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Sunday 25 August 2013

wild rampai follow up - my solo trip on my 55th birthday

Mytrack Kml  file export to Google Earth
Good things come in pairs. Yellow color mushroom, Nikon P7000
Wild rampai close up using Nikon p7000
Close up and i slice open the fruit 
. Nikon P 7000
The few bundled still left behind after vandalism destroyed most of the flowering bunch.

Flash was used.



Kept returning to this post and busy looking here and there for companions.

 Herb i pulled and brought back from AMK , same species as the Kelantan one.


Monday 12 August 2013

Rafflesia FLower - Kelantan , and night market ( pasar malam) Brinchang


AUGUST 11 2013 A forty minutes drive ( from GPS log) from Brinchang early morning 8:14am to crossing the border over to Kelantan. On foot for 3.5 hours to and back. On the way there is a little stream to cross and most of the vegetation were bamboo and ginger family. No steep climbing this time.

A 40 min drive followed by a relatively easy walking on narrow footpath leading to the Rafflesia flower site(s) in Kelantan.

Bala ( extreme right with hat)  and the other guide start making hats using Resam fronds 
Bala on our way home pointed to a weed and pulled it. He asked me to smell the freshly pulled root and said it smell like Tiger Palm. I thought it smell better and more aromatic pleasant smell - camphor? I didnt take the foto of that weed and guess what? I found the same weed right in Singapore on my way back home along the fence. I brought the weed back.  I thumbed through at least three books on medicinal local herbs but found no match. Do you? It was supposed to be used for dysentery treatment ..
Another look of the tiny flowers
A young bamboo stem.

The only stream we need to cross over and the potential of wetting our shoe. Luckily the water level was low and we kept our feet dry.

The path through bamboo forests.

A cluster of flower caught my attention. Do you know the name?

Passing through ... no mosquitoes no snake ok?

Finally a 5-days old flower. There is another 2nd day flower some 1.5 KM steep climb one way.

Me and my big flower 

Closeup of the central spiky core of the 'flower' 

Young bulbs very close to the trail.

Another look of the core. Nearby flies were still attracted to this leather looking flower.

This is the way to drink up the column full of clear water.

Somehow i saw the same geometrical shapes of the bamboo/person.


In and around Brinchang.

The apartment Imperial Crown Court we were staying was a short distance from Brinchang town centre. Walking up the steep with heavy shopping bags etc was no fun at all.

The mist descent during the evening cool period after the rain.

Corns steamed.

Popular with many the sweet corn - yellow or see through white color, steam or roasted over flames

We bought 1 Kg of this Yacon root. It belongs to sunflower family and had roots gathered not too different from tapioca tubers.
Yacon tuber originated from S America. This is how it look like when sliced.  Taste juicy with a little sweetness but the poly sugars is indigestible in human tracts.
Aug 28... eating the last pieces of this wonderful root. See the sectioned pattern above.

Very few meat in my diet here...( not counting the KFC )...
Lavender Garden - entrance fee $5.00 ringit

Lavender - 'Mona Lavender' purplish color - this is not the Lavender you associated witth Perfume ingredient and the lavender field found in England, USA France and abroad.

The real thing - Lavender  image borrowed from internet see below


Color sells

Young flower bud side way shot

A popular puff-ball  used in  flower arrangement.  

Hoya using my zoom mode. 

Bird bird....

Caught this not far from Hotel Equatorial where we wait for our tour bus back. The return journey took us 13 hrs!!!!! 

Shoot this in Hotel compound

The gourd with a crease line


This is taken from inside our van snaking  its way down the winding and sometimes nauseating bents. Good that there are still extensive forest coverage in Pahang for all of us and generations to appreciate.

Gunung Brinchang (2000m) and a farm visit Cameron Highlands

AUGUST 9 MOSSY FOREST/BRINCHANG (PERAK/PAHANG)

Riding the ridge : Google Map plots of the ascend to Gunung Brinchang 2000m from Brinchang Town using my GPSMap 60CSX.

The trail is hugging alone the ridge of the mountain which also define the Perak/Pahang  State boundary. The highest roaad in Malaysia is near the tower stations.

Water catchment tank. The path to the trail is crossing a drain towards the forest.

August 2013 Aug 8. Friday. 13 of us went up the 2000 m Gunumg Brichang from a small path a few minutes drive from Petronas Station not far from the fire station in Brinchang town. After crossing a drain the climbing up is steep for the next half an hour. .. ..Images posted below ( not in any particular order) illustrate the type of terrain, flora  expected. Be prepared to get your shoes dirty especially near the end of the trail you need to be on all fours.

I zoomed in with the SX50HS  for the little river on the top left of the image below.

Forest canopy dotted with flowering species

Climbing up the steep incline mud wall towards the end of the trail

Mossy forest against the sun.  Favorite spot for photo taking under the humanoid figure
Yoga pose 

Moss covered trunks

Look very much like a smaller version found  in singapore

Crossing fallen moss laden fallen trunk

I was attracted by the rolls of the leaves.

Delicate petals.

Hairy ones

Another view of the avatar silhouette

A peep of the mountain ranges

I picked u fallen petals towards end of the trail, along the narrow path with fensed up area on your right.

No one is spare from crossing the mud face


Sign board at the beginning of the trail

I spotted this red root covered with a jelly like slimy coating

Go go go.

More going

And going

A single flower stalk through the hole of a fallen leaf

Trail look

Misty ambient

Mossy forest

More 
Favorite spot

Plank walk mossy forest
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Vegetation along the tracks
Stop to admire the gathering mists
Y shaped just nice for posting.



Lookout tower.  Too many people queuing up...



AUGUST 08 2013 - WE VISITED OUR FRIEND FARM - GRAPES / FLOWERS
Grapes well grown 
Cant resist pretty trumpet-like flower

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HIgh key image of the grapes and harvesting lady
Grapes, big grapes

Harvesting Grapes M$15 per kilo 


Faces and flowers



Nursery 

Bangala Bean 

Ubi kayu or tapioca fruit. 


RED dot among the poles

View from top.

Pattern caught my eye
Tea plantation
Tea testing ( see row of cups) room.
Processing ....

Tea processing 
Operating from  the back of the truck.

Road side stall for the smelly bean - petai bean. 


PASAR MALAM BERINCHANG