Back from Taman Negara

Ah yes, i'm back in KL now.... the trip back on Saturday was uneventful, I was grateful the day wasnt as hot as it had been the previous days, and that the motorized sampan that we took had 2 layers of cushions instead of the 1 when we rode into the Taman Negara resort..... so it was a relatively more comfortable trip compared to our trip in.....

What is different now you ask? Well, for one thing, I have to deal with the traffic, work is no longer next door, rather I have to drive to work now..... I dont bump into anymore my good friends, the wild boars, neither will I come across those sugar bowl stealing monkeys.....though what I'll miss most about the resort in Taman Negara is the sound of crickets that I have grown accustomed to hearing, the sound of the crickets that helps me to fall asleep every night after an exhausting day at work.... though I'm glad i no longer hear the rustling of the bats in the roof (I was worried that I'd wake up with a snake coiled snugly under the blanket with me (hehe, i was reading too many storybooks in my younger days)

But I do enjoy being able to watch TV again, and to catch up with my favourite series, CSI Las Vegas.... though I think I'm too far behind Heroes to make any sense out of it now.... will have to look for someone with the soft copies..... i hope you're out there..... but most of all, I love being able to spend time with loved ones again, when my mum flies back in, my family will be complete again....

Oh well, who's to say it will be my last audit there anyway..... and my mum did say she wants to go there for a holiday..... apparently she's been trying to get my dad to take her there for the last 20 years!!! maybe i'll be reacquainted with them boars sooner than i think!!!

Our adventures in Taman Negara

The weekend arrived, and we started Saturday by waking up half an hour later than usual, had breakfast and proceeded to the office to work for half a day, in line with the rest of the Taman Negara resort staff…. Ah well, no fun I know, but the day ended quite well with Manchester United taking all 3 points at Anfield, leaving Liverpool and their fans stunned at the Kop, thanks to John O’Shea’s late strike…..

But back to my adventures here, we had to wake up early on Sunday, because the client had arranged for a full day of activities…. We had our breakfast at 830am, and we started just after 9.30am, for the Canopy Walk, which has been given recognition as the longest hanging bridge in the world. However, we could only walk across 200m instead of the usual 500m of the bridge as the remaining 300m was closed due to maintenance work…. Not that I would complain either, because of my fear of heights, I questioned my wisdom, and my misplaced sense of adventure in agreeing to have a go at this suspended bridge…. The bridge is held together by rope, planks of woods and an aluminium ladder at the base of the bridge. Each section would be between 5m to 10m long before you reach a checkpoint on a tree…. Here, you can take pictures, catch your breath, and gather your courage for the next 5m to 10m of bridge….. You would tend to look forward rather than downwards, and the sight of the drop should your bridge fail is quite frightening…. I wasn’t quite sure whether I was perspiring profusely due to the heat or from the fear….. or maybe it was from both, I would never know…. Though I eventually did get the hang of it, and started to relax after about 20m or so…. It was a crowning achievement indeed when we reached the end of the suspended bridge :)

Canopy walk from the front and bottom views respectively

Up next was the shooting rapids, where we travelled upstream along the Tembeling River from Kuala Tahan…. Undoubtedly, we did get wet as the boat negotiated seven set of rapids during the 45 minute ride…. I was disappointed though at the relatively pedestrian pace of the rapids, as I was expecting much much more…. Yet, it was a pleasant ride, and due to the breeze in our faces, we didn’t really feel the strong rays of sunshine…. Not that it stopped us from getting sunburnt though….. We didn’t realise how wet we were until we arrived back at the resort, and after a change of clothes and a nap, I felt much better….

After lunch, we proceeded along the Tahan River in order to make our way to Lata Berkoh, a popular waterfall spot among tourists and locals alike located approximately 8 km from our resort…. The journey up the river proved to be picturesque with overhanging trees forming a shaded avenue…. We saw a lot of wildlife along the way, including birds, fishes and even monkeys hanging on the branches over the water…. The water was clear, despite its blackish appearance…. Its cool water was also refreshing as we dipped our hands over the side of the boat, to cause splashes of water to fall onto the person sitting behind us in the boat :) We arrived downstream where it became too shallow for our boat to proceed any further, and NMS and I proceeded to trek for 20 minutes into the forest, alongside the river…. Along the way, we saw many types of trees, heard different sounds which resembled a siren as well as a bark like sound coming from across the river…. We also saw many different of plants, including mushrooms on rotting logs, and posed for pictures next to huge trees….

The trek was all worth it, when we finally reached Lata Berkoh….. There were huge rock formations there, with many people having arrived earlier and just sitting there, soaking the sounds and atmosphere of the waterfalls…. Soaking our feet after the trek felt really good…. One by one, the other people started leaving, with us being the last ones to leave…. We also thought that we shouldn’t stay too long, or AMRRA and the client who accompanied us would start to worry about us…..

We arrived back at the resort at about 6pm, very much tired from our adventures, but I must say it was loads of fun…. I’m glad we did it all, I’m glad I ignored my fear of heights, I’m glad we braved the hot weather, and most of all, I’m glad I forgot about work for a day!!!

Off to Taman Negara

On my second day of work after CNY, I find myself making my way to Taman Negara…. Wow, you’re so lucky my friends say, always being on the move you jet-setter you…. Well, for your information, I’m now officially tired of all the travelling, and would like nothing better than to stay at home, put my feet up and read a good book…. Or to catch up with all the TV that I had missed, or to watch the growing pile of DVDs that was purchased by my dad….

Oh well, that can be another entry on its own…. But this one is all about my trip to Taman Negara…. I’m going there for an audit of the resort there, and a tiring journey it proved to be too….

We were told to be at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in KL by 815am, which I duly obliged…. Only to find that the bus was only due to depart at 9am…. The bus journey took a little over 3 hours to the Tembeling Jetty, inclusive of a 10 minute toilet break at the Lanchang Rest Area…. We had a lousy lunch at the jetty, tasteless fried rice with a lukewarm piece of chicken drumstick….

We were told we were taking the 1.30pm boat to the Taman Negara Resort, but left about an hour later instead, due to the unusually huge crowd departing for the various resorts in Taman Negara…. The boats were nothing to shout about, as it was merely a long sampan with a motor, able to accommodate up to 14 people…. A lil bit worrying as the boat was constantly creaking as we made the 2 ½ hour ride upstream along the Tahan River…. We were told that the trip would be half an hour longer as we were going against the current….

It didn’t take long to fall asleep, due to the monotonous sound of the motor…. However, I woke up after an hour and managed to stay awake till the end to enjoy the pleasant breeze blowing in our faces…. The river was winding due to the dry season, hence the boatman had to manoeuvre the boat accordingly to ensure we were always at the deepest point of the river, as well as avoiding smashing into the many rocks along the river…. Along the way, we saw many birds, a monkey, prawn traps as well as people fishing by the river bank…. And as we neared the resort, we passed by many floating shops and restauarants….

Our arrival at the resort turned out to be quite a noisy affair, as there was a welcoming party, singing and clapping as we walked into the resort…. Not a bad start, and neither was the welcoming drink, which was very much appreciated after the long boat ride endured in order to reach the resort….

We’ll see if the rest of my stay in Taman Negara proves just as pleasant as the welcome we received upon our arrival…..

Happy Chinese New Year!!

I made my usual pilgrimage back to Bangkok… I arrived in KL from Dhaka 2 hours late, but very grateful that my flight was not postponed (or rescheduled as the MAS jokers call it) so I managed to catch my outward flight to Bangkok a mere 8 hours after touching down on Malaysian soil….

We were looking forward to seeing the new international airport in Bangkok…. To our surprise, the 4 month old airport was a tired sight, and as big as it was, it was as lively as a wilted plant, in dire need of some loving attention….. the minimalist concept that is so popular in Europe just did not suit this airport, situated in a country whose people is well known for its warm and friendly people…..

CNY celebrations in Bangkok was muted however, as a loved one in the family had just passed away while I was in Dhaka….. So not that much shopping was done, and we did not get to go to Hua Hin, a seaside resort north of Bangkok…..

We did spend some time in Chinatown though, which was full of people, tourists and locals alike…. It was quite a sight, everywhere you turn you see a sea of red, because everyone is dressed in red…. Only the previous day, Bangkok was a sea of yellow, as people wear yellow in conjunction with the King’s 80th birthday later this year…..

Oh, I finally made it to Chatuchak Market, which is apparently a must for all tourists…. But as I usually make my way to places such as MBK and Suan Lum Night Bazaar, which sells more or less the same thing, I guess I didn’t think it was very important…. And I had dinner at the Loft in Central Chit Lom, and while the food isn’t that great, I would have loved to have had the pleasure of the company of that certain someone with me there due to the lovely ambience….. Oh well, maybe one day that will happen…..

My birthday....

It was quite a busy day for me on my birthday….. Woke up early, went for breakfast, watched a movie, had lunch….. and then only coming back home to finish up my packing for Bangladesh….. 4 days I tell myself, its not anywhere near as bad as the 4 weeks I had to endure earlier, and this time around, I wont have to go out to the villages to conduct branch audits…..

But I suppose one cant fault me for not really looking forward to this day….. But as it turned out, I enjoyed my outing, the movie was entertaining, the company I enjoyed immensely….. received my first birthday present of the year….and the number of smses I received….. Why, I even took a call from AA, who is currently working in London at the moment….. Ah, to feel special, for at least one day in a year…..

The trip to Dhaka wasn’t too bad, I was seated by the window, and as the flight wasn’t full, the seat next to me remained free…. If that wasn’t enough of a birthday present from MAS, a steward woke a very groggy me from my near slumber to present me my birthday present….. ah, the second present for the day…. It turned out to be aftershave…. They were made aware of my birthday by my partner PSR…. A nice gesture I must say……

I suppose it wasn’t too bad a birthday, as a couple of days later, I was to be surprised by the Bangladeshi auditors, who had bought a birthday cake, a tie as a present, as well as a bouquet of flowers!!! Wow, not many people make feel as special as those guys…. I think PSR was a lil jealous :D We can only wait and see if my birthday is as interesting a year from now…..