Sungei Palas Tea Estate

Going the Cameron Highlands from Raub these days is much easier because the connecting route from Pos Betau to Bertam valley was finally put up somewhere towards the second half of this year. It is now possible to make even day trips to the highlands...points to ponder.

That having been said, one of the first things I revisited was the magnificent Sungei Palas Tea Estate which is still in the possession of the Russel family. Much has been updated to accommodate visitors but I noticed they don't ferment and process tea on the old factory anymore, just very clean machines not doing what they were made to do - manufacturing. It is now a museum showpiece. Dommage.

Rolling green slopes planted with tea...

Tea in all its splendors served at the most English of ambience possible in the tropics en masse.

Unoccupied seats waiting for more tourists...and this place has no shortage of them!

At the museum...

An old furnace methinks...

A furnace door...all in cast iron.

Collection bags in jute. They are used for picking tea leaves.

Quarters...so old world colonial 'charm'.

The new tea house overhanging the cliff.

Tea plant close up.

At the exit, with a view of the estate's smokehouse at the top of the hill.

Colours of Pangkor Island

From 28th to 30th October, I was in Pangkor Island because I was on duty as trainer on Recreational Sports. The event presented some opportunities to snap some photos of the island (actually only the beach of the resort where we stayed as I was rather occupied at most time). Nevertheless, the changing of time and tide on the same theme works well...

At the jetty in Lumut, our point of embarkation.

Pink Frangipani tree at the Lumut Jetty.

The yellow ferry that took us to Pangkor...

A moored ship at the jetty.

Fish farms.

The jetty, spanking new at Pangkor.

First glimpse of the sea at Pangkor Village.

Sunset...an ephemeral play of lights

la lumière vespérale...

Then Dawn, the rosy-fingered appeared (at 7 a.m.)...

Moored speedboats, pointed towards the in-coming tides...

What the rain brought to the tarmac from the tree tops last night.

Quiet morning.

The owner had yet to reclaim the vessel...

An early bird greeting dawn - an Oriental Pied Hornbill or locally known as Enggang Kelingking (Antharacoceros albirostris albirostris)

Suddenly the sky took on a magical hue.

Floaters in a barrel on the beach.

A lone coconut on the beach.

Blue kayaks, yellow kayak.

Shimmering midday.

Speedboats awaiting actions...

Pangkor Laut Resort at the distance.

L'Ametlla del Mar on the Costa Darauda in Catalunya

The sudden heatwave that came about the country for the last week or so got me thinking about the 11-day trip I had back in the summer of 2006 to Catalunya in Spain. My sister's family and the Morrel family rented out a villa with attached swimming pool from a French lady who resides in Catalunya. The drive from Dordogne was extremely long and tiresome as it was the peak of summer and the heat was most unbearable, especially when we crossed the border to Spain. Unlike the French auto routes, the Spanish counter parts do not have R&Rs with shades and toilet facilities. We drove past Tarragon and Barcelona, about 120 km south of Barcelona, we finally arrived at Ametlla del Mar, precisely the holiday village of Les Tres Cales. Surprises of surprises, the place seemed disheveled by hap-hazard constructions everywhere and the heat in summer was just unbearable. Another dismay, the villa was actually a mile away from the beaches and worst, the beaches were actually sealed off by cliffs and had to be accessed through some very winding and narrow sandy paths. However, the beaches was not bad and the water azure, befitting its Mediterranean location on the tip of the Catalunya region. One thing was sure...there were no shops nor restaurants open during the siesta hour of 2 - 4 p.m. but the modestly priced and exquisite olives, jambon (ham), canned seafood and sangria was more than worth the effort to visit the place. The beaches are best visited before 9 a.m. as the blindingly hot sun can be searing and unbearable beyond 11 a.m.

The cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean sea at Les Tres Cales.

Old olive trees

Les Tres Cales in the distance...

The Castilla Sant Jordi sits atop the cliffs overlooking the blue yonder...

Precariously built houses at Ametlla del Mar

The port at Ametlla...

The marina

A fishing boat

Traditional horse carriage for the tourist bucks...

The fisherman port of Ametlla del Mar. I saw a squid swimming around the motorboats moored at the port! We visited the port everyday and one of the thing I like about this place is the fishermen selling their catch on the port itself. Remark: lots of octopus and silverfish that are used for frying to make tapas. Octopus pickled in olive oil remain my all time favourite. We tried traditional paella on a cliff bound terrace on our last night and it was fine. I still don't fancy the taste of saffron for some reason I cannot fathom...

The roundabout in Ametlla.

The beach at Ametlla

Desert-like landscape was everywhere. Everything was so dry and bristly...

Opuntias growing wild in the bushes in Les Tres Cales.

The sandy beach at Les Tres Cales on a very hot morning.