Malaysia: Malacca, Ipoh, & Cameron Highlands

After Singapore I headed north to Malaysia. I started in the south of Malaysia in Malacca before heading north to Ipoh and the Cameron Highlands. It was fun exploring the different areas of Malaysia from lowland cities to the natural beauty of the mountains.

The bus ride from Singapore to Malacca was an easy one that went really quick. Before I knew it I was at the bus station in Malacca buying a SIM card, getting cash, and getting a Grab to my hostel. The owner of the hostel I stayed at was so friendly and nice and before I could even fully check in we were in a conversation. Once I was checked in and as he was showing me to my bed he stopped to introduce me to everyone currently in the room. I’ve never had this happen before at a hostel and it was nice. When introducing me to the others he told me not only that they were going to the night market in an hour but that I was going to join them. I didn’t even know there was a night market but I found it amusing that the owner invited me into the group. It was nice to have a hostel owner initiating these connections. After resting for an hour I joined the group and we all wandered around the night market for a while before finally deciding to get dinner at a restaurant. After dinner we wandered around some more and then went out to a bar on the river for the rest of the night. It was a fun evening and a very friendly introduction to a hostel. While at dinner the group and I made plans to explore the city together the next morning.

Since all of us had something to do in the morning, which for me was to lay out all of my clothes to dry since they all got soaked on my bus ride to Malacca, we had a later start to the day. We started our time together by going out for brunch after which we walked around the old town area where the streets are lined with historical buildings. It was really cool to look at all of the different styles of buildings. After walking around for a bit we went down to the riverfront area before heading over to Dutch Square which is a square surrounded by bright red buildings. Our group had a lot of fun spending most of the day walking around the different sights within Malacca as well as walking around the old ruins that are in the city. That evening we headed back to the hostel to rest for a while before joining a bike tour hosted by the hostel which most everyone staying at the hostel attended. On the tour we were able to bike through the different old streets after which we headed out of the main area and towards the famous floating mosque to see the sunset. The mosque we visited is built on large stilts above the water and we learned that once a year the tides are said to come in high enough that it looks like the mosque is floating. It was a lot of fun being in a big group and watching the sunset, unfortunately it was very cloudy so there wasn’t much of a sunset to see. After the sun went down the bugs came out so we got back on our bikes and headed to a local restaurant for dinner. The restaurant we went to only served one thing, Nasi Lemak, which is the national dish of Malaysia. Nasi Lemak is served with rice; fried dried anchovies; peanuts; sambal, a spicy chili sauce; and egg along with different main choices of either fried chicken, a curry chicken, or fish. It was a delicious meal and I really enjoyed the sambal added on both the rice and the chicken. After dinner we all got back on our bikes and biked through the different streets again on our way back to the hostel. Once back at the hostel, the group of us from the night before and earlier in the day all headed to the hostel's rooftop terrace where we played different card games for the rest of the evening. It was a fun end to a really great day.

The next two days I spent in Malacca were very chill and relaxing. It ended up raining a lot both days so I spent most of those days at the hostel hanging out with people and planning my next travels. While I didn’t do much exploring, it was a lot of fun just hanging out with others, playing card games, and being productive with my planning. After three great days in Malacca it was time to move on so I got a bus ticket to the town of Ipoh. My final destination was to go to the Cameron Highlands but since there wasn’t a direct bus I decided to just go to Ipoh where I planned to spend one day before continuing on. Before leaving Malacca, I had been told that while Ipoh wasn’t very exciting there were still some cool things to see so that is why I decided to go there. I arrived in Ipoh in the evening and since the bus station was a ways outside of town I got a Grab to my hostel. On the way there it started to torrential downpour. Once to my hostel I checked in and decided to stay in and have a quiet night. Due to the rain, my original plan was to order food to be delivered to the hostel. Unfortunately, by the time I was ready to order every place was busy so, when there was a lull in the rain I headed out in search of a restaurant. After walking for a while and not finding any open restaurants I finally decided to give up and stopped at a small corner store and picked up a little bit of food and then went back to my hostel. The next morning I had a nice relaxed morning before heading out to explore. There wasn’t much to see so I walked around for a while before going back to my hostel in the afternoon to hang out there for the rest of the day. While I have been super lucky with all of the places I have been able to see and visit in my travels thus far, unfortunately during my time in Ipoh not only did I find it a pretty boring place but I felt very uncomfortable the entire time because I was being stared at by so many men and the way they were staring at me made me uncomfortable. This is, of course, just my personal opinion of the place and is based on the experiences I had. The next day I met two women at the bus station who were not traveling alone and they had a good time there and didn’t experience what I did.

After spending only one full day in Ipoh, the next day I took a bus to Tanah Ratah, a small mountain town within the Cameron Highlands region of Malaysia. This town was super cute and felt like a mix of a small European mountain town mixed with an Asian style and feel. From the moment I got there I really liked it. The bus ride there ended up taking longer than I thought it would, but it was a very scenic and easy ride. After arriving and checking into my hostel and getting situated, I went out to walk around and find dinner. Tanah Ratah has a lot of Indian restaurants, due to a large Indian population in Malaysia and in the area, so after walking past a bunch of restaurants I finally decided on an Indian restaurant and had a super delicious meal. After dinner, I met up with a girl who had been on my bus and we walked around the town a little more before finally heading back to our accommodations for the night. The next morning I was up early because I had a half day tour booked with the girl from my bus. We were picked up along with others and were riding in a really cool Land Rover Defender from the 70’s. Our first planned stop of the day was a large tea plantation. On the way there we stopped next to a large tea field where we were able to take photos of the amazing view and were told more about how the tea is harvested and about the tea trees, as well as what type of teas are produced in the area. It was all super interesting to learn about and I enjoyed seeing the tea trees and leaves up close. After the first stop we arrived at the actual plantation where we were able to taste some of the teas and walk around more.

Next we headed towards the Mossy Forest. On our way to the path area we stopped and our driver walked us along the road within the forest and told us more about some of the different plants we were seeing. I learned that this is one of the oldest forests in the country and is believed to have been around during the time of dinosaurs. After walking along the road in the forest, we got back in the truck and continued the rest of the way to the Mossy Forest trail area. Because so many tourists visit the Mossy Forest every year, a wooden walkway has been built to go through the forest to protect the soft earth. Due to the trees and their root structure and the soil, the ground is actually very soft and springy. Before we started on the path our guide brought us to a small area on the edge where we could feel how soft and springy the ground was; it was a really cool feeling. While walking through the forest it looked and felt very mystical and magical since it was a very cloudy day and we were high up on a mountain within the clouds. All of the trees and moss growing were so beautiful and it was a really enjoyable walk. Once we all finished the path, which took around forty minutes, our guide asked if on the way back to town we wanted to stop at a strawberry farm. We all agreed that we wanted to go, so we then headed there. The strawberry field wasn’t very large, but we were able to see some of the strawberries being grown. The main reason for the stop though was to purchase strawberry products ranging from fresh strawberries to fresh strawberry juice and popsicles. It was a very delicious stop and after that we headed back to town. Once back in town our guide recommended a good local Punjabi restaurant so most of us from the group decided to go there for a late lunch and afterwards we hung out there and talked for a while. The food was delicious and so flavorful. While at lunch it started to rain heavily so we tried to wait out some of the rain before finally giving up and going our separate ways. Since it was raining and late in the afternoon, I ended up hanging out at my hostel the rest of the afternoon which was a lot of fun and in addition to the down time, I enjoyed the amazing view of the town and mountains from the hostel.

On my final day in the Cameron Highlands I had a slow morning and while taking it easy I planned which hike I was going to do that day. Other than the tea plantations and the Mossy Forest, the Cameron Highlands are also very popular for all of the different hikes in the area. The hike I decided on had its starting point just outside of town. It was close enough to walk to so that’s what I did. From what I read online it was a popular hike. Once at the start of the trail nature showed that the hike wasn’t going to be easy because the very first part was going straight up. Once I got through the first part I had to go down through a washed out area where I had to carefully climb down using a rope and then, once past that, to get onto the next part of the path I again needed to hold onto a rope to climb up. This hike was not easy at all. Once up the rope area it was a steep climb straight up the mountain and since it was through the forest it was mostly climbing up the different tree roots. It was difficult and very tiring and the whole time I was asking myself why I was doing it, but after an hour and a half of going straight up I finally reached a leveled out area. I then continued on to what I thought was the viewpoint at the top but unfortunately due to clouds I wasn’t able to see very much. After enjoying the little bit of a view I did have, I started my way back down the mountain. Going down wasn’t very easy either since I had to remember how I made it up the different areas since when going up the mountain I had to climb tall steps that were taller than hip level and when going down they were even more difficult. Once I was almost back to the start, at the area where the rope was needed, I passed a family who was just starting the hike. The mom asked me how much further and I had to break the bad news that she still had at least an hour to an hour and a half of climbing straight up the mountain. She wasn’t very thrilled and I was feeling very glad to no longer be at the start. Once I completed the hike I felt very proud of myself for my accomplishment that day since I am a very beginner hiker and that was definitely not a beginner hike, yet I was able to complete it. It wasn’t until I was walking back to my hostel when I was able to look at a map that I realized I unfortunately didn’t actually finish the entire trail; I missed an easier section of the trail. Due to how the brush and trees were at the top, the path was somewhat hidden and since I was doing the hike alone I didn’t want to venture off path and risk getting lost so I ended up missing part of it and unfortunately hadn’t made it to the bigger view point. It was disappointing to find that out at the end, but at least I got great exercise by doing the hardest part of the hike which was climbing straight up the mountain. Once back at my hostel, I rested there for a little while and was productive catching up on tracking my travel spendings before eventually heading out to dinner and then after dinner booking my hostel for the next night.

While I unfortunately did not like the town of Ipoh, I was lucky enough to have really liked both Malacca and the Cameron Highlands. I had a really fun time in both of those towns and it made up for not having a great experience in Ipoh. While in Malacca I met so many awesome travelers and I enjoyed hanging out with them and in the Cameron Highlands not only did I meet some really nice people but I also loved all of the nature. From the different hikes to the tea plantations and even the Mossy Forest, the Cameron Highlands area is breathtaking and I hope to go back again someday to explore even more.

“You do not travel if you are afraid of the unknown. You travel for the unknown, that reveals you within yourself.”

- Ella Maillart