I tried to make the 10:30 AM bus to the Cameron Highland but entering the bus station dripping with sweat, I was told that it was full and I had to wait two hours for the next bus. This gave me two hour less time in the Cameron highlands but afforded me two extra hours in the Penar bus station. It was just the opportunity to journal, try my first pit toilet in Asia and hunt for postcards in the second country without either a postcard shop or post office to be found.

I started to feel a bit rushed as the bus began to ascend toward the Cameron highlands. The trip up to the Cameron highlands took about four hours. The first leg of the journey I caught up on my writing. The second leg of the journey, I followed the bus as it weaved around one hairpin turn after another, honking at the beginning of each turn to warn the descending buses of our arrival. As we climbed altitude the weather cooled, the air sweetened and I focused on the jungle engulfing either side of the road. On some bends there were waterfalls splitting ravens, on others workers clung to the hillside trying to shore up recent mudslides. At other sections of the road vendors behind simple wooden tables sold a simple selection of fresh fruit or bottle drinks.

I thought the bus would take me to Brinchang, further into the Cameron highlands, but when the bus pulled into Tanah Rata a bit passed four or four-thirty everyone got off. I head to the tourist office following one of my fellow bus riders. I had reserved a spot in Bringchang, 3-6 miles away but Tanah Rata looked charming enough as did the blond haired woman I was following. I caught up with her, asked her where she was staying and then joined her on the short walk toward the 8 Mentigi guest house (No 8 Jalan Mentigi, 39000 Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands). Sarah was 26, from Germany and was in the third month of a six month holiday. On the journey she had fallen in love with an English man whom she just dropped off that morning for a flight back to Great Britain. At the 8 Mentigi Guest house the dorms were fully booked but a double room was available. We took it with a little chuckle; Sarah had just left her boyfriend and was only hours later, shacking up with a new guy.

With a room booked we walked into town for a bit to eat. Tanah Rata was a bit touristy, as was the Cameron highlands. The highlands became a popular tourist destination for British expats looking to escape the heat of Kuala Lumpur. At around the same time it became a popular area for the production of tea.

For dinner, I told Sarah I wanted to go to eat where the locals eat but those places looked empty so we settled on a more touristy place with a mixed international crowd. I had chicken curry and lemon juice. I have to say my chicken curry, compliments of ana and the Lazat coking school was better. Half way through dinner the sky opened up and poured down rain. Luckily we were under cover. The rain cooled the air down enough to the degree that we had to put on jackets, a nice change from the unbearable heat of KL. The restaurant had a tandoori oven so we waited out the rain with Fresh baked naan.

From then the evening took a bit of a turn. I had a slight stomach ache, my first after eating a weeks' worth of street food so I went back to the room for a bathroom break. That appeased the intestinal gods but when I returned to the 8 Mentigi guest house courtyard Sarah came out saying someone stole her camera from our room. I went back to the room and checked my belongings. My iPad, headphones and my money stash were still there so then Sarah assumed she left it on the bus. She started rummaging through her things trying to find the bus ticket to call the station. As she was pacing about the room her flip flop broke. The poor gal was a wreck. Fortunately, she had just downloaded her photos but losing her camera certainly sucked. We commiserated over a couple of beers before going to bed.