It started off last Saturday with dad booking us to a trip to Ipoh. I was super reluctant to go, being so soon after the Sabah-Langkawi-Penang trip and a night of vodka sprit. All I wanted to do then was to hang out with friends and chill out. “But you’ll only have these free moments to travel!” Dad wheedled, “And not everyone has opportunity like you have, you know.”
Seeing me weakening, he added in slyly, “Besides, you won’t have another chance like this anymore to see rafflesia. You really don’t want to go?” I was trapped. Evil dad triumphed once again.
We overnight at Dad’s old friend’s place, whom I knew ever since a baby. Coincidentally, Uncle had another lodger by the name of Dr Chan something-something, who is interested in promoting rafflesia to the nation. And the best thing was, he had a four wheel drive! This also means I don’t need to plod my sore butt up the two hours trek, wahaha!! But ala, just walk to see a smelly flower only what right... Like, how hard can that be?
After two over hours bladder-tahaning drive through Pahang and Kelantan, we arrived at Lojing, somewhere in Cameron Highlands. I had never been to Cameron Highlands before, yet here I am, stuck in an unknown part of it. And there were no toilets, dammit!! So what to do, had to pee in the bushes la~ Desperate times calls for desperate measure, people. Unfortunately, I didn’t notice the, umm...ants. Until...too late. ARGH!!!! My butt!! @%$+*#......
Geez, can’t a girl even pee in peace?
Dr Chan decided to drive up the track to save time. We piled back into Dr Chan’s neat little Jimny. And pile right out immediately. Little Jimny got stuck in a rut. Next half hour was spend winching out the four-wheel drive, while agreeing (out of Dr Chan’s earshot) that his vehicle is not powerful enough for Lojing’s muddy slope. Getting the four-wheel drive out was quite an adventure, but of all the c2pid thing...!! I forgot my camera!! Curses!! Or else I could show you so many cool pictures of the old men in action!! Huhu...
After much heaving and pulling, sturdy little Jimny finally free itself. Wee~! And off we go! Elations fade away immediately when another steep, definitely more muddier slope loomed up. ‘We can make it! All we need is momentum!!’ Dr Chan quipped confidently.
Dr Chan: "Don't look down on my Jimny!!"
To cut the long story short, we got stuck again. And this time, there was no way we could winch it out or reverse back down. But God must had heard our prayer, ‘cause a few minutes later, a huge papa four-wheeler materialized before our very eyes, and four hunky musculie (and dreamy) guys emerged out. This time was pushing and rocking, and after much effort and mud splattering, tiny Jimny was free once more!!
You think with such puny car, anyone would have given up long ago, hor? But not Dr Chan! We groan inwardly when he persisted to drive up again (“Momentum! All we need is momentum”!). When Uncle pointed out that even the huge four wheeler had problem going up a lagi steeper and lagi muddier slope, Dr Chan finally admitted
Our journey consist of trekking through muddy trails...
Across rickety bamboo bridges...
Pass four papa four-wheeler...
Super geng uncle trek halfway up the slippery slope barefooted.
Scale down a steep miss-one-step-and-you-die slope...
And many many streams...
This was my pose before I fell into the river. I have no idea how could I fall when everyone else didn't.
This was how my shoes look like BEFORE...
And this is how my shoes look like AFTER.
But all these obstacles were worth it when we caught sign of what we had been searching so ardently for...
Let me show what do you do when you see a rafflesia.
First, you gather your chi.
Then you take a deep breath...
After that, you...
Stinky weh!!!! Smells like weeks of accumulated farts!!
The stinky part...
Bigger bud!
Tourists all the way from Norway..
I tell you, the ang mos know about this place better than we do. 60% of the people we met were foreigners.
Haih, is money really everything?
After had our fill of hamsaping the parasites, we slogged back down the muddy trail...
These are hardcore trekking I tell you!!! It made BRATs hiking at Sepilok pale in comparison. Especially after the huge four-wheeler and one jing gang of tourists used the path, it became worst than mushy banana. And for some smack-ass reason, I keep on falling on the clay that made my butt look like some retarded banana.
T.T My beautiful legs!! I am uglyfied!!
More ugly surprises awaits us when we reached Jimny. Uncle, who reached the car before me, asked me whether I had our lunch in my backpack.
Me : No la, I left it in the car.
Uncle : Eh? Really? I can't find it.
Me : Maybe you missed it. I help you find it la.
It was then I noticed something very, very wrong. Why was the seat so neat?
"My slipper!!" I shrieked. "Someone nicked off my slipper and my clothes!!"
"Oh damn, and my crocs are missing," Uncle declared.
"It seems that they made off with my underwear too," Dr Chan observed dryly.
We later discovered some orang asli kids were hobnobbing around the vehicle earlier. WaaAaA, I just bought those slippers from Penang wan r, barely even a week old!!!!! And those are my favourite pair of shorts!! Just let me get my hands on those thieving little blighter, I'll tan their hide till they can't sit down for a week!! Rawr!!
Dad was the only one didn't get rob cos he though we were going for boutique walk...
He didn't even wear his hiking shoe~hehe
Cleaning ourselves up the best we could...
Uncle and I giggled our heads off playing out this conversation...
Cameron Highlands~
Har?? Buat apa kat sana?
Tengok bunga lah!
For all the inconveniences and scrapes I had to endure, this trip is one the best I ever had!! I had the opportunity to bounce around in a four wheel drive, waddle around in free mud spa, answering nature calls the natural way, and of course, touch, feel and smell the rafflesias. And the experiences had been truly amazing... I never had more fun sloshing through the mud!! I hate the you-got-alot-of-$$-only-I'll-tell-you tactic (RM10 just to see the flower, excluding the guide fees, land rover fees and other expenses), so if you are interested in rafflesia, just ask me. I can provide details to find a guide and the usual how to go yada yada answers.
I welcome you to Cameron Highlands!!
