The hills are alive with......tea
Trip Start
Nov 01, 2007
1
61
81
Trip End
Jun 28, 2008
Tanah Rata,
Malaysia
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
We have discovered that in Malaysia, hotels are not very good value. Or just plain not good at all in some cases! Still, the Hillview was incredibly clean and the share showers were really good indeed (possibly the nicest since we left home.) No Diet Coke though - sheesh!
Our main reason for heading to the Highlands was to see a tea plantation, which this area is renowned for. Boh is the major producer in the area, and we got to have a tour of the Sungai Palas factory and plantation. However, being the cheapos that we are, we took the local bus part way, and then walked the rest to avoid being stuck on a touristy (ie overpriced!!) half day group tour. We did have lots of time to enjoy our tea (even me) and you will be overwhelmed by the number of pictures we took. I think we got a bit carried away on this one - roughly two hundred?!?! Still, it was rather beautiful. And I learned something new - all tea is made from the same leaf, the difference (ie. green tea vs black) is just how long the leaf ferments for. Huh. We also watched the workers picking the leaves for a while; they trim the new green shoots by hand and place into big baskets on their backs. I think the hard part for me would be not to slip on the steep slopes that some of these trees are planted on. We watched one guy basically "surf" down a rather steep slope to get to his picking spot!
The weather here is.....well....cold. Not really, I guess but it sure feels cold compared to what we have been used to! It typically ranges from 16-23C here throughout the year, but I swear it felt like about 5C at night!! Guess its just because we have been used to such hot temperatures. Still - it did look quite a lot like Scotland - very green, overcast and it rained a lot here too. We did have to break down and by cheapy rain ponchos to get us home one night.
We are on a bus mission tomorrow I'm afraid - here to Kuala Lumpur, then to Kuantan, and then hopefully to Cherating.....sigh.
Love to all,
K & M
Comments
Good Cuppa?
I'm glad you had a chance to see how my favorite beverage is made. You think it is cold there? Guess what we have on the ground at the moment? Yes,it's snow. With any luck it is this years supply of 'poor man's fertilizer'. I hope we will see it melt tomorrow and not see any more until next December!
Love , Momma & John