It was the last day in Penang and also the night Suraya takes off in her oh-so-luxurious and delayed flight. haha. I know this is a very outdated post but I have to complete the La Dolce Vita of Penang. Langkawi, Singapore and Malacca are in the pipeline and will 'surface' sometime soon. lol. Well back to the topic, we went to the waterfall located just in front of Bayview Hotel. In spite of the fact that I've been seeing the sign pointing towards the plain leading into the thick forest on the way to Teluk Bahang, I've only managed to check it out on the last day. Great. I miss Penang again. Especially Teluk Bahang with its deserted beaches, peaceful Spice Garden and the challenging Jungle Treks of the National Park as well as Batu Feringghi's multiple attractions. With DVDs costing only RM3 each, it's easy to see why.
The hike into the waterfall
Considering I have seen never this waterfall (known as Chin Farm Waterfall to the locals) featured in any travel brochures or travel mags, I expected a small drop and a few rocks and stones. I was certainly shocked to find such a massive waterfall in a tiny island like Penang.
A young family frolicking on a hot afternoon
The waterfall was huge, the drop was fascinating and it had a series of pools similar to those at Telaga Tujuh in Langkawi. It's like a huge boulder measuring the size of a tennis court with holes that stores water.
june, suraya and sean trying to camouflage with the environment. (they obviously failed)
Engineers at work
Because the boulder was so huge, certain 'holes' weren't completely full that Reagan and I had to redirect the flow of the waterfall by arranging rocks. The rest of the 'girls' just watched. haha. It was similar to building a dam.
The flooding of the boulder
Refreshing
A bird's eye view of the huge boulder
Photography-ing
After arranging the rocks, I went to visit Nana lying down beside the flow of the water 'savouring' her girlie magazine. The rest were sunbathing somewhere south while Reagan was soaking. As unlucky as it could get, I slipped and fell into a puddle right behind Nana which created a BIG splash drenching Nana and her diva mag. Fortunately I was fine, but it was a sight to behold considering Nana was stunt for a moment, drenched in the water from my humongous splash. Haha.
Nana being herself
Sean, Reagan, June and Me
After snacking and chatting, we realised that we weren't really at the main flow of the waterfall. So, we decided to climb up the rocks and see for ourselves what's hidden behind the boulders. It was quite a rough climb up with creepers hindering most of the passage.
Getting Up
Rite
We soon found ourselves here but we were clearly unsatisfied that we went up higher
Nothing but Trees
Climbed all the way up and found a stagnant river. Well, it looked stagnant but it's not coz' if it is, it's not a river. lol. It was impossible to navigate via the river due to its depth and creepiness so we went "off-road". lol. We forgotten our thongs so we initially turned back and found AH HUA. I can't remember his name so I'm just referring to June's name for him. He's a kampong Chinese boy who frequents the waterfall and claimed that he could bring us to the "source" of the waterfall. It sounded interesting but we were barefooted and the trek leading to the source looks intimidating with sharp stones and broken glasses due to construction littering.
Ah Hua with his multi-purpose stick. Oh, he gave on side of his thongs to June and the other to Nana. How nice.
We followed him, "relishing" our feet to a 'reflexology treatment'. A small pair of feet will definitely be an advantage. About 20 minutes later, we had to trek through a primary forest. Finally, we were done with the rocks and broken glasses. However, trekking through the forest without any protection on my feet was something 'beyond words'.
Ah Hua, leading the pack, laughing at us
Gosh, the ground was wet, mushy and filled with leaves and anything soft and mushy and disgusting you can think of. I was literally closing my eyes and running all the way afraid of getting bitten by something wiggly named leech. I'm a total freak when it comes to leeches.
It wasn't long till we reached our destination. It was a very rewarding sight and certainly a breathtaking one.
We first laid our eyes on a pool of water, so clean and clear like it was purified. It looked almost like a Maldivian setting minus the palm-fringed beach and lapping waves.
The natural pool
The Jiu Jai Gou of Penang. lol
It was a nature's paradies with absolutely no one but you, yourself and nature
Impressive rock formation
we climbed further up to a deeper pool which according to Ah Hua is 10-feet deep
Finally... Bienvenue a Paradiso. lol
Managed to take a group picture with the help of Ah Hua. Btw, the water was freezing but after completely submerging yourself in the water, it somehow feels so good that you don't want to get out of it. There were many fishes swimming around us too but relatively harmless. Feels so good and relaxing. We also took a gulp further upstream. haha. Imagine if some faggot peed there. lol
We soon realised it was getting dark and it was time to head back to where Suraya and Joanne are anxiuosly awaiting our return. I forgot to mention that they didn't follow us to the hike.
On the way back, spotted a monkey cup or whatever you call it. Is it Venus fly trap or something?
Well anyway, after returning down, we had to pack really quickly and head home in order for Suraya to catch her flight back to KL. In the midst of the rush, Shae the great dropped his Olympus 6 months-old camera into the puddle and voila! C'est Magnifique!
It's quite funny looking back at it coz' I 've already gotten a replacement. haha.
So there is it.. Splashes at the waterfall a la Shae
