Gaharu Tea Valley, Gopeng

Gaharu Tea Valley

Jalan Sungai Itek

31600 Gopeng

Perak Darul Ridzuan

Hours

0900 - 1800 daily

So I said gaharu and gaharu is agarwood. What is HOGA then?

  Well, HOGA stands for holistic gaharu. What's so holistic about a bunch of trees? They are the special 12-in-1 super hybrid agarwood tree, claimed to be the superior among its kind.

  Visitors can enjoy the offerings at HOGA Deli or shop at the HOGA mart. I decided to delay my main reason for coming here and took the van tour first. 

Van Tour Tickets

 RM10/adult

 RM5/child

Free gaharu tea sachet!

The HOGA van tour ride will take you to three spots. First stop was the viewing stage, followed by the Hugging Park and lastly the Lovers Park. Along the way, your van driver who is also your guide will tell you about the plantation and its precious trees.

  Did you know that agarwood tree can only 'grow' if they got 'hurt'?

  If a tree didn't get damaged, it will grow to be a normal tree. To produce the black resin thingy, it will have to be wounded naturally or artificially(?) and get fungal infection. 

  That's just some of the things I learnt during the tour. Cringe.

Viewing Stage

Our first stop after the driver/guide introduced us to the plantation and agarwood trees, was this building. He said it is still in "construction" and is meant to house a restaurant. He dropped us and told us that we can take any van to get to the next stop once we're done here.

  On the ground level, there were many plastic chairs placed in front of a screen showing video presentation. The toilets are on this level in case you need to go :)

Most people headed straight to the first floor where they could take photos with some 3D drawing. You know, one of those trick eye paintings. 

I was more interested in the gorgeous view. There was a swiftlet nest building in the area and I could hear their song. View of green trees and swiftlet song soundtrack... it was just peaceful and tranquillising.

We took the same van to our next stop, the Hugging Park. 

  The name is suggestive no? Only instead of your loved ones, you hug trees. It is said that hugging these gaharu trees brings good luck. Who doesn't need some good luck, right?

  And even if you don't believe in such things as luck, you might still want to hug these trees or at least take photos with them. The trees were painted with cute animals but watch out, some of them might still be wet.

From Hugging Park, the tour continued through more agarwood trees and backtracked by a fish pond opposite the Hugging Park. The audio tour in the van we took said the fish pond helped to control bugs so they won't have to use pesticide in the plantation.

Last stop, the Lovers Park. We stopped at a hut that looks like a bus stop and took the stairs down to the park. The main attraction of this park is a huge tree but for kids, it was the fish pond. Remember to buy fish food at the ticket counter if you plan to feed the fish.

Not a very popular love lock

Fish Pond

Nope. Not haunted. I asked the tree.

Back to the main building, I headed straight to the HOGA Mart. The souvenir shop sold everything gaharu from essential oil, tea, soup to cookies and even noodles.

I bought tea sachets and their special tea for myself. For mom, I got a packet of nougat. Not too sweet, I liked the nougat. The price may be on the high side but where else can you get stuff made of gaharu, right? At my request, the cashier dabbed a little gaharu essential oil on my wrist. Not my cup of tea because the smell was too strong but if you're looking for concentrated gaharu oil, you can find it here.

  Next, I went to their deli and *finally* got myself... 

Gaharu Ice Cream

It was okay. Tasted like tea-flavour ice cream. 

I won't say you should go out of the way to visit Gaharu Tea Valley but if you're in Gopeng or on the way to Ipoh and you have time to spare, do drop by. The view was more than worth it for me.

Penang National Park, Teluk Bahang

Taman Negara Pulau Pinang

Jalan Hassan Abbas

Balik Pulau

Hours

0730 - 1800 daily

The Penang National Park is located in Teluk Bahang, about an hour drive from Penang International Airport. Public transport is available although if you're planning to trek, driving is the better option. Or at least a change of fresh clothes. 

  Entrance is free although visitors must register themselves at the office. Boat rides can be booked from kiosks around the park's entrance. I didn't book a boat because I had no idea if I'll even reach the beach I was heading to. So I had to wait for an available boat. Luckily, a group of 3 tourists had extra seats in the boat they booked. The ride I got from Kerachut Beach to main jetty was RM20 per person.

Camping is probably allowed if you inform the park office in advance. Visitors usually come to visit the Kerachut Beach (Pantai Kerachut) or Monkey Beach (Teluk Duyung - this should translate as Mermaid Bay). On my first visit, I went to Kerachut Beach but I plan to return and visit the other spots. So this post will be updated if I ever get to visit the rest of the park.

This is probably Pasir Pandak. No trekking required

It wasn't too muddy when I visited but my shoes did get dirty. Do wear proper shoes if you're planning to trek because the path can be quite challenging in flip flops or sandals. Bring water and snack but please take home your trash.

Kerachut Beach

  On the map, getting to Kerachut Beach should take about 1 hour and 20 minutes. For me, it took over 2 hours. I haven't been exercising and I took so many breaks along the way. In the beginning, I even considered turning back but... I felt lazy. So I went on :-p 

Bukit Belah

There are plenty of gazebos like this along the way. So come early, take your time, and explore at your own pace.

Before reaching the beach, you'll cross a bridge over the meromictic lake. A meromictic lake is the kind of lake that has layers of water that do not intermix. In this case, the salt water from the sea and the water from rivers and rain.

  This is a huge deal because apparently there are less than 20 meromictic lakes in the world. Although ours is the seasonal kind of meromictic lake, as it only happens during the change of monsoon, it is precious because a slight change could mean losing this unique natural feature.  

  One may be forgiven to think that this is a plain nothing. I mean, where is the lake? Like I said, it is seasonal. This is what I understand. Sea current and wind will push sand to the river mouth forming a dike. There are also boulders there which help to form a natural dam.

  This dike/dam will eventually break naturally when the season is over. The lake water will then flow into the open sea, leaving the slightly muddy or savannah-like "plain nothingness" we see for the rest of the year.

Interesting kan?!

The Turtle Conservation & Information Centre is located at the other end of the beach. Go past the office, public washroom and camping ground. The route was pretty sandy so I changed into flip-flops. Sand can get quite hot so going barefoot may not be a good idea.

Hours

1000 - 1630

Free entrance

If you're already familiar with turtle conservation efforts, the centre can't offer much for you. But it is a good start for young kids. During my visit, there were a couple of adult (injured) turtles and some hatchlings in the containers.

White sandy beach

I spent some time reading my book right on the beach, under the shade. It was windy and I was feeling sleepy. We ate the bread we brought, checked out the turtle centre and when it got too hot, headed to the jetty to wait for a boat. No swimming because there were jellyfish as big as a dinner plate.

Look out for updates in this post :)

Mangrove Walk at Pran Buri National Forest Park

Pranburi National Forest Park

Moo 1, Tambon Paknam
Amphoe Pran Buri
Chang Wat Prachuap Khiri Khan
77220, Thailand

This national park is about 25km South of Hua Hin. The mangrove walk is marked on Google Map so you should have no trouble finding the place. It's best to have your own transport instead of taking the public transportation as the forest park is quite a distance from the main road.

  Sebenarnya, sebelum pergi I dah tanya semua ahli rombongan GangMakanGoJalan samada kita nak pergi mangrove walk di sini atau Phraya Nakhon Cave di Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park yang memerlukan lebih satu jam perjalanan menaiki van dari Hua Hin. Masing-masing memilih mangrove walk yang jauh lebih santai sebab kami tak mahu habiskan masa sehari suntuk untuk aktiviti outdoor. Walaupun Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park nampak lebih menarik, trip kami lebih kepada leisure trip. Makan dan cuci mata.

  So, we went to the forest park on a Friday morning. There was no one else other than my group.  The van driver parked and waited for us in the empty parking lot. The area looked deserted. Well, there were a couple of other tourists and a family but we had the place pretty much to ourselves. The day was sunny but we were spared from the sun as the walkway is shaded by the trees. The mangrove walk was quiet other than sounds of insects.

  Sebelum berjalan, kami ambil gambar sikit-sikit. Tak ada orang, jadi memang tak ada siapa kacau. Kemudian, setelah pastikan ada bawa air dan pakai insect repellant, kami pilih jalan di sebelah kiri. Masing-masing jalan ikut kelajuan suka hati. 

  Following the board walkway, we stayed under the shades and saw some mangrove creatures. I don't remember what I saw but the authority provided some information board so you can identify the animals and water creatures you encounter along the way. Eventually, we arrived at a jetty. It was deserted as the tide was low. There were creatures on the wet sand, like a busy beach.

  Kalau ikut research, kita boleh ambil boat rides. Tapi bergantung kepada pasang surut air. Di sebelah kawasan letak kereta tadi ada visitor centre. Boleh tanya mereka kalau perlukan maklumat atau bantuan. 

  Then we continued walking until we found the observation tower. I climbed up and took some pictures. Mesmerising how we were surrounded by trees and above us, white clouds in the sky.

  Menara tinjau ni adalah spot untuk ambil gambar yang menarik macam kat bawah ni. Mujurlah masa kami pergi tu, cuma ada dua orang pelancong lain. Jadi puaslah kami turun naik ambil gambar dan berposing.

Heaven knows how many pictures I have at this one spot

  There were seven of us. One prefers taking photos instead of posing for photos so we didn't have to take turn. Lucky eh?

  Dah puas ambil gambar di celah-celah pokok paya yang merimbun, kami berjalan lagi.

  It wasn't a very long walk. Perhaps because we were in a group so time felt short. After we emerged on the other side, we went across the road to the pine park by the beach.

  Pokok pine jenis casuarina atau rhu yang biasa ditemui di tepi pantai menanti kami. Ada kemudahan tandas awam dan restoran di kawasan ni tapi kami tak pergi tengok pun. Lengang semuanya mungkin sebab bukan hujung minggu.

  Some of us bought ice creams from a vendor there. Then we sat facing the beach, eating ice cream before heading back to town. We made a detour to Khao Takiab but it was noon and we were tired. After a quick photoshoot at the beach, we went searching for air-conditioned mall :)

  The place is free, no entrance or parking fee. Expect to spend a couple hours here if you enjoy nature walk. Try to avoid weekend as according to some reviews, it can get busy. Be sure to keep this place clean when you visit!

Samila Beach and Song Thale Park

Song Thale Park

After we were done exploring Nang Ngam Road, the driver dropped us at Song Thale Park near the Naka statue. 

The Great Serpent Nag is the deity of fertility to all living things. The people of Songkhla believe that Nag/Naka brings happiness and good fortune.

The Naka's head represents the wisdom  of Songkhla people. Its body symbolizes the city's riches and the tail represents strength in community.

If you see a guy with camera taking your photos here, don't freak out. They just want to sell those photos + frame to you so strike a pose!

The Krom Luang Chumphon monument is also here. He is the founder of Thai Navy. There are a lot to see here before you proceed to the nearby Songkhla Aquarium or Samila Beach.

Samila Beach

We had lunch by the beach. Okay not exactly on the beach but close enough. The food was good too! If you need halal food, ask your driver for "Muslim food"- they understand that better than "halal".

Shops

The souvenirs here can be cheaper than elsewhere. I bought pretty fridge magnets. You can also find fruits, ice creams, sun hats and lots of other things here.

Mermaid Statue from far

The famous coconut ice cream

Coconut ice cream (50 THB)

Park near Laem Samila

Cat & Mouse Statue

We didn't get to see Ko Yo because we only have half-a day to spare. Do some research and plan where you want to go. Let the tour agent know the places you want to see so you don't waste time.