About one year ago I published a report about the farewell trip of our English friends Pat and Roger. In the past year they have settled down in Australia and and now came back to visit their Malaysian friends. It turned out that they had never been to Fraser's Hill, so it was no problem to find a destination for a short trip..:-)
First we had a look at the Selangor Dam. In the info center a friendly lady told us about the project, that the reservoir is meant to store the drinking water for people in the Klang Valley and the northern part of Selangor. The water treatment takes place downstream the Selangor river. She advised us to visit Kg Gerachi, where the Temuan Orang Asli have been relocated, because from there we would have a nice view of the spillway.
But first Fraser's Hill. After a massive landslide blocked the new access road, it is back to the old system: odd hours up from the Gap, even hours down. The famous Gap Rest House was closed for renovation, it will probably take ages before it will reopen..:-(
Lots of renovation is going on in Fraser's Hill as well, the Chinese Hill View restaurant, where we had lunch, has been temporally relocated. Fraser's Hill is not a paradise for foodies, but we had a good lunch, really VFM (Value For Money).
For accommodation we had decided for a big splurge, Ye Olde Smokehouse, where a standard room costs RM 308. But... that included a welcome drink, afternoon tea with scones, a traditional English breakfast and a 20% discount on food. Nice rooms, individually furnished, and the terrace where we had our tea is perfect for armchair birding..;-)
After our tea we drove around the hill and we decided to have our dinner in this old-fashioned hotel as well. That was a bit of a mistake..:-) The atmosphere was perfect, the service ok, I almost felt shy in my shorts, but the food was definitely not VFM. Even after discount, it was still RM 508, ok with some whiskeys and a bottle of wine...:-) We decided to translate the amount mentally into Euro's/Pounds, that helped.
The next morning, after a very good breakfast, we visited the Jeriau waterfall. On our way we passed the infamous rubbish dump, once a favourite birding location! The dump is no more! It looks like they are building a nursery there.
Once arrived at the waterfall, we saw a lot of activity going on there as well. The problem with this fall is the severe silting of the pool in recent years. So it was time for a Gotong Royong! It was going on for about one was helping. Will be nice to see the result.
Next we walked one of the trails, the Hemmant trail, where we saw a pair of Minivets, always spectacular in their bright red and yellow colours. We took the 2 pm slot to go down and visited the Kg Gerachi, form where the view of the reservoir is spectacular indeed.
A VMF lunch in KKB formed the end of this nice trip |
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wrote on Feb 16, 2009: even if it reopens, the food and service will not be the same sans fong. :-( /stephen |
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wrote on Feb 16, 2009: wow! how did you get him to pose like that. surely not by throwing him a few crumbs. no self respecting long-tailed sibia will be so cheap. ;-0 /stephen |
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Liz wrote on Feb 17, 2009: I had afternoon tea in The Strand in Yangon last week......... your photos reminded me I must put it on Multiply! |
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wrote on Feb 17, 2009: Aric attached to his life support system. |
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wrote on Feb 17, 2009: VFM? |
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Kwai Loh wrote on Feb 17, 2009: It was a nice afternoon tea, the scones tasted fresh, the cream was ok, but of course not the famous clotted cream from Devon..:-) As it was included in the room rate, I don't know the price separately, so can not say if it was VFM or not... |
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wrote on Feb 18, 2009: Hahaha............ |
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Kwai Loh wrote on Feb 18, 2009: Long-tailed sibia's don't have much self respect. They are a raucous mob, the Mat Rempits of the forest..:-) |
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wrote on Mar 11, 2009: this photo warms the heart :) |
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wrote on Mar 11, 2009: i wish i could do that!! |
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