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| Bukit Larut 拉律山 |
Taiping is a historical town having many first in Malaysia. First railway, first prison, first rubber tree.... all together more than 33, so it said.
Among them were the beautiful Lake Garden (1880) and the (in)famous Bukit Larut (1880, formerly known as Maxwell hill).
I never had the intention to go up to Bukit Larut l because of many negative comments and feedback. It is a mismanaged hill station.
We arrived at Taiping on the 16/11/2016. On the insistence of Karen and my wife, we agreed to give it a try, going up the Bukit Larut for a first hand good or bad experience.
To our surprise, it is a beautiful, cool and refreshing place to be!
It was a beautiful sunny weekday (17/11/2016), no crowd. We took the first jeep at 8:30 am for a half hour, winding and exciting journey up to the hill. It charged RM10:00 per person.
All my negative impression and perception were gone. What we saw is a beautiful view of pine trees, greenery and panorama view of Taiping at a distance.
We did a walkabout, taken many beautiful pictures, enjoying fresh air, chirping bird sounds and beautiful flora fauna.
We stopped by a small cosy cafe managed by a new owner Mr. Nazuran who took over the place hardly two weeks ago.
He has made many changes to the old setup and plans to provide better and wider services to visitors to the hill.
We were told that Bukit Larut was managed by the state government for the past two decades. Due to neglect and mismanagement, it was not a popular destination for visitors to Taiping.
Taiping City Council has taken back its management since the beginning of this year. Many changes were made, landscaping has greatly been enhanced.
We were introduced by Nazuran to her sister, Toh Puan Norisha。 She told us that her NGO has brought in many flora fauna and plants to the hills.
Nasuran and his sister are native sons of Taiping. They have great plan for Bukit Larut and will put in more effort into preservation and making Bukit Larut a beautiful heritage to be shared and loved by many others, far and near.
Looking forward to another visit.
(More pictures in Facebook)
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| Taiping Lake Garden 太平湖公园 |
太平是个充满历史的市镇，有着许多全国之最美誉：第一条铁道，第一棵橡胶树，第一所监狱。。。听说共有33项。
其中较著名的是太平湖公园及拉律山（Bukit Larut)，都是在1880 由英国殖民政府创立。
我从没想过要上去拉律山看看，因为听了很多有关它的负面讯息。这是一个被忽略及没有好好管理的避暑胜地。
我们在16/11号抵达太平。首先我们到太平湖观赏美景，舒舒疲倦的身心。
在太太及朋友的坚持下，我同意上一趟拉律山，亲身看看它的美及丑。
隔天一早，我们乘搭第一趟吉普车上山。因为道路狭小弯曲，游客必须乘搭当局提供的吉普车上、下山。程程为半小时（大约十一公里），收费没人RM10。
上到山上，我过往的不良形象一扫而空，面前看到的是许多美丽的松树，青绿一片，还可以看到遥远的太平市景。
当天风和日丽，不是周末或假期，所有甚少游客。我们漫步在优美的环境里，空气清新，赏心悦目，非常的舒服。我们也拍了很多美丽的照片。
我们来到了一间很小但非常舒适的咖啡座歇息及喝茶。友善的东主Nazuran与我们闲谈一阵。
原来Nazuran先生刚刚接办这咖啡座大约两个星期而已。他做了很多的改变及布置，让顾客有着休闲与舒适的感觉。他有计划扩大服务项目，让更多游客能够在咖啡座里，享受到拉律山的美与静。
他介绍了与他一起的姐姐。姐姐大有来头，名为Toh Puan Norisha。作为太平土生子民，她与弟弟及家人致力与太平历史保护，特别是拉律山。她是一名非政府组织活跃份子，发动大众力量，捐献了很多花卉植物给拉律山。
根据他们告知，过去二十多年，拉律山是有州政府管理，所以管理上有许多缺失。今年，太平市议会接管，大力的改善及美化这里的环境及花草，不怪得我们一眼就爱上它了！
他们姐弟及家人有着很多计划，包括希望能接管一些住宿及酒店，妥善管理，让更多的远近游客，能够享受拉律山的美丽与舒适。
很期待下次的到来，看看不同的拉律山。
(Facebook 更多照片)
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