Tenah Rata to Malaka...
Dawn breaks, reflected on the hills looking towards Kuala Lumpur, a clear blue sky for the journey south, final destination, Melaka. Departure isn't from the official bus station, but an office at the opposite end of the town. A change of bus is required at Kuala Lumpur involving a transfer across the city to the newly constructed Southern bus terminal, for all buses going to Singapore and Melaka.
Perhaps filling up on a spicey breakfast wasn't the wisest thing to do as the bus meanders away from the highlands taking sharp corners - felling pretty queasy actually! About an hour and 20 minutes, the worst seems to be over as the terrain flattens and the highlands now distant shadows. The roads are good, a well maintained 3 lane motorway and quiet too as the bus picks up speed. Nothing like the amount of traffic to be found on a British motorway. Oh look, there's a Tesco lorry, no queue behind that one!
3 1/2 hours and the unmistakable Kuala Lumpur skyline looms on the horizon - a metropolis of concrete, steel and glass. A quick stop at KL Sentral for the airport links, then onto the main city bus station, Pudu. Up one level and across the walkway to the MRT rail station, for a train link direct to the Southern Bus Terminal, about 50p for the 10 minute journey on a smart, new air-conditioned transit train - seamless integration with minimal effort.
Buses to Melaka about every 20 minutes so actually there's no reason to rush around. Plan then is to buy the ticket ( no tickets on the bus) and allow time to get refreshments before the 2 hour journey to Melaka. It's like an airport terminal on 3 levels and even has a check-in desk and a gate number for the bus. Bus rolls out at 1.30pm and joins the motorway south headed for Singapore according to the Signs! With KL fast disappearing nothing to do but recline the seat, raise the foot rest and gab a few minutes nap, oh, and the IPod comes in handy too. The ticket cost a mere 10 RM, about £2.15 not bad for a 2 hour trip on a nice bus.
Rolling into Melaka, past the airport and into the Sentral bus station located about 4KM away from the main town. A couple of taxi drivers hanging around for business, nothing like the confusion surrounding bus arrivals often found in places like India or Cambodia though. Oh, first landmark spotted - a Tesco Superstore.
Next, getting into the town and finding the guesthouse and hoping they honour the booking made via an exchange of emails couple of weeks ago, it could all prove a challenge in the sweltering heat - must be about 33 deg c.
Next...Oh It's Freaky
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