Gunung Lang, Ipoh, Perak

It has been a tired weekend. Me and my wife have driven back and forth for nine hundred kilometers sending my son to Bangi, a small town nearby Kuala Lumpur, where he will spend his next three years in the university over here.

Slept late at twelve midnight after watching the match between Argentina and Germany and woke up at three o'clock in the next morning had torn me apart.

On the way home, we dropped by at Gunung Lang, Ipoh, for a brief visit. I found these cat fish were not much better than me. They were squeezed inside a sandglass, whereby time was a total jam.

I felt easier only after moving away and had this pond view.

We took a short boat ride under the two o'clock burning sun. F/9 and 1/250 sec exposure time may show the other way, though the tree that stays atop has surrendered itself for a long time.

There is a stony face trying to put on a forest as its shelter. It must be too comfort over there so much so it has not make any movement for a few hundred years. I leave it to another blogger for his story another hundred years to come.

I shall not read this, same as this mushroom.

You? I do not think you are any better than us.

Mengkuang Dam

What can I tell from a picture?

First of all, if you have followed me regularly, you can tell it is Mengkuang Dam, and I have almost pictured its full view from Cerok Tokun.

The far left corner with green patch of grasses is where the entrance and car park are located. The well visible pathway until the sharp tip at the top is a portion of the jogging trek, another part is hidden behind the woods from the entrance to the the right after the first bend and goes uphill and down, until then, there is a junction. If you choose the right turn, there is a durian plantation waiting for you, or there is a long long way for you to further you trekking, along the dam, alone, ascending and descending, and adventurous, as shown in the picture, if you choose the left turn.

I usually spend around half and hour jogging at the normal jogging trail. Mengkuang Dam is not too far from BM town or Berapit. If you would like to hike with me, Cerok Tokun is slightly further away, but you can have its clear view from both places.

I am writing this because I have received an email asking where one can go trekking nearby Berapit. And I am happy if I can answer correctly.

I have read these in the Internet:

In 1904, the New Year's ball dropped for the first time in Times Square, New York City. In Japan, everyone laughs at the stroke of midnight to ensure good luck in the New Year. In Philippines, children jump ten times when the clock strikes twelve, hoping to grow taller in the new year. In Mexico, some people take out their suitcases and walk around the block, hoping it would help them travel during the next year.

Have a great New Year! I have started counting: 100, 99, 98, 97, 96.....

Kek Look Cave, Episode two

Mother nature has built her library in the same way we build ours. We can read and enjoy the shared experience and knowledge. We can spend our time as long as we wish, only if we want to. When we are willing to let go our imagination, there is no harm to have different understanding or interpretation on what we have seen.

When I walked through, I got to know the collections of the library were written through thousands of years of Nature’s evolution. Ours are traced back only to a few thousand years.

They are written partially by dripping water, some by the atmospheric influences, or tectonic forces. These are all great writers whose efforts do continue day in, day out without showing any sign of tiredness.

And of course, another great writer who I must not miss out is the moments of time. We can only see him through those speleothems or cave formations.

The library is not big in size, yet the collections of literature are many. It is up to our wisdom as how much invaluable knowledge we can learn.

Kek Look Cave, Episode one

I visited Perak, the Silver State of Malaysia with two places in my mind yesterday. The journey that covered a distance of 518km started at six in the morning, ended at home at half past four in the evening. The first place turned out to be a disappointment, but Kek Look Cave, one of the cave temples in Ipoh, capital of Perak, has offered me a great trip.

Kek Look Cave is a place where worshippers of Taoism and followers of Buddhism come seeking wisdom for their next journey and answer to their unsolved questions.

Right above the entrance to this limestone cave, there is a small opening on the top of the hill. Is this where all messages are sent to the sky? Will all the answers and wisdom that are eagerly sought be then sent back through the same channel?

When I move around, there are more to be explored on the other side of the cave.

Following the traces of time, reading from one line to another, are we going to understand something that help to clear the doubts in our simple mind?

This tree must have witnessed the cycles of glory and agony over centuries. It must be wise enough to point out the Dos and Don'ts in our daily practices, but are we open-minded enough to be hinted?

A group of singles transform into a community, and there lies the power of love, the passage to dissolve most of our unsettled disagreements, but shall we not to be blind to know that?

No matter how tough our life is, we still survive through if we would like to. Somehow, there is no favouritism given by the Mother Nature to us.

At the end of the trip, I am still an ordinary me as before. But, ordinary is sometimes good enough. Just seize the day, live while I can.

Wandering, East-West Highway

My family has the habit to make a last minute decision to visit one place or simply drive around somewhere that is new and seems interested to us. The journey maybe as short as one hour, or it can be a whole day adventure. Although this is an ad hoc plan, it actually started in our mind for quite a long time ago resulted from the information in newspapers, magazines or "hear-say" from friends.

It is excited to listen or read repeatedly about the herds of elephants wandering along the picturesque journey through virgin jungle along the East-West Highway. I had travelled once on this highway to Kelantan about thirty years ago, during which this highway was put under strict security control by Malaysian army whereby it was closed from the evening until the next morning. At that time, Malayan Communist Party (CPM) was still active in most of the jungles in Malaysia.

My whole round trip covered 250km which started from BM, passed through Kulim, de tour Baling, then we witnessed the rolling hills with miles of rugged terrain. After we had reached the other side of Lake Temenggor Bridge nearby Jeli, we made a U-turn for home.

Our car, at most of the time, ran along the tricky curves flanked by wild bushes and big trees. We scoured the bushes by the roadside for any signs of movement. But, alas, there was no sight of the wild beasts throughout the drive along the mountains that form the backbone of the peninsula.

According to on-hand information, "herds of elephants, some numbering 10 to 12, have often been seen crossing the highway at almost the same spots every time. Chances of sighting them are 80 per cent, but almost always at night".

By the way, I have kept something undisclosed and would like to tell you silently now. I might, it turned out to be another disappointment finally, also spot a tiger crossing the highway.

I have not found any road signs to warn motorists of elephants crossing, instead there were a few on deer crossing. Anyhow, none of these animals bothered to say hello to me.

It was an exciting, but dangerous, drive along some narrow and steep roads, especially in the heavy rain. I was sorry to see two car accidents along the way. To penetrate through the dense fog was kind of blind-fold, yet it was simply fun.