|
Written by
Lynette Foo and Col. Elias
Saturday, 13th
December 2003
A much awaited day for the
drive and overnight stay in Cameron Highlands. No matter that it dawned dark and
drizzly. No matter that Sam and family overslept. No matter that Lynette and
Benny’s Miata couldn’t start. No matter that the much anticipated long convoy of
cars going on the drive turned out to be only five. Never mind that Ong had to
exchange his Fiat Coupe for a Rexton due to technical problems. Projet at Desa
Sri Hartamas was crowded with 2DC Club members and well wishers from the MX-5
Club from as early as 8am. Sam and family turned up sans Julia’s special egg
sandwiches. Lynette and Benny turned up with their Miata running beautifully
thanks to the prompt and efficient service of AAM. The cloudy skies and light
drizzle did not deter those who turned up to support the drive. Well wishers who
turned up were Sly and Nora, Ron, Chuah, Ghaffur and family with their new BMW
Convertible and Miata, David in his newly re-upholstered Miata with friend
Edmond in tow and of course Daniel ‘Sherman Daz’ representing both the 2DC Car
Club as well as Asian Auto Magazine. A pleasant surprise was new friend Hamid in
his dark blue Porche Boxter S. That certainly added a touch of upmarket glamour
to the proceedings.
As usual with such a gathering of two door cars, a
photo session was arranged. Having strategically parked the cars along the side
of the Projet Station, digital and manual cameras were whipped out and shown
off. The men braved the drizzle to pose next to their mechanical babes.
The convoy set off at 0920hrs
with the various well wishers peeling off after the toll-plaza. Our expedition
leader was CE (who else?), with Sam very conscientiously providing sweeper
service. Poor Hamid in the Boxter, he certainly was champing at the bit at
having to stay within the speed limit. Ong had disappeared sometime before the
toll plaza with nary a word to anyone. David and Edmond were interested enough
to have stayed with us all the way to Tapah.
We hit Tapah at 1100 hrs. The
rest stop was terribly crowded with busloads of tourists from overseas. A fair
number of Singapore registered cars were seen. Having refreshed ourselves, we
said goodbye to David and Edmond, jumped into our cars and drove off. Reaching
the foothills of Cameron Highlands, it was obvious that the Boxter was raring to
let loose. CE spotted some durian which looked too enticing to forgo. Signalling
through walkie talkie to Sam at the tail end of the convoy, they both stopped to
satisfy their craving for the king of fruits. Seizing his chance, Hamid sped on
ahead with Benny close on his tail. Of course the Miata was no match for the
power of the Porche which soon left it far behind.
The durian feast was super
fantastic. We had the much cultured D24, but the original wild durian sold by
the orang asli were superb. Eight durians were offered at the bargain price of
RM11.00 were quickly snapped up and consumed with relish. The durian were really
good especially the wild ones. It was well worth the stop! While CE and Sam and
families were enjoying the king of fruits, David and Edmond appeared!. The
prospect of missing out on the drive up the winding road to the Highlands was
too tempting to forgo..
After the impromptu feast, we
continued our way, reaching Tanah Rata at 1300 hrs, Lynette and Benny who had
gone on ahead were waiting at the Merlin Hotel to rendezvous with the others. A
few minutes later, the Fiat Punto Cabriolet, the Mercedes 300 SL and David in
his Miata roared up into the parking lot. Unfortunately, but not unexpectedly
Hamid and friend had disappeared. We expected they would turn up some time,
maybe at the Equatorial where we were booked. While having lunch, Ong arrived
in his Rexton. After lunch at various locations (CE’s and Sam’s family having
little appetite due to the wonderful durians they ate on the way up), we
proceeded to the strawberry farm and ‘Uncle Sam’s farm’ in Brinchang. (Hmm! Why
did Sam never tell us he was a gentleman farmer?) After sampling the wonderful
frozen strawberry puree served like ice cream ‘potong’, we proceeded to the
hotel. The great weather prevailed and CE gave in to the temptation to remove
the hardtop of his Mercedes with the help of some hotel staff, arranging for it
to be stored in the basement for the duration of our stay
PY and his charming wife
arrived to join us and we proceeded to Bala’s Cottage for a typical English Tea
and scones in the rose garden. It was a delightful evening with the good
weather holding. After satisfying our craving for scones and strawberry jam,
David and Edmond finally managed to tear themselves away and regretfully return
to KL.
Our visit to the night market
(which started in the late afternoon) was the next order of the day. We took the
opportunity to shop for fresh vegetables and fruits. Interesting snacks were
offered by the vendors, one of which was strawberries dipped in honey – hmm! a
bit too sweet for our taste though. We had durian, lunch, strawberry snacks and
English Cream Tea all within four hours. But that was not the end of the eating
session.
After a short rest, we all met
for dinner at the Chinese Restaurant of the Equatorial Hotel. Dinner was
steamboat and we sampled lots of locally grown fresh vegetables in great tasting
tom yam and chicken soup. Afterwards, we sang happy birthday to CE’s second son
Edly whose 6th birthday it was. Sam provided a ‘cake’ from Germany –
lovely traditionally baked Christmas Stolen. Quite a memorable birthday party
for one lucky little boy!
After dinner, Lynette had a
bright idea. Why not karaoke the night away at the Singalot Lounge? With Mrs PY
Wong enthusiastically supporting the idea, 7 adults and 4 kids descended on the
deserted lounge to liven it up. Everyone had a good time, especially the
children who showed off their talents with ‘Colours of the Wind’ and some
others. But the stars of the night were none other than Mrs Wong and Lynette
with their super rendition of Chinese and English songs. By about midnight it
was time to call it a day, a really enjoyable day. All of us were accommodated
on the12th floor of the Equatorial, somewhere around 6000+ feet above sea
level. The air conditioning was natural crisp clear mountain air and we all
slept very well.
The next morning we had
breakfast at the coffee house. It was packed with holiday-makers, but we had a
table reserved for us, thanks to our efficient Logistics Manager! It was a
hearty buffet breakfast. The weather was too good to be wasted and so we took
our cars for a spin around Tanah Rata, coming back to the hotel at about noon.
After lunch we checked out and were ready to drive home. But Ong had different
ideas. He had made arrangement with his “kaki lang” at Terala, for a visit to
the vegetable and flower farm. We drove for about 10 km and stopped where a
battered Land Rover was waiting for us. We were herded into the Land Rover for
a ride of our life. The driver thought he was Karamjit Singh, but CE was of the
opinion that the farmer was far better! The ride in the Land Rover over steep
gradients of up to 60 degrees was more of a roller coaster ride. The children
enjoyed it very much. We were taken to a farm where green “nga choy” or bean
sprouts were grown. Very educational indeed! From here we went to a flower
farm and then to a vegetable farm. We were introduced not only to local
vegetables but also to “kwailo” vegetables. At the end of the visit to the farm
we were rewarded with enough vegetables to feed a battalion of soldiers and
flowers that would have made Rudolf Valentino’s ladies’ swoon. How did we
manage to cart away all the ‘loot’ in our sports cars? It was PY Wong, our
Logistic Manager, to the rescue with his 300 SL being utilized as a vegetable
and flower transporter.
By now it was close to 4.00pm
and about time to head for home. Our enthusiasm for all experiences new and
different led us to take up Ong’s suggestion that we take the Terala, Slim
Post, Simpang Pulai road to leave the Highlands. Even though part of the road
was not officially opened it was a beautiful road with long fast sweeping curves
and gentle gradients. What a great drive in our sporty babes!. Ong in his
Rexton did not want to be left out of the fun. A couple of times he was
tailgating CE’s. The scenery was beautiful and the weather faultless. All in
all we had traveled about 550 km. Sadly, all good things must come to an end.
We turned into the southbound PLUS highway at Simpang Pulai and headed home with
only a short refueling stop at Ulu Bernam.
All in all, it was a funfilled
event and all of us enjoyed ourselves very much. We drove safe, kept within the
speed limits (no summons received yet!) and looked out for each other. Many
thanks to all those who gave a ceremonious send off at Projet Mont Kiara.
Looking forward to the next
drive?
Participants List, cars and
contribution:
PY Wong & Mrs Wong
300SL Logistic Manager
Benny &
Lynette Miata Entertainment Manager & News
Editor
Sam Ho &
Julia Punto Photographer & Sweeper
Hamid &
Navigator Boxter S Advance Party
David &
Desmond Miata Understudy & Future Organiser
CE & Ellyna
300 SL Organiser & Tukang Makan
|