Memories from abroad - A spot of tea in the fields of the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia
Another overcast day.
Dull gray, dark grey, light gray, and the occasional patch of vivid blue. Perfect for a trip to check out one of the tea fields of the Cameron Highlands. Not too hot, not too cold, not too rainy, not too sunny. Pretty much the whole reason I had come to this place in the middle of the mountains, Malaysia. Tea.
A decent trip by bus from KL (Kuala Lumpur), something like 3.5hrs in the most ideal of conditions, the MOST ideal. And last I checked (a minute ago) it only cost 35RM, so about $9US. I think it was much cheaper when I went...way back.
The towns name is Tanah Rata
Which translates to flat ground, and is literally the only flat ground in the area of any note. From my research to refresh my memory, it doesn't look like it's changed from the one street affair that I experienced. Maybe a little bigger as people realize how amazing the area is to get away from everything, especially for travelers looking to tuck themselves away for a minute. I wrote a little bit about it in another post, Memories from abroad -Getting lost in a jungle.
It wasn't hard to find the plantations.
There are four in the area, but only two I remember going to. The first was the Boh Tea Plantations. They had a great tour of their plantations and the facilities. There was a lot of information about their operation and tea in the area...if I find the images from that tour I'll put together a post on it. But the plantation pictured here is the Cameron Valley Tea Plantation (Bharat Tea Plantation). They didn't have a tour that I remembered. But you could walk pretty easily through the fields and they had a couple different amazing views where you could sit, chill, and enjoy the view with a cup of...you guessed it...tea. But they also had coffee.
A bit of info on the plantations...
The one with the tour, Boh Tea Plantations, grow 4 MILLION kgs of tea a year, which is like 5.5 million cups a day. Crazy, right? That's a lot of tea. About 70% of the total tea that all of Malaysia produces. They've got two plantations in the Cameron Highlands and if I remember correctly, they do a lot of work with Lipton. The blackberry citrus tea I got from the souvenir shop sticks in my head, with the big Lipton logo on the side.
Bharat Tea Plantation is apparently the second largest grower in the country. The plantations location making it more tourist focused with those tea houses and hikes I mentioned before. Still no slouch when it comes to growing on either of it's 2 plantations.
Sitting with that cup, alone with my thoughts
I once again couldn't help but chuckle a bit. Like a bookmark in my memory, I have that instant recall of just sitting there wondering, 'wtf?' The air was this lovely mixture of warm and cold, unsure what to be, other then angry and ready to drop rain whenever and wherever. My nose was filled with that odor so specific to growing, a ruddy green and brown, tinged with that sharp floral of a good tea in front of me.
Getting lost in a jungle, eating cinnamon bark off of a tree while watching out for poisonous snakes, flowers that smell like dead people, tea fields, that random Google search that brought me here was definitely paying off.
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This post reminded me of the day I spent on the hills of Ooty . It was such a memorable experience , we reached the highest point in that city and the field of view is really vast :) . Later we went to the tea plantations and during our journey we located a tea factory there , which makes the tea powder in large quantities , hopefully we are lucky 🍀 enough to taste taste that tea free of cost . Thanks for sharing and it made me feel nostalgic.
Yeah, we got some really tasty samples when we were in the factory as well. It's such a great feeling to hike and hike and hike, then, suddenly, right in front of you, these amazing views. Unforgettable. Thanks for stopping by! :)
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so much greenes...
I know...like candy for the eyes :)
YES YES!!
Hehe, though blueberries are good too...for the eyes... :)
Love the photos. Gorgeous rolling hills.
5.5 million cups a day, that's mind-boggling :)
I know! Honestly didn't drink much straight tea in Malaysia, mostly Masala :) Morning, noon, and night, hehe.
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I was in Cameron Highlands a few weeks ago and loved the cool air there after being in the heat of South East Asia for so long. Thanks for sharing your great memory!
Thanks for stopping by and reading :) It's a super cool place. They have good restaurants there yet? lol
I ate roti and tandoori chicken every day :)
Lol, can't go wrong with that :)
You got a 18.83% upvote from @luckyvotes courtesy of @mikesthoughts!
@mikesthoughts Wow, that place looks amazing. I don't ever remember ever seeing so much green anywhere I have ever been. Which isn't really anywhere outside of California. I saw your user name and it made me laugh, because I have used my name in front of "---s thoughts" for all my email accounts. You are the first person I've came across that had the same "thought" as me. Awesome. Because really when you think about it with a blog or an email it's someones "thoughts" so I think it is a great name. IDK why I used an alias for steemit? Voted & Followed :-)
Hehe, I have no idea what prompts me to pick the usernames I do. For a long time it was Upsidedownglass. Why that? Because when I signed up there was a glass upside down on my table, lol.
Yeah, there was so much there. And, it felt to peaceful. California is great, and I love hiking and exploring, but it's nowhere near some of these tropical places. Though that Redwood forest is pretty dope up north :)
Yes the Redwoods are beautiful, Yosemite is as well. Both are within an hour or two of where I live. Tropical areas must be nice, otherwise would they be called paradise? I have learned in all my wisdom anywhere you are(if alive and healthy) is paradise. Enjoy our gift of life is what I mean. Upside down glass is pretty funny. Well Mike, I wish you Many Happy Trails Ahead. :-)
Paradise is made in the mind...so true. Still seeking mine, hehe. And from how things are going, it might be a minute or 10.
Wish you the best as well! Happy trails :)
I love the way the ground looks almost fluid from that wide angle, the hills appear somewhat like waves of the ocean, rising and falling. To see plantations of tea like these it feels so traditional; historical almost.
Must have been very rewarding stopping off there :-)
Yeah, I think I stayed for close to a week. Between hiking, tours, and just chilling...since I was in no hurry to go anywhere :)
And that's exactly what I thought when I saw the fields. Just wave after wave of them :)
Amamzing post @mikesthoughts