Our journey from Melaka to Cameron Highlands took 9 hours as we had to get a bus to Kuala Lumpur and then another one onto Cameron Highlands. When we got to Tanah Rata in Cameron Highlands, it had a real ski-resort, alpine feel. Being up in the mountains, it was much cooler which was a welcome rest-bite from all of the hot, sticky weather of SE Asia thus far.

We booked a full day tour to ensure we took in all of the sights whilst in Cameron Highlands, which is known for its agriculture, jungles and if you're lucky…rafflesias (the world's largest flower!)! It started with a grueling 4-hour jungle trek up-hill in search of the rafflesia. We were warned we may encounter tigers and elephants but unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately!) didn't see any. However Dave did see a snake slithering right by his feet pretty early on in the trek and I was the first of 3 people in our group to get a leech on me! Luckily the tour guide knew exactly what to do and sorted it out for me… We were lucky to find a rafflesia as they are rare and only open for 5 days - it was impressive but really stunk and attracted a lot of insects, so we couldn't hang around too long.

After the trek, we ended up in an aboriginal village and were taught the art of blow-piping - we both had a go and Dave was a pro, hitting the bullseye of the target first time! The next stop was a tea plantation with breathtaking views and we stocked up on some tea for the rest of our journey. After that, we went to a butterfly and reptile farm - the butterfly farm was pretty unimpressive, but the reptile selection was excellent. Although I don't think animal conservationists would be too happy with the conditions… And our last stop was a strawberry farm, where they import soil from Holland and recreate a European style of farming. It was a packed day but we only had a day there, and left feeling assured we had seen many of the highlights!

The main delicacy in Tanah Rata is a tandoori chicken set which consists of tandoori chicken, fresh naan bread made in a tandoori oven along with various sauces and salads. It was so good we had it both nights! We met a couple from Slovenia, Simona and Matej, on our tour who were also heading to the Perhentian Islands the next day and had dinner with them.

The next day we had a horribly bumpy 6-hour minibus ride to Kuala Besut. The speed boat over to the Perhentian Islands wasn't much better either! We decided to stay on Long Beach, which is where all the parties are J All of the accommodation on the island is really basic but I did some research beforehand and managed to get us a small beach hut with its own bathroom and breathtaking views over the sea and beach. We still had to deal with cold water showers, only a fan to cool us down and electricity only being available between 7pm and 7am (which would constantly cut out). There was also a whole host of bugs and insects keeping us company in our hut as we were technically in the jungle… But hey, it was all part of the island fun!

We spent some time just chilling on the beaches, taking in the relaxed atmosphere. We also booked a snorkeling trip - unfortunately it was meant to be a full day, but turned out to be a half day, much to our annoyance. The snorkeling was good, but the spots were all really busy with other tourists and boats. I also did a dive on our last day and after dealing with 5 metres of surge on arrival to the site, it was a great dive. The coral was really diverse - the highlight was definitely a 1-metre long blue spotted stingray, the largest I've seen so far!

We spent the evenings at the Perhentians having BBQ fish at Coral Bay with Simona and Matej, followed by drinks and watching an amazing fire show at the Beach bar on Long Beach. It was great to get to know Simona and Matej and also learn about life in Slovenia. One morning whilst having breakfast Dave also randomly bumped into one of his mates, Sam, who he plays football with in Stratford! We had a fun night drinking with him, as well as Simona and Matej.

After 4 nights on the Perhentian islands, we were sorry to leave - you could easily lose days there! On to the last leg of Malaysia - Penang, another UNESCO heritage city on the north-west coast followed by Langkawi, a more developed island!