Adventures in Perak!

I remembered Jaypee breaking the ice for everyone when he asked what kind of traveler we think we are while we were in line, waiting for our turn at the Philippine AirAsia check-in counter in NAIA Terminal 3. I was hearing my new travel buddies mentioning nature and mountains, and then...

Jaypee: "E ikaw Ana?"

I think I was the last one to answer because I wasn't completely sure!

Me: "Kung city or nature-nature?"
Jaypee: Oo.

Me: "Siguro 50/50. Minsan after ng mall at shopping, nauumay nako at hinahanap-hanap ko din yung mountains or dagat. Same din after ng nature travels, biglang hinahanap ko na yung cafes and aircon. Gusto ko best of both worlds."

After I gave you the FOOD and ART tours, here are several nature activities that you can add if you want to balance your Perak itinerary.

Caves in Perak

KEK LOK TONG CAVE

Our first taste of Perak. After the 2.5-hour ride from KL, we didn't go directly to the comforts of our hotel. We stopped over the Kek Look Tong Cave, which Paul the Tour Guide described as a less commercial site where we can appreciate Ipoh's limestone caves.




Paul: "Geologists or those who know rock formations will love this place."

I looked up and tried to understand.

Paul: "With all the complex formations, you will know that this cave has been here for hundreds of years!"

Amazing...




Kek Look Tong sits on a 12 acre land, a sacred place of worship since the 1920s.

As you enter, you'll notice all the Buddhist figures. Like any cave, it is nice and cool inside, a perfect place for meditation.






The kid was watching a gold world globe in the middle of a feng shui pond:


The limestone formations (stalactites and stalagmites) of the cave reminded me a bit of my recent trip to the Underground River in Palawan. But this time, I can touch them or even climb to some of them, and easily go around till the second floor because the area is dry with cemented walkways and stairs. I was actually wearing skirt and sneakers, and it's fine.



Paul: "Kek Look Tong literally means 'Extreme Happiness'."

Finally, go to the end of this short cave for another opening, and see a beautiful landscaped garden.

Kek Look Tong is open from 7am to 6pm. No entrance fees. Gates close at 5:30pm. 

GUA TEMPURUNG CAVE

When we went to Gua Tempurung Cave, everyone's still tired from a White Water Rafting activity (more on this later). Good thing that they have options for this tour with different lengths and difficulty. We were also pressed with time, so we only went in just enough to get a taste of this famous cave for spelunkers.



A glimpse of the routes to the Gua Tempurung. It is one of the longest caves in Malaysia, at around 3km long. Gua Tempurung also has five huge domes, each with different calcium formations and water levels.



Gua Tempurung Cave's Four Packages + PRICE

1) Dry Tour 1 - Golden Flowstone
9am - 4pm, RM8 Adults / RM4 Kids and Seniors, 40 minutes back and forth

2) Dry Tour 2 - Top of the World
Minimum of 5 adults. You will reach the tallest part of the entire cave.
9am - 3pm, RM12 Adults, RM6 Kids and Seniors, 1 hour and 45 mins

3) Wet Tour 3 - Top of the World and Short River Adventure
Minimum of 8 adults. 2.4km journey covering the first two packages, plus be prepared to get wet as you pass the underground river and walk along the cold river.
9am - 12nn, RM15 Adults, RM7.50 Kids and Seniors, 2 hours and 30 mins

4) Wet Tour 4 - Grand Tour
Most challenging, covering 3.8km. You go through all three tours above, plus going towards east of the cave, and coming back through the underground river.
9am - 11am, RM30 Adults, RM15 Kids and Seniors, 3 hours and 30 mins


Of course, we just went for the Dry Tour 1! Haha!

The trek was tiring, to think we only took the first level! Tour guides will come with you as you walk along, to show interesting formations, stories, and trivia. One even handed me "minerals" that you will see inside the cave, which turned out to be dried bat poop! Kainis! Haha!

As you can see, they've already set-up walkways and lighting for easy navigation. I even saw a couple checking out the Dry Tour without a guide.

Huge heart-shaped hole:

We ended here at the Platform 4, or what they call the Wind Tunnel. When you go through this section, it gets a bit cooler as if they just turned on the aircon! 

Water Activities in Perak

GUA TEMPURUNG OUTDOOR CAMP - WHITE WATER RAFTING

With these signs just outside the camp, I learned that GTOC offers a variety of exciting outdoor activities from camping, hiking, caving, river tubing, waterfalls, and even night trekking!


Because one day of adventures is never enough, they also offer cottages for lodging, which we occupied just to leave our things for the day:

Inside: Two bunk beds and a toiler / shower room:

I was honestly nervous that time because there's only four of us doing the activity. I've tried White Water Rafting eons ago in Cagayan De Oro, back when I was a bit younger!

Photo from CDO rafting circa 2010, we were grouped with other tourists so it felt less scary:

Anyway, as always, brave hearts win the game. So I picked myself together, and just whimpered my battle cry.... LET'S DO THIS!

Thank you Jaypee and Erica for the next photos! Ever since this trip, I've been rethinking about getting my own GoPro!

Enjoyed White Water Rafting in Perak because it is less touristy. When we were there, it was only our group who braved the the rapids - so we had this wonderful view of nature all to ourselves. Jolo and I were gushing the whole time, the jungle sight was too nice to behold.

We were divided into two groups, and was paired with Jolo and Kuya Am of GTOC. Before the actual activity, we were instructed with the dos and don'ts, paddling tips, and several safety precautions.

Water was super cold, and stones and rocks appear out of nowhere so be extra careful! Our guides were really helpful and attentive, so even though they will deliberately topple our boats upside-down without our consent, it was all for the thrill of the ride!

Me: Hala kuyaaa!
Kuya Am: What is Kuya?!
Me: Brother!

Aside from the extra arm struggle, I also had a great time laughing and chatting with my small group. We even had Tagalog-Malaysian lessons with Kuya Am, who easily picked up my Filipino cursing whenever I get nervous! WAHAHA!

There were several stops in between rapids, so we can just float, chat, chill, and take more pictures (namiss ko cam ko!). The boys also jumped off a short cliff, which I was too afraid to do at that time, huhu. By the end of the activity, Kuya Am required me and Jolo to body-raft the final rapid with just our life vest and helmet. He said that all his guests did it, so we also have to! And so while the rest of the group watched us from the shore, all three of us held each other as the water tumbled, kicked and twirled us till we reached the "finish line".

Kuya Am: "That's free massage for you!" 
I was laughing the whole time!

Thank you Kuya!!!

Again, brave hearts win the game! Too high from the experience, plus they even had us ride this open truck back to the camp... WOOOT!

Gua Tempurung Outdoor Camp is located in No.25 Jalan Tasik Gopeng. Email gtoc.reservation@gmail.com, or follow them on FACEBOOK.

SUNWAY: LOST WORLD OF TAMBUN

When I learned that we're going to a hot spring in the itinerary, I was thinking of something like Coron's Maquinit. Erica told me that we can do away with swimsuit and just wear our rashguard since we're in a conservative country (dresscode), so I packed that with me before going down the lobby at nighttime.

So imagine my surprise when we were dropped of in front of this fully lighted attraction. That's when I realized.... WE'RE GOING TO A THEME PARK!!! 

We haven't even entered the park yet but we were already clicking our cameras here and there! Haha. Ahhh.. I love theme parks!

Our guide Paul made me do this! Hahaha! Ringgit and "tickets" while posing inside the ticket booth:

More than just a theme park.
The Lost World of Tambun, Malaysia's premiere action and adventure family holiday destination, is just 15 minutes away from downtown Ipoh. The park is set in a natural landscape surrounded by 260 million years old limestone.. I imagine it sooo beautiful during daytime! They have amusement park rides, eco-adventure thrills, and a hotel, and the home of Perak's first EVER roller coaster!

The Attractions:
Lost World Water Park
Lost World Amusement Park
Lost World Petting Zoo
Lost World Tiger Valley
Lost World Tin Valley
Lost World Adventure Park
Hot Springs and Spa by Night
The Ultimate Night Park

If only we have two to three days here, I'd love to try EVERYTHING! :D Check out the ticket rates HERE.

Here's a section for their small lockers (RM15) where we stored our bags before heading to the hot springs. I learned that they also have bigger lockers (RM20) in the theme park, and even luggage lockers (RM35) for the tourists.

Using the lockers is very easy and high tech. You'll get a waterproof bracelet tag which will automatically open the door when swiped in this scanner:

And then off we went to the pool! Again, I was thinking about getting a GoPro because I have no documentation, huhu. Thanks Jaypee for the next photos!

Very appropriate for night swimming, Lost World Hot Springs and Spa has 100% natural mineral hot springs with healing properties. Nakaka relaaaax just to soak and float around the warm water.

Saphira's Lair creates the feel of glowing rain forest, ideal for all ages.


To experiment with the different water temperatures, we hopped from one pool to the next!

This one is the entrance to the Lost World Steam Cave. It has a warning outside as this space acts as a sauna - as in super steaming hot inside!

Curiosity got the better of me, so I went in! So did Jaypee and Erica! Ideally, you have to count the minutes you're inside the Steam Cave because it gets nauseating after a while. But before exiting...photo op muna, haha!

When we got tired from the hot springs, we went to the Jungle Wave Pool which is like this big man-made beach complete with artificial waves and sand! 

Water is cooler here, so we stayed a bit longer in the area which I am glad the others agreed to because I was already secretly getting dizzy from the heat (hehehe). I can't believe we went from rapid waters to a chill man-made pool in just a span of a day. Talk about getting the best of both worlds in Perak - I got everything that I wanted! :)

Lost World of Tambum is located in No.1, Persiaran Lagun Sunway , Sunway City Ipoh, 31150 Ipoh, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia. They are open from 11am to 11pm during weekdays, and 10am to 11pm on weeknds. Check out their other attractions at http://sunwaylostworldoftambun.com.