taman negara

I left the Pudu Hostel for Taman Negara, the world's oldest rainforest, at 7.45am on Saturday morning. I was driven up by two Malay brothers as were a Dutch couple called Arnaud and Danielle, an Australian couple called Matt and Danielle, and a Swedish woman called Anna. The first part of the journey was by minibus and took us to the town of Jerantut. This took about three hours. Then at Jerantut Jetty we got on a longtail boat and rode up into Taman Negara itself. This took another two hours along wide brown river bordered by thick, tall, and lush green jungle undergrowth. Most visitors to Taman Negara stay at Kuala Tahan, a small village nestled on the edge of the park, and it was here that we eventually arrived late afternoon.

After a brief rest I went on a jungle night walk with Herman, a brilliant local guide, and everyone who had been on the minibus decided to come along with me. They made the right decision because we saw quite a few things creeping along in the undergrowth with our torches: snakes, all manner of frightening insects, and even some deer. Most exciting, and most frightening, was the large black scorpion we encountered. Herman coaxed him out of his hole and he ended up standing right in front of my feet with his claws snapping. It took all my inner-resolve not to cry like a baby, or jump into Herman's arms, but I managed somehow to stay calm until we moved on. I'm pleased to say that I coped again later when we saw several enormous spiders (tarantula sized monsters) although I kept my distance as much as I could...just in case.

Day two got off to a bad start when I accidentally dropped my watch down the squat toilet in my dormitory. It shot straight down the hole and disappeared without a trace. Gone forever, another fallen soldier, off to join my old flip flops in backpacker equipment heaven. This bad start marked the beginning of a challenging day, the main challenge turning out to be the bad weather. It poured down. All day. It rained and rained and rained. It rained so hard that the brown water level of the river rose steadily, noticeably, and significantly. I plugged on with activities regardless and went 'rapid shooting' with Herman and the others. We also visited an Orang Asli tribal village where I was able to have another go on a blow pipe (my aim has deteriorated since my last effort in Borneo) and watched a guy actually make a blow pipe dart. That was very interesting. Eventually, mid-afternoon, I gave up and went back to the guesthouse and just sat on the front porch feeling wet and - excuse my language - pissed off. I had been supposed to go on the park canopy walk in the afternoon but there was no hope of this - they close it off during heavy rain. This was a big disappointment, but, as we all know: you win some and you lose some.

On day three, I made the journey back down through the rivers of Taman Negara and then back on to the minibus. Anna, Danielle, and Matt came back with me, and Arnaud and Danielle headed north for Penang. The same two brothers picked us at the Jerantut Jetty. The older of the two asked me how it went. I told him, 'I went out there a boy but came back a man,' pausing for gravitas and then adding, 'I'm a hunter now.' He laughed (in my face) and said, 'now the jungle your supermarket uh.'

Whilst in Taman Negara at Kuala Tahan I stayed in a dormitory at the Tahan Guesthouse. The place was painted all different colours and had signs all over the place written on which were things like 'you have to be awake to live your dreams,' and 'life is a journey.' It was Taman Negara meets Woodstock. The strange thing about this though, was that the owners didn't seem to be hippy types as far as I could make out. In fact, they seemed to be a fairly straightlaced Malay family. So why all the 'dream catchers' and primary colours? Far out man.

Also to note: I stroked a python whilst up in the jungle. Not out in the deep of woods as you would imagine, but in a floating restaurant while I was having breakfast and a cup of tea (not masala tea). A local guy walked in with it round his neck, saying that he'd 'found it' in his bedroom the night before. I gave it a stroke but declined the offer of drapping it about my person. He then took it off to the restaurant next door and showed it to a toddler who kept touching it and screaming.