Photos: Malaysia
You would’nt expect so much from a little country like Malaysia…
In the south you’ll find the small and pretty Melaka where a walk by night around the river and the markets is a great romantic spot. North of Melaka is the fast paced Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, there you’ll find not only the gigantic and famous Petronas towers that you’ve certainly seen in the movie “Entrapment” but there’s also a “bargain-a-gogo” Chinatown, a colorful Little India and oversized malls for all ranges of prices.
Let’s jump inland, two famous places, one is Cameron Highlands, first thing you’ll notice if you travel like me in the crazy hot month of june, it’s a nice relief from the heat, this place is almost at 2000m above the sea level as you might guess from the name of this place. There are two highlights there, I started with some really nice walks in the jungle where the nature is well preserved and the path is clear enough not to get lost. Then you have the traditional tea plantations where you’ll not only get to see the charming landscape but if you’re lucky enough you might even see the workers which brings life to this place. Also traditional is the tea factory, quite interresting place freely open to the tourists. Still inland, second place to see would be Taman Negara, “The Jungle”, there you have it all, the landscapes, wildlife, tribes, treehouses and even a dark cave full of bats where’s you’ll make sure not to wake up the housekeeper, a 3 meters long python… Sound scary but try the nightwalk where’s you’ll meet some scorpions or huge spiders, then you’ll redefine “scary”!
North-east are the exotic Perenthian Islands, if you want to relax, choose a beach corresponding to your style, from empty to hype, all of them are beautiful, all of them will cook your skin as fast as a microwave! If you want more, join a little group of snorkeling, first time I tried it, loved it immediately, as they say, there’s a world under the water… one more thing you can do if you have some money to spend (I did’nt!), try the diving, considered as a great and cheap spot.
Again, in such a little country, it is surprizing to see so many different landscapes, add to that the really nice people of Malaysia and you’ve got a new place to spend you’re next two weeks of holidays!
