Cooling Cameron Highlands - Day 3

4D 3N in Cameron Highlands, Pahang

Day 3 - 26 Nov 2011 (Sat)

We had hot Maggie noodle soup for breakfast, just what the body needed on a cold morning. Our plan for the day was to visit the remaining places of interest.

Butterfly Farm, Brinchang

The welcome banner into Cameron Butterfly & Insect Farm

First stop was the Butterfly Farm. There is an entrance fee of RM5 for adults and RM2 for kids (4-12 years).  The butterflies are kept in a an enclosure.

Some not-so-lucky butterflies - broken wings and found on the floor

Most of the butterflies actually avoided human contact, they kept to the top parts of the enclosure. 

The enclosure - see them hang around the top

There were signs warning people not to catch them as they were fragile. But why weren't the names of the species displayed? And where were the guides to educate the public especially the children? Luckily, the kids were inquisitive, they went around looking for caterpillars and the pupa and found some.

One life cycle of the butterfly

Pretty - but not sure what species

Rishi took this shot - good work, Rishi!

Orange coloured butterfly feeding on nectar of a orange flower

Outside the enclosure, there are other creatures on display. The Rhino beetle, the scorpions, bullfrog, chameleons, leaf insects, Burmese phython ad even a chipmunk. Again, there were not enough of proper info display - like where did they originate, how old are they, their habitat etc etc.

Ugly Rhino beetle

So gross..

Interesting to watch was the  Leaf Insect..very cleverly disguised

The scorpion

The bull frog....BTW, Malaysians like to throw coins into any ponds with shallow water

The tortoise

The tangled snakes

Hint to Butterfly Farm, the farm is interesting but can you please add more education value to your collection. I know you are not running a zoo, and I can see that you do have a valuable collection, so why not share the story behind each species?

Just when we were leaving, I spotted a huge white board with info on the butterflies-their life cycle etc etc. So not strategically placed. The board should be at the entrance of the enclosure!

The preserved butterfly sold as souvenirs

We stopped at their souvenir shop and bought leaf-shaped butterfly bookmarks.

Bee Farm, Brinchang

By now (when we got out of the butterfly farm), we saw a long line of cars stuck in traffic in front of us. The Butterfly Farm and the Bee Farm are within walking distance.

So, we decided to walk to the Bee Farm. We passed a Bee Cafe and Souvenir Shop before stepping out into the farm.

The bees attracted to the honey inside the bee huts

There were a number of phony bees around (man-made). The bee huts attract the bees as they keep honey inside. Again, no guide to educate anyone.

Ok you all...walk up now, no bees here

There was another area where you pass through a maze that leads to the bees but this you need to pay. Everything is so commercialised.

The best part of the Bee Farm

The kids hit some balls (thank goodness the machine was spoilt so we needn't insert coins) while some of us looked around the souvenir shops.

For lunch, we stopped at a Malay stall nearby. We ordered fried rice with sambal belacan (chilly shrimp paste), simply delicious.


Sungai Palas Tea Plantation, Brinchang

Kreetha at the entrance

Next, we headed to Boh's Tea Plantation in Sungai Palas. Their cafe is spacious and offers a panoramic view. Tea in a garden, anyone?

Sg Palas Tea Plantation, rolling green hills....soothing to the eyes

But between Cameron Valley tea and Boh tea, I prefer the former. Having said that, you should try Boh's Coconut and Strawberry Tarts, they are really good, so soft and melts in the mouth.

You want to come? I'm going to pluck some tea leaves.

The highlight at Boh was supposed to be the factory tour. A signboard said that visitors should wait in the video room for their staff to collect us for the tour. After sitting through the video, nobody approached us. So, we went to enquire and they said the factory is closing and that we should have waited at the waiting area. So misleading.

The machine used to process tea leaves

So, we went in and just about saw the workers cleaning up tea stains from the floor and machines.

It stretches and stretches

The cafe that overlooks the plantation

The tea estate - blue houses indicate workers' quarters, I think

The mist started setting in soon after the rain



This  is how tea leaves look like



Boh Plantation, please have clear instructions put out or at least get your staff to come greet and talk to visitors.

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Since we had just about covered all that there is to see, we returned to the apartment. The drizzle continued. N (who else?) suggested the kids try out the indoor swimming pool located at the 5th floor of the hotel. The pool is heated and the water lukewarm. So, when the kids stayed in the water, they were okay but the moment they stepped out, they kind of froze. A quick dash to the apartment and a hot shower followed. But of coz they never complained.

For dinner, we wanted to check out the famous Brinchang Night Market. When we left, it wasn't raining so we thought it will be a smooth ride. But alas, we got stuck in the traffic jam for one hour. And by this time, it started to rain. Finding parking in Brinchang town at night was another nightmare.

Steamed sweet potatoes

But we did stop, and walked through the market stalls and got ourselves burgers, steamed tapioca, steamed corn, appam balik, pizza and nasi lemak. Thank goodness the traffic cleared by the time we started back to our apartment.

All pictures are copyrighted. I can be reached at sivakay2009@gmail.com.