Ipoh

I woke up broken. I’m not sure if it was too much quick travel, overexerting myself hiking in the previous days or eating something bad (most likely a combination of the three), but I woke up the morning of my travel to Ipoh needing to be sick, my body feeling weak and unable to keep any food or water down. After 3 challenging hikes in the last 4 days (and travel rather than rest on the other day) I was feeling broken. Budget travel is not always easy though, and these moments are just my body letting me know when it’s reaching its limits. I made a note to be kind to it for the next few days, and after arriving at my hostel, and buying the blandest food and the least sweetened juice I could find in 7-Eleven, I went to bed. After around 11 hours of sleep, I woke up still not at 100% power, but in a much better state than the day before and ready to see some of Ipoh.

I can sum up my enjoyment of Ipoh quite simply. Nothing there is particularly incredible, but as a result it’s often quiet enough to really enjoy what there is. I often remember the example of seeing the incredibly impressive Iguaçu/Iguazu falls in Argentina/Brazil, but having much preferred the experience of seeing a less impressive waterfall in Argentina because I could enjoy it in peace. In Ipoh, with only Simona (from the Cameron Highlands hikes) and Anna and Sofie who we’d met in the hostel, we were able to enjoy the Perak Cave Temple, with its cave paintings, big states, natural asymmetry and winding stairs up to quiet viewpoints, in a peaceful, relaxed way. Similarly, the Gua Tempurung caves were almost empty and a boat ride to an odd half abandoned park was a strange experience, but still a relaxed one. Perhaps the highlight was a short trail up to several mini waterfalls down rocks where we could sit silently among the trees, with our feet in the flowing water, overlooking the city. It was special not because it was magnificent. It was special because we could truly enjoy it.