Malaysia - Penang, Cameron Highlands, and Kuala Lumpar

Mini tour of Malaysia

Another chance for a change of scene from Bangok, here's a quick write up of a recent mini tour of Malaysia.

Penang

We flew from Bangkok to Penang on Asia Air. The flight took just under two hours and cost just over 2,500 BHT. We did look at the bus/train transfer options down from Bangkok to Malaysia which can be a lot cheaper than this, but we went for the faster option.

Penang Hill

The highest peak in Penang, Penang hill is worth a trip up on the funicular railway for the best view of the city. Check out their official website for the latest prices/times of the trains. http://www.penanghill.gov.my/

The Worlds Only Owl Museum!

When you've finished look around at the viewpoints on Penang Hill you could always take a trip to the Owl Museum at the top of Penang Hill. We nearly didn't go because we worried that it would be full of stuffed owls, something that neither of us would support, but actually it's a collection of over 1,000 Owl themed crafts and goods, some good and some very random...
http://theowlmuseum.com/

Owltastic!

Cameron Highlands

Tanah Rata

Tanah Rata is the main town in the centre of the Cameron Highlands. If you get a tourist bus from either Penang or Kuala Lumpar chances are it will drop you here. There isn't a whole lot to do in the town, it's just a useful place to break up your journey overnight.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanah_Rata

Our tour bus from Penang to Tanah Ratah

Tea Plantations

After our overnight stay in Tanah Rata we headed out early the next day into the highlands proper. I was really surprised to hear that coffee isn't really grown in the Cameron Highlands any more, instead Tea is the hot crop. Our guide explained that coffee harvesting took a lot more machinery than tea brewing, therefore they were having to ship the coffee beans back down to Penang or Kuala Lumpar for processing which made the costs too high. Therefore, the place is all about Tea!

One of the biggest producers in the area are Dilmah.
http://www.dilmahtea.com/

Tea Planation near Tanah Ratah

Kuala Lumpar

Petronas Towers

One of the most photographed buildings in the world, the Petronas Towers is impressive from any angle. Of course we managed to turn up in Kuala Lumpar on Monday which happens to be the only day of the week that the tower is closed - doh! I've been told that if I ever manage to turn up in KL again on a Monday then heading to one of the Skybars in hotels like the Traders Hotel gives just as good a view.

Petronas Towers - impressive from any angle

Aside from that, the only other thing we had time to do in Kuala Lumpar was shop before we hopped onto our plane back to Bangkok.