04.25.24
Ipoh in our Mirror
We were told to visit one of the towns near Ipoh, Cameron Highlands, but at 90 km, it was quite a distance. The beauty of it is that the road out there was one of the most well-engineered motorcycle roads we have been on in a long time! Amazing views, and since we left at 0700 it was so quiet that I had to stop several times just to enjoy the sound of the birds chirping along the way. Because rain here can be very random and arbitrary, we decided to not stay out very long to reduce the chances of getting wet, and along with that, it was about 20° colder so I actually had to bundle up in long sleeves!
As it turned out, we did not make it fully into town, but got very close. We saw scores and scores of tents growing strawberries, and tea plantings all over the place since it was so hilly.
We were super lucky using the bike. The 3 days that we had it the weather was hot but clear, and the day after we turned it in it rained most of the day! We visited three major attractions, and each one outshined the last. We both agreed that Ipoh would make a wonderful base to use to explore more of the country. Thank you great rail lines!
I didn’t think that there would be much to say about this small town called Ipoh, but OMG, there is a lot to share!
The upside, the good news, is that the people here are so lovely, as they also were in KL, so overall we are enjoying the energy of the Malaysian people. Our room was located in Old Town, and usually that is where the action is, but by 6:00 pm the streets are virtually empty. But we are able to walk to lots of restaurants, the Riverwalk, and for me, a gym, for the first time in almost a year! That’s a whole nother subject I’ll not get into…
They have a few unique businesses here, too, including a coffee shop that is designed to represent the train station from the Harry Potter books called Platform 9.5 plus a very hip bookstore that used to be a bank, and downstairs they have displays inside the bank vaults.
Another beauty of the town is its accessibility, especially by rail since the train from KL stops here and goes all the way up to the Thailand border. That is a very attractive feature! We talked about the possibility renting a room here for 90 days and just using it as a base and going elsewhere by train. Overall we are getting pretty sold on Malaysia being a place to stay for 3 months.
But Ipoh is not an early rising town! Trying to find a cup of coffee or a pastry before 10:00 a.m. has been extraordinarily challenging, and many places don’t open until 12:00 noon! But they are known for their white coffee and right across the street from us was a business called Old Town white coffee, and yes they do it right.
