Heebie-jeebies over the Creepy Crawlies

The butterfly farm turned out to be more than advertised. In addition to the beautiful, it also showcased the creepy crawlies (ie. insects, amphibians and serpents). Luckily though, it also had some cute and cuddly (squirrels and bunnies) to balance it out.

When I was younger, I was a definite tomboy and would play in the dirt with the best of them. I chased down lizards and bugs like a dog chases its tail. I captured caterpillars and raised them to be graceful butterflies. But now, all these bugs just give me the heebie-jeebies. Maybe I can blame it on Australia, where many of the deadliest things are homegrown? Nah, it started before that. Maybe I’m just a scaredy cat?

It’s just that I don’t really like spiders and bugs, you know? They just . . . well, they just look funny – all spindly legs; millions of eyes watching you; weirdly shaped shells; and horns for goodness sake. Who has horns in this day and age? Only these weird bugs.

I kinda like snakes though (but perhaps that’s because we don’t have them in Hawaii and I’ve never really had to deal with them before so they’re kinda just an abstract idea to me). They’re cool and smooth to the touch and come in so many colors and patterns. And they don’t have any horns.

Anyway, back to the butterfly/bug farm . . . they had the bugs and things in glass cases. None of them were out on show-and-tell, like they do at some of these places. This was perfectly fine by me. But, even looking at them through the glass grossed me out. I mean, I didn’t show any outward signs of discomfort (I’m not neurotic about them) besides some “eww”s or “yuck”s under my breath, but no one could pay me enough to hold one in my hand, if you know what I mean.

Oddly though, they still fascinated me and I couldn’t turn away. I suppose this goes back to my childhood love of animals and wanting to be a veterinarian (which will never happen because I suck at math and science lol). Watching how their bodies worked, how they inched along or slithered by, was insanely cool. I got eyeball-to-eyeball with them and probably looked like a giant maniac through the glass.

Still, there will be no love lost the next time one of these creepy crawlies gets squashed (by someone other than me I might add). Nope, you won’t get any sympathy from me.

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The View from a Bus Window

Traveling by long-distance bus is a new experience for me, especially when the buses aren’t part of a tour company or organized specifically to fit the needs of tourists. Using public transportation and traveling with locals has been an interesting way to see the country.

Sometimes traveling with locals can get a bit dicey (so I’ve heard), but I’ve been lucky to experience only good things. The buses are comfortable and have cushioned seats, curtains on the window, reclining chair backs, adjustable A/C vents and power sources. Most of the time they aren’t packed to capacity so I’ve had two seats for myself and my things.

No one has really bothered me or tried to engage in any conversation. I’m not sure if that’s because I look unfriendly or if people just aren’t as open as in Australia or New Zealand. Or perhaps it’s because locals keep mistaking me for one of them? I’m not sure why this would happen though, because I don’t think I fit into any of the main ethnic groups (Indian, Chinese and Malay) as far as my physical features. For goodness sake, despite being Asian, I am definitely built of heartier stock than most Malaysians (I blame that on growing up on McDonalds cheeseburgers).

Traveling by bus has its ups and downs, but I’ve found that it is a wonderful way to kick back, relax and go with the flow. After all, I’m on vacation and here to see the sights. I don’t need to be lightning-quick about it and can afford to spend more time enjoying the journey.

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Journey to Cameron Highlands

A trip to Cameron Highlands isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s a grueling five-hour (if you’re lucky) bus ride from Kuala Lumpur. If you’re wavering on whether you should visit, I really urge you to do so despite the arduous journey.

To make it through the bus ride, my advice would be to sleep through as much of it as you can. This will help you avoid getting carsick, especially when you actually start weaving your way through the hills. In fact, one of the few times I felt sick was on a sailboat out to the Great Barrier Reef. But, this bus ride to Cameron Highlands was even worse.

I was extremely happy when we finally got into Tanah Rata, the administrative center for the region. I walked to my first-choice hostel, even though I hadn’t booked anything before leaving KL. Unfortunately, all the dorms were full and the only thing they had left was a single room for RM40. I thought this was outrageous (although all things are relative I suppose because if you convert this into U.S. or Australian dollars, it’s tremendously cheap).

I walked to another hostel and got an attic room for RM15. Now this is more like it. Since it was an attic room, the roof sloped (quite severely in fact), but at least I’d be alone in the room and didn’t have to worry about my belongings. However, the old adage of “you get what you pay for” is no joke, and I soon regretted this decision. When night fell, all the bed bugs came out to play and I spent the night with the light on killing those suckers.

But, I digress. After checking in and leaving my bags, I went into town and had lunch at the Hill Station Cafe. I ordered Maggi noodles with spicy chicken. The noodles are comparable to fried saimin back in Hawaii. It was really good, and I enjoyed myself at an alfresco table.

After lunch I had the entire afternoon to myself so I decided to take a walk to the neighboring town of Brinchang. It’s about three miles up the hill from Tanah Rata and most people told me to get a bus or cab, but I decided to walk. I’d been catching the LRT around in KL for the past week so this would be a good chance to start walking again. I looked at the map and followed what I hoped would be a shortcut (if I stayed on the main road, it was gonna be closer to five miles).

I passed modern-looking houses built in the Malay style of architecture. I stopped to look at All Souls’ Church, constructed in the 1950s for the Church of England. Small streams trickled through the area, but they weren’t very pretty because of all the red dirt discoloring the water. There was even a Hindu temple on the edge of Brinchang with intricate carvings to look at.

Even though I regretted not changing into my hiking boots, the walk was enjoyable and the cool temperatures up in the Highlands were refreshing after the sweltering heat of KL. Now that I was here, I really liked how natural Cameron Highlands was, especially compared to the city. It seemed like a hidden retreat from the world and a nice way to explore a different part of Malaysia.

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