Cup o' tea bab?

We did very little with our four days in Jakarta except avoid the heat, smells and mosquitoes by wandering around air conditioned shopping malls. To be fair, Jakarta is not the most beautiful city I've ever been to and the public transport system is rubbish. Singapore was a completely different world. The city is clean and efficient with a speedy subway system and equally amazing internet. Additionally, we had tea. Proper tea with fresh milk. I have been missing a good cup o' cha so I was a happy lass. We only stayed for two nights so had to whizz round the main attractions in one day.

After Singapore we hopped on a bus that took us to Kuala Lumpur. Coincidentally, we arrived on the eve of Malaysia's 50 years of independence, a brilliant night to be in the country's capital. Everyone was in party mode so we took to the streets and joined the fun. In both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur the people are from three dominant ethnic backgrounds- Malay, Chinese and Indian. Consequently, the food is abundant and wonderfully varied. We enjoyed curries in Singpore's Little India and stir-fried seaweed in Kuala Lumpur's China Town. We'd better watch the waistlines!

We are now in the Cameron Highlands, towards the centre of Peninsular Malaysia. Due to a higher altitude, the air is fresher and the nights chillier than anywhere we've been for while. It is the perfect place to pull on a jumper and curl up on a sofa with a nice cup of tea. We're in luck there as the surrounding hills support Malaysia's largest tea plantations. Despite getting absolutely soaked, we enjoyed a walk through one of the plantations and learned a bit about tea production. The rain held off for a walk today but we are heading into monsoon season so we're going to have to get used to the wet stuff. ''Well it is your turn!'' I hear you say, and indeed it is.