performance however half way there we were suddenly confronted with a crowd of people dressed with football shirts on and heavily decorated with flags, face paints and ribbons.  It turned out to be a friendly football match between Malaysia and Myanmar.  We decided that instead of going to the cultural centre we bought tickets to watch this international friendly.  The crowds were directed in through multiple gates and with no fixed seating, you could choose where you wanted to go.  The rain had thankfully stopped, but the pitch was waterlogged and the concrete steps that we were to sit on were completely soaked.  Most of the locals had thought ahead and brought plastic bags to sit on, but we just had to grit our teeth and get our butts wet.

Celebrations

The match was interesting to see, with the waterlogged pitch seeing the players slip and slide all over the place.  Fireworks and flares were being set off at the opposite side of the pitch to us and the smoke filled the stadium.  Looking around we were the only white people around and people stared and smiled as they passed us by.  Sometimes you think whether going to events such as this is a safe activity but I was in no way threatened and felt quite the opposite.  Malaysia won the match with two goals against none.  I couldn’t help but wonder who plays for Myanmar?  Are they all military personnel?  Surely a civilian in the oppressive state couldn’t possible play for their country.  As they lost, will they lose their lives for disgracing their country?  Who knows….

Magnificent gates in the centre of KB

Kota Bharu is a completely Muslim town and does not have much to see other than a few museums which we didn’t go into.  There are only so many museums you can go to.  I needed to have a haircut so found a barbershop and proceeded to be told about my receding hairline.  The barber quizzed me about my life and what was causing me stress to cause this ‘no hair’ problem…  I never thought about it before but can now see it… Thanks for that Mr Barber!!

Our final night in the city saw us eating at the night market where you shared your space with several rats running around your feet.  The night market is supposed to be one of the best in Malaysia but I didn’t really see why.

It was 6.20am and following a restless night in the KB Backpackers due to noisy traffic outside we were in a taxi heading to the railway station where we were to get the Jungle Train through the jungle to Taman Negara.  We arrived at the station with plenty of time and bought a coffee and some snacks for the journey.  7.16 on the dot, the train’s engine fired into life and pulled slowly away from the station.   

Fantastic view from within the canopy

This was the first time I had been on a train since my journey from Hanoi to Sapa in northwest Vietnam and it felt like home.  Train travel is in my opinion the most enjoyable form of travel, you usually get a comfortable seat, the world passes you by through the window and you can get up and have a walk if you become restless.  This journey is aptly named the Jungle Railway as it weaves its way slowly through the jungle from the North Eastern frontier with Thailand and finishes in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur.  Barbara and I were travelling half way to Jerantut where we were going to catch a bus to centre of the Taman Negara national park that is nearly 4,500 square kilometres.  The vast jungle is said to be the oldest jungle in the world at 130 million years old and hasn’t been affected by any dramatic climate changes.  We were going to be staying in Kampung Kuala Tahan, a small village on the opposite side of the river to the park’s headquarters which meant that once we got off the train at Jerantut we had to get a connecting bus or something the rest of the way.

The waterfront in Kampung Kuala Tahan

We arrived in Jerantut by lunchtime where we sat down to enjoy a meal in a little restaurant whilst we waited for our minibus to take us to Kampung Kuala Tahan. In some ways I wish I hadn’t eaten anything as the bus journey turned out to be quite exhilarating and akin to a rollercoaster ride without the safety.  The absolutely psychopathic driver made me consider whether we were going to make it to our destination.  I thought about quickly writing a will, but at this point in time I was in debt to the bank so it would have been a short one.  Even as we passed a minibus which had been recently been rolled several times and was resting on the side of the road I expected the driver to reconsider the lives he was carrying in the back of the rickety old minibus but there was no slowing him down from delivering us  down or anything.  As I’m writing this and you’re reading this, it’s obvious that I survived the journey.  Once we arrived in Kampung Kuala Tahan safely, we found a guesthouse and headed down to the river bank where a couple of restaurants sit, or rather stand above the water, to have a meal in celebration of our fragile lives.

One of the biggest treats of the area is the canopy walk which stretches out high through the trees.  It is actually marked as the highest canopy walk in the world.  Some of the sections looked as though somebody had been down the local B & Q bought some ladders, wooden board and wrapped it up in some rope netting in the trees.  It was an awesome walk through the trees though which provided some fantastic views of the jungle from above. 

After finishing the canopy walk we rushed back through the jungle to the park headquarters and boarded a boat to take us back to the other side of the river where we were going rapid shooting.  Rapid shooting is where you go on a motorised boat up stream through the rapids.  It was fun and got incredibly wet, which was helped by the two boats engaging in a fierce water fight.  Our first destination was an Orang Asli village, Orang Asli are the native people of this area who still live off the land and out of the modern society.  Once we climbed up the embankment, we were greeted by the men of the settlement.  The women hid in a tent away from us.  I wasn’t sure whether they were scared of us, embarrassed or were ordered to stay out of sight.  The men gave us another lesson in how to use a blow pipe and then took us through how to make a fire.  The people were incredibly friendly and welcoming.  On the way back to Kampung Kuala Tahan, we stopped off for a swim and have some fun on a Tarzan swing.  The river is full of those tiny little fish that munch the dead skin off you which I’m not so keen on.  The journey back to town was wonderful as I sat back and watched the jungle go past either side without hindrance from man.

It was time for us to leave and as I grabbed my shoes to place them in my bag I grabbed the backs of each and banged the, together to get as much dirt off them as possible.  After a couple of bangs, something fell onto my left hand and in shock I threw the shoe and frog across the path.  Poor little frog, just found a nice place to sleep and I gave it one of the biggest headaches in history.  There is a boat trip which takes you from Kuala Tahan to Jerrantut, but this is a long journey and we were advised that as we already did a boat trip through the jungle that it’s a bit like Scooby Doo and repeats itself over and over.  Instead, we got the morning local bus which cost 7RM to our next destination, Kuala Lumpur.

Stop for a refreshing dip...

Surely this is Paradise? - Perhentian Islands, 15 - 18 June 2011

Welcome to D'Lagoon

SLAM, my head hit the side window of the minibus for the fifteenth time as the maniac of a driver stormed around the winding mountainous roads at an obscene speed.  Thankfully the roads were superbly sealed unlike their South East Asian neighbours, but this does give them more of an excuse to thump their right foot hard upon the accelerator.  We’re heading for the Perhentian Islands just off the east coast.  Our bus journey was actually very comfortable despite the speed, although the comfort ended, for me anyway as half way down the road we had to swap minibuses and the ‘seat’ provided to me sat at a 20 degree angle and the back did not lock in place.  So the remaining three hours was not comfortable at all. 

Me and Raja

Above our heads the clouds encroached, darkened and within five minutes rain began to fall, hitting hard against the roof of the minibus.  The rain was relentless and roads began mimicking rivers with large sections of road becoming submerged under water.  Lightning electrocuted the skies and were dramatically followed by excruciatingly loud cracks of thunder.  As we approached Kuala Besut, the rain had stopped and we managed to board the open top boat in the dry.  The bags were thrown aboard and the driver steamed away from the jetty only to be stopped by a French man who had stupidly left his iPhone behind.  I would have personally taken great delight in telling him it’s his own fault, but the skipper was a friendly chat and turned around.  With the French man and his iPhone back aboard, we tried to depart again only to stop a further 300 metres out.  The driver and his assistant were chatting, obviously discussing something important.  Turned out that one of the engines had failed and we returned back to the jetty once again to change boats.

Not a bad place to stay!

Looking behind us we could see the storm cloud catching up.  We were now in open water and the waves were erratic bouncing the boat’s hull high above the water.  The clouds were getting thicker, darker and people all around had a rather concerned look on their faces.  These boats were amazing service as you tell them where you were staying and they drop you off right outside.  We stopped a couple of times on the near side of the island before heading round the other side to D’Lagoon, where Barbara and I were staying.  We approached the bay as it began to spit with rain, just in time.  The boat slowed and came to a stop.  On shore, a small man ran from the restaurant area, climbed into a boat and navigated his way to collect us.  The small man actually turned out to be a child, which was a slight shock.  He grabbed our bags, we transferred vessels and headed to shore just as the rain began pelting down again.

Really blue water

D’Lagoon was an isolated resort, an hour’s hike through the jungle from the main section of guesthouses on the island.  The beach was made from sand, shingle and shell led down into the clear blue water full of coral reefs.  As it was raining, we sat in the restaurant which was reasonably priced watching the storm move in as darkness fell.  Thunder and lightning lit up the sky for the most part of the evening.  That’s where we met Kate, an English newly qualified doctor on a break before commencing practicing.  We spent the evening eating and as the island is completely T-Total, drinking fruit juices. 

Our vessel

The next morning we were sitting in the restaurant eating breakfast when the daily snorkelling trip was leaving.  Suddenly, even before we knew it, Barbara, Kate and I were on the boat heading out into the open water with snorkels in our hands.  What a fantastic surprise trip, such beautiful and colourful underwater life swimming around coral reef.  On the boat with us was Raja, an Indian from Mumbai who had a slight American accent.  The trip was entertaining as we shared stories and how he was going to set up a motorcycle touring business in India following a fantastic trip he had made up in Northern India.  The snorkelling trip had us leaping overboard following turtles, sharks and Nemo like clown fish.  The day unfortunately finished off with a slightly burnt back despite the overcast skies above….  Oops… must have forgotten a section of sun screen.

Wonderful people

That night we met another addition, Sofie, a 17 year old girl from the Netherlands travelling by herself.  Raja took a liking to her and pulled out his best lines to woo her whilst the D’Lagoon staff serenaded us with traditional Music and singing.  We joined the circle with my new friend Saiful and his children whom we had met earlier in the day on the beach.  Saiful was a public servant living in Kuala Lumpur and was on a holiday with his wife and two children.   Once in the circle, we were invited to sing a song each with them playing the accompanying music.  I sang a rather poor version of Hotel California which went well until I forgot all the lyrics. 

We all made sure that we got up early the following day so we could take a small walk to the neighbouring bay to see the early morning sharks coming to the shore.  Then we spent most of the day snorkelling around D’Lagoon’s coral reefs watching which was amazing.  The staff at D’Lagoon had also rigged a zip line which goes right across the beach.  They pride them on supposedly having Malaysia’s longest zip line, but I’m not sure on the credibility with that.  Whilst sitting on the beach at the end of the day a boat from the mainland pulled up and on board were no other than Nikolai, Reut and Rudie.  The rest of the evening was spent having a drink, as a small box of beer was delivered to the island and playing a few games.  The staff sang and played again with Reut and I doing a better rendition of Let it Be which was, hopefully well received. 

Sofie and I during the name game...

The end to our last evening was spent on the beach playing guitar with Rudie, the guys from the hotel, Sofie and a Spanish guy.  I hadn’t played guitar for such a long while and it was really good fun and a fantastic end to my stay in the Perhentians.  D’Lagoon was a fantastic place to stay, with absolutely fantastic staff that were incredibly welcoming and made sure we got to see the best of the island.  Unfortunately this also marked the last evening we were spending with Reut, Nikolai, Rudie and Sofie too as we wouldn't see them again during our trip through Malaysia.  Excellent people who traversed Malaysia in our shadow and meeting every now and again.

Me, Sofie and Barbara