We had spent the last few days very local or at the house, at our housesit in Seremban, making plans for upcoming travel after Malaysia. So we felt we needed a day trip and a good walk. It was about a 1 hour drive to Tanjuang Tuan recreational forest. This area juts out on a coastal peninsula full of forest in the centre and small beaches and viewpoints all around it. At the entrance there were monkeys playing on the wires overhead. There is a tarmac road running up the middle of the park that heads to the lighthouse at the top of the hill. This walk is only short though and I had found several trails (on AllTrails) through the forest to different points on the peninsula which we decided to give a go as it would give us a longer walk. Initially we walked up the steep tarmac path in our normal shoes, unsure what the trails would be like. However when we got to the first turn off to the trail we realised we would be trampling and scrambling, so boots were needed. Back down the road we went to the car to fetch our boots. This also meant we had to walk up the steep hill again to get to the path- sweaty mess again!
The path turned off the tarmac road to the right of the peninsula and was a steep drop down into the forest. The only indication that this was a well trodden path by others was the fact that there was a rope to help us clamber down the tree roots. It was very muddy and we were just a mess by the end of this short descent. But we were on a small steadily descending path through the shaded jungle now and it was much more pleasant. After about 10 minutes we came out on a small strip of beach (where the tide was still quite in). This was monkey beach, our first stop. We could have had a dip but there wasn’t really anywhere to put stuff, there was a group camping at one end of the beach and we didn’t want to swim and then have to continue with our hike.
Instead we weaved our way along a path at the back of the beach which took us around the peninsula edge as we couldn’t take the path along the beach that was in water. Partway along this walk were 2 arrows one heading straight up in the tree roots above and the other continuing straight on. We attempted to go straight on and then just came out at the watersedge again. As we were trying to get up to the path that had a viewpoint instead we backtracked and took the 10 minute, steep scramble up. Luckily there were tree roots and some rope to support the climb up. Eventually we found ourselves at the top, meeting where a more standard path to the viewpoint was. To get to the viewpoint we still had to climb up some rocks but there was a sturdy rock helping us up. Once at the top we were greeted with lovely views of the nearby beaches as well as the sea and some boats heading towards malacca straits. Taking a breather we sat down for some snack lunch enjoying the cool breeze.
Once back down the rocks we followed along the path at the top of the ridge through the trees which after going up more than expected met the tarmac road again. From here it was just a short walk to the lighthouse. We decided to call it a day after this as it had got really muggy and looked like it was about to storm. There are other trails that take you to a cave below the lighthouse, another viewpoint on the other side and also another beach on the otherside. We had had enough for one day though. Our initial intention was to have a hike and then go for a dip and some lunch at the ‘blue lagoon’ beach nearby. When we got there though the water was not very blue and actually quite sludgy. Possibly just the time of year with there being lots of rain recently. So instead we drove back towards the house, seeing monkeys, cows and dogs all on the road at one point or another! We grabbed more siew pau baked buns from the food court and had these at the house to top up on lunch. We were shattered in the evening so ordered more filling Nasi Kandar for dinner so we didn’t have to go out.
We had a very quiet day the next day with the highlight being heading out for coffee at Centrio. We chose to go to the Memory Cafe as it looked really cute and inside there was all sorts of memorabilia from the 80s and 90s and also lots of Japanese mementos, including a shelf of manga. We ordered some flat whites (17MYR) which came in beautiful cups and were great.
For lunch the following day, after doing some admin bits we wanted to try some malaysian dishes that we hadn’t been able to get as easily- rojak and cendol (26 MYR). Rojak is similar to Indonesian Gado Gado. There are strips of vegetables- although not many, fried dough/bread where parts of it are crispy, tofu, a boiled egg and then it is smothered in a peanut/sambal sauce. The dish was pleasant but we felt the one we had was lacking a bit in flavour and punch- not spicy or peanuty enough. Cendol is a malaysian dessert made of coconut milk with strips of pandan jelly/ tapioca and palm sugar syrup. We had it when we were in malaysia before but weren’t sure if we liked it. Often it can also have sweetcorn or red beans in it- that are popular in asian deserts, but we just had plain as that was too far. Ours came more like a very sweet drink than a desert. It was way too sweet for me and the jelly didn’t really have a good texture to it. No need to try it again. We also tried out another burger and satay stall that are at the local shop to the house. The satay was delicious and made over a small charcoal fire. The burger was tasty enough for something that I am pretty sure was a frozen patty and then smothered in sauce.
We found a different local park the following day to have a walk around. Bandar Sri Sendayan was bigger than the others we had been too but had a lot less shade and we were melting in the sun. It had a large hollywood like sign to show where we were that we could climb up to and a small exercise park and observation tower at the top of the hill giving decent views. For lunch we tried another local speciality dish and went to Yee Kee Beef Noodles. This restaurant has been serving this style (called dry beef noodles) in Seremban since 1930s. For 18 MYR we got a lunch set with a big bowl of mixed beef noodles, soup with beef balls in it, a drink and a desert. The noodles were thick like udon noodles and very tasty, they were covered in a really thick beef gravy sauce full of flavour with roasted peanuts and green onions. In it was mixed beef- beef chunks, tripe and beef jerky all which had their own flavours and textures. The soup had a rich beef stock flavour with compressed beef balls. One of the best meals we have had in Malaysia and it was very distinct. Dave had a peach and mango jelly for dessert whilst I had sugared toast. Very good value for money for all you got and how tasty it all was. We made up for spending a bit more by cooking our own cheats Kottu with wraps and vegetables- surprisingly tasty for making it up with the little we have.
That is the end of our 2nd week in Seremban, more adventures in the next blog.
Thanks
Alex
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