Kelantan Nuzul Al-Quran -- Part 1
by prudence on 07-Aug-2012
Monday was the holiday for Nuzul Al-Quran (commemorating the revelation of the Quran, and celebrated on the 17th day of Ramadan). By adding an extra day, we got a nice long weekend in which to embark on a trip to Kelantan, peninsula Malaysia's most north-easterly state.
We started by heading in the wrong direction -- south to Gemas. We wanted to travel on the "jungle train", the eastern limb of Malaysia's railway network, and as Nigel rightly pointed out, it made no sense to start anywhere but the beginning. Gemas, you see, is the "fork" -- where the line from Singapore splits into two. We've already travelled most of the left-hand prong, as far as Alor Setar. But of the right-hand line we hadn't covered a single sleeper.
Gemas is small and nondescript, but kind of lovable. Shophouses; chicks (shopfront blinds, that is); a little market selling fast-breaking food (we bought some chips with embedded beans); tea and dosas for two for 4.60 ringgit; friendly locals -- everything you love about the Small Malaysian Town.
If you need to overnight in Gemas, stay at the Hotel Tropicana. It's true that the internal layout is a little reminiscent of Cell Block H, but for 69 ringgit, you get decent lighting, a comfy bed, a hot shower, cold aircon, fluffy towels, and nasi lemak for breakfast. We have paid much more for much less.
Now this will sound odd, but we actually bought four tickets for this trip: the two we bought on the Internet a couple of weeks ago, and the two we bought on Saturday morning, having realized that the original two would give us no view whatsoever. At 34 ringgit a seat, this is not exactly breaking the bank, and the whole point of the trip was to see the scenery. So we were philosophical. (But for future reference, in ASC-type coaches, Rows 8 and 9 are good, Row 3 is OK, but Rows 1, 2, and 4 are evil.) We also stocked up on food, as there is no service on-board, and it's difficult to estimate how much time you will have to forage at the various stops.
Waiting for the train, we watched Gemas station slowly emerging from the mist and sundry station cats looking -- well, cat-like.
The train was a bit late arriving, but (clang the bell, blast the whistle) we were away by 10 AM. Past the KL turn-off and on to new ground...
A huge drama was being enacted at the back of the coach as the first bits of post-Gemas countryside rolled past our window. A young woman was weeping uncontrollably, pouring out a stream of agitated Malay. It felt like we were in the middle of a Yasmin Ahmad movie, and I longed to tell her that she really will probably get through this, even if it doesn't feel like it right now. After a while, she went to sleep.
Rubber and palm oil plantations initially, but this is a very rural line, with little housing. Sometimes the cuttings are so deep, and the vegetation presses so close against the window, that you feel the train is burrowing its way north.
We had a longish stop in Jerantut, which has a pretty little purple square. The two ladies in front of us got off here, having talked absolutely non-stop since we got on, apart from the times they stopped to stare at the weeping young woman. I can't imagine talking that much. As Nigel says, we're quiet people at root. We read books, and look out of windows.
After Jerantut, the character of the route changes, and you get a lot more forest. A big brown river keeps us company for a while.
We'd just set out from Kuala Lipis when a man came thundering up the carriage, grabbed his bags from the rack, and leapt off the moving train...
About 45 minutes out of Kuala Lipis, the cliffs start. Dramatic outcrops of limestone, backed by big chunky mountains, wrapped in forest. This is awesome scenery. We cross several big rivers. Gua Musang station is absolutely oveshadowed by huge cliffs -- and by now, we're in Kelantan already.
After Dabong, the tunnels start to come thick and fast. The Sungai Galas, another huge, wide, brown river, keeps appearing by our side. We then turn south, and do a big loop, before connecting with the combined Sungai Galas and Sungai Lebir (which join to make the Sungai Kelantan) near Kuala Krai.
By this stage there is lots of oil palm again, and swathes of land are being cleared. After Tanah Merah, you get the bright emerald of the paddy fields.
Finally, Wakaf Bharu, just a few kilometres short of the end of the line at Tumpat. From here you can taxi into Kota Bharu.
So glad to have done this trip. There's something about long, slow journeys that really makes you feel you're travelling.
We started by heading in the wrong direction -- south to Gemas. We wanted to travel on the "jungle train", the eastern limb of Malaysia's railway network, and as Nigel rightly pointed out, it made no sense to start anywhere but the beginning. Gemas, you see, is the "fork" -- where the line from Singapore splits into two. We've already travelled most of the left-hand prong, as far as Alor Setar. But of the right-hand line we hadn't covered a single sleeper.
Gemas is small and nondescript, but kind of lovable. Shophouses; chicks (shopfront blinds, that is); a little market selling fast-breaking food (we bought some chips with embedded beans); tea and dosas for two for 4.60 ringgit; friendly locals -- everything you love about the Small Malaysian Town.
If you need to overnight in Gemas, stay at the Hotel Tropicana. It's true that the internal layout is a little reminiscent of Cell Block H, but for 69 ringgit, you get decent lighting, a comfy bed, a hot shower, cold aircon, fluffy towels, and nasi lemak for breakfast. We have paid much more for much less.
Now this will sound odd, but we actually bought four tickets for this trip: the two we bought on the Internet a couple of weeks ago, and the two we bought on Saturday morning, having realized that the original two would give us no view whatsoever. At 34 ringgit a seat, this is not exactly breaking the bank, and the whole point of the trip was to see the scenery. So we were philosophical. (But for future reference, in ASC-type coaches, Rows 8 and 9 are good, Row 3 is OK, but Rows 1, 2, and 4 are evil.) We also stocked up on food, as there is no service on-board, and it's difficult to estimate how much time you will have to forage at the various stops.
Waiting for the train, we watched Gemas station slowly emerging from the mist and sundry station cats looking -- well, cat-like.
The train was a bit late arriving, but (clang the bell, blast the whistle) we were away by 10 AM. Past the KL turn-off and on to new ground...
A huge drama was being enacted at the back of the coach as the first bits of post-Gemas countryside rolled past our window. A young woman was weeping uncontrollably, pouring out a stream of agitated Malay. It felt like we were in the middle of a Yasmin Ahmad movie, and I longed to tell her that she really will probably get through this, even if it doesn't feel like it right now. After a while, she went to sleep.
Rubber and palm oil plantations initially, but this is a very rural line, with little housing. Sometimes the cuttings are so deep, and the vegetation presses so close against the window, that you feel the train is burrowing its way north.
We had a longish stop in Jerantut, which has a pretty little purple square. The two ladies in front of us got off here, having talked absolutely non-stop since we got on, apart from the times they stopped to stare at the weeping young woman. I can't imagine talking that much. As Nigel says, we're quiet people at root. We read books, and look out of windows.
After Jerantut, the character of the route changes, and you get a lot more forest. A big brown river keeps us company for a while.
We'd just set out from Kuala Lipis when a man came thundering up the carriage, grabbed his bags from the rack, and leapt off the moving train...
About 45 minutes out of Kuala Lipis, the cliffs start. Dramatic outcrops of limestone, backed by big chunky mountains, wrapped in forest. This is awesome scenery. We cross several big rivers. Gua Musang station is absolutely oveshadowed by huge cliffs -- and by now, we're in Kelantan already.
After Dabong, the tunnels start to come thick and fast. The Sungai Galas, another huge, wide, brown river, keeps appearing by our side. We then turn south, and do a big loop, before connecting with the combined Sungai Galas and Sungai Lebir (which join to make the Sungai Kelantan) near Kuala Krai.
By this stage there is lots of oil palm again, and swathes of land are being cleared. After Tanah Merah, you get the bright emerald of the paddy fields.
Finally, Wakaf Bharu, just a few kilometres short of the end of the line at Tumpat. From here you can taxi into Kota Bharu.
So glad to have done this trip. There's something about long, slow journeys that really makes you feel you're travelling.