Genting Highlands-Cameron Highlands 220 km ± 4.5 hours
The carhire office told me to drive back to KL and rejoin the north-south highway. I had seen the possibility for a shortcut and I opted for that but didn't know the roads. While we stopped at a restaurant and were asking the way I met a Thai microbus driver who was just traveling that stretch of the road all the way to the same direction we had in mind, Cameron Highlands, serendipity? Thank God for this guide. We just had to drive behind them.

So we drove through smaller feeder roads, villages and after an hour reached the north-south. We had an inkling this Thai driver must be experienced. The toll station confirmed it. He had a touch n' go card for frequent passes and therefore used a special "fastservice" gate. We just had to queue up. Very friendly that he waited for us further away and we could follow him again untill we came to Cameron Highlands. The last city on the north-south highway is Tapah. From thereon is a smaller road ascending the Cameron highlands, just 60 km but a real rally track full of turns and hairpins. We did some 2 hours over it. Having some experience with this kind of road in Indonesia (The region resembled the Puncak pass in West Java because of the extensive tea plantations on the uppermost slopes producing all kinds of tea.), I enjoyed the driving. All the more since in the Netherlands we never got to know this kind of driving.

The Proton was quite adequate in power and could easily track the road. The smooth transmission enabled frequent gearchanges from third to second vice versa. We could pass other another Proton but it was everytime a matter of seconds and made the driving all the more enjoyable. For the less experienced it might be quite gruelling to drive this road. For them who are sensitive to carsickness it's a no-no. Just forget Cameron Highlands!

While driving around Cameron Highlands we noticed that the right turning light of the Proton came off, it was held by only the cable. At a nearby helpful service station I got some tape and taped the whole assembly. I was expecting one of those torrential rains we previously encountered on the north-south highway, we would have an instant current shortage.

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