Ipoh

March 24, 2024

Ipoh

This is a late post about my adventures in Ipoh since I didn’t have internet for the past two days.

Eileen picked me up Wednesday morning and drove me first to Gua Tempurung, which is a big cave. I’ve been to a few caves now, one in Halong Bay in Vietnam, one by Puerto Princesa in The Philippines, and now this one on the way to Ipoh from Kuala Lumpur. Gua Tempurung is the only cave that I was able to walk deep into for a long time, about an hour or so. I was sweaty by the time we came out.

After the cave we went straight to Ipoh. We had lunch at a local hawker stall where I ate thinly slice chicken in noodle soup, along with some bean sprouts. They were really delicious and a local specialty. After checking into the New Caspian Hotel, we rested a bit and had dinner nearby.

The next day, we went to the town center and walked on Concubine Lane and its nearby streets. Eileen chatted with a tea shop owner for a long time about tea. I learned that drinking tea can be as specialized as drinking wine. But I’m not a “teahead.”

There were also a bunch of murals in town as we strolled in some alleyways. We spent time visiting the 22 Hale Street Heritage Gallery. It had some interesting sculptures in the main gallery that I found amusing. On the way back to the hotel we stopped by Mural Art’s Lane where there is a collection of very interesting murals. I bet Miriam would have loved them since she’s very interested in art and design. Eileen and I ended the day by going to the Kinta Riverwalk before coming back to the hotel.

We only stayed two nights in Ipoh so the next morning we checked out early. Before arriving in Cameron Highlands we decided to visit Kek Look Tong, a Buddhist temple inside a cave. We also appreciated the garden in the back of the cave as we wandered around the temple grounds.

On the way to Terra Tree House, which Eileen recommended that we stay in Cameron Highlands, we stopped by for some photos at Hobbitoon that had some Hobbit-like houses and a strawberry farm. The next two nights we had no cell phone connection and no wifi because the tree house complex is deep in the forest and in the mountains. I will write about that in my next post.