Well, our last day in Penang was not very successful. We arose early (Well early for me anyway...) and set off to see some of the local sights. To aid us in our voyage we hired a rickshaw (man on bicycle, pulling us along on a cart). The plan was to visit all the local hotspots (ie museums, galleries and temples) in the two hours we had left before our bus departed for the Cameron Highlands. Unfortunately, fate had other ideas...or at least, our rickshaw driver did. After showing him our map, highlighting where we wanted to go, he set off...in the wrong direction. After a while Dean recognised that we seemed to be going the wrong way. I naively muttered something about "Seeing where we end up." Half an hour later, where we ended up was in the middle of nowhere. Fun. We decided to ditch our driver/rider who clearly had no idea of where he was going and was visably exhausted from lugging the two of us around (Too many curries, what can I say?) However, he then asked us for money which was ten times the original amount we had originally agreed! what a joke. communication was not the best and so we ended up paying him the money, plus more than the same to return in a REAL taxi, now not having enough time to see any of the stuff we wanted to! How pants! Our time in the Cameron Highlands has been much more entertaining. The Cameron highlands are beautiful; thousands of acres of lush green hills that look like a big patchwork quilt of different shades of green, lined with a rainbow of flowers, plants and trees (I should be in advertising me!) But seriously, it is that idylillic that I swear I could almost hear the theme tune to the 'sound of music' as we approached. On our first day we took a tour with 'Mr Singh', where we visited a rose garden, strawberry farm, butterfly garden, tea plantation, honey bee farm, a buddhist temple and the local market. The strawberry farm was basically just a few rows of strawberry bushes...but they did have a shop where we got to try strawberries in jam, ice cream and milkshake (and all at 10am in the morning I might add...what rogues we are!) At the butterfly garden there were lizards, snakes, horn beatles, frogs, scorpions...oh yeah, and butterflies. The little man in charge let us hold some of the creatures (well, I say us, but really just Dean, representing 'us') Yesterday we took another tour, to visit the Orang Asli village tribe who reside in the highlands. We were advised to take sweets or biscuits for the children living there, though Dean and I were dubious of this since we didn't reckon they would have access to proper dental care (and tourists visit every day) We took a football instead. The tribe live in little wooden huts and are almost totally self-sufficient. They grow their own rice, shoot and kill wild animals for meat, and rely mostly on herbs for medicinal purposes. On arrival we were greeted by the women and the children of the village (clearly used to tourists, and clearly awaiting biscuits and sweets) We were invited into the home of the 'chief', who made us cups of tea and some strange potato stuff, which we ate all the same. Dean had a go with the blow pipe (no, not some kind of drug mum) it's a pipe they put darts into, which you then blow down, and it can shoot animals from up to 50m away (sounded a bit brutal to me) I declined my own turn since three small children had positioned themselves next to the target and I didn't trust my aim! Well, this afternoon we are off on a walk/ hike on one of the marked routes in the area. Bye for now Claire x