Mbah & Atok go to... Termerloh - Day 1


Day 1: Kuala Selangor - Janda Baik - Mentakab - Temerloh

Saturday 17 February 2024

This is Mbah’s and Atok’s weekend escapade to Temerloh, Pahang on 17-18 February 2024 originally published in Mbah’s Facebook (some editing and formatting modifications made to suit this blog’s display). You can read the rest of her postings (and the originals in Facebook) here: 


>> Day 2: Temerloh - Janda Baik - Kuala Selangor >>


Friday

“
AK: R u done with marking? 
Me: Yep (hiding the fact that one proposal is still pending).
AK: Let‘s go somewhere this weekend.
”

Eversince since the PhD days, I had to get some work done before we could go for a break. AK would say to the kids, “when mama finishes her 500 words, then only we could go. Otherwise, home it is.” It helped. A lot. Pushed me to write those 500 words that cracked my mind. May look like a simple short write up. Oh no, it was not.


Today. Saturday 




Temerluh Temerloh, Pahang.

A place undiscovered. By us.

Started the morning with a simple roti canai breakfast at our regular place, roti canai khemah (@ Warong Makan Wak Mok). A mere 7 4 mins from home. Then off to Janda Baik for the real breakfast. 




A full breakfast n Irish nut kopi for me while AK has half boiled egg breakfast with latte kopi. Wonderful. The toast was crispy and the butter spread on it was just delicious. For the not so often drinker of kopi, the kopi at Kopi n Kraft KopiNKraf was marvellous. The added value was the ambience. The rustic building, the lush greenery, the invigorating breeze and the friendly staff made it a perfect breakfast. We are thinking of coming here again with the clan in tow.


After ‘lepaking’ for roughly two hours there, off to the next destination. One n a half hour ride. It was a new route for us and we liked it.

The Centre of Peninsular Malaysia 



Titik tengah Semenanjung Malaysia. 

A new destination to many and it happened to be along our way. We stopped by to take a few pictures but did not go into the paid garden. RM5 per person. 

Mentakab. Kak Pah stall (@ Gerai Kak Pah, Sri Semantan) for authentic local dishes. 



Lunch. Mine was nangka masak lemak pedas and pucuk ubi masak lemak. AK’s smoked ikan keli and masak lemak labu. The ikan keli is to die for. The smokiness of the fish made the dish full of character and appetising. Though the price is slightly on the high spectrum but we both agreed that it was worth it. The local taste cooked by local cook. It’s rare nowadays.

Along the way to our abode, we passed by 0 km Temerloh. Stopped to add pictures to our collection. Just something that we enjoyed doing, AK and I.


Then off to our abode - Hotel Aksara Hotel Apsara Temerloh Gateway. A new hotel right smack in the middle of town. Our room is clean and comes with a small window. Nothing much but serves our purposes.

Cendol Talib (@ Restoran Talib Cendol - Caw. Temerloh)  was for our after lunch dessert though there was a pause in between. This cendol was set up by the father in Mentakab and the son inherited the recipe from the dad. This son has been operating at this venue for 8 years, 7 days a week from 11 00 am till 6 00 pm. The shop has an extended closing for hari raya. That’s the only break for year in year out. Such dedication is inspiring. Siapa kata orang Melayu malas. 


We had cendol biasa - cendol, kacang merah and sagu RM 3. The cendol has a nice pandan scent and the coconut milk is mixed at the right consistency. We also had rojak. When the rojak was served, we stared at one another for it came with mee kuning. AK said he ordered rojak without any mention of the mee. I just said, “our rezeki for today and let’s try first.” We dug in and Subhnanallah the taste was just as we remembered it in our youth. AK in Bukit Gambir and me in Batu Pahat. A long lost taste found in Temerloh (Jalan Sudirman 7, yet another legend). One was not enough. I went to order another rojak. I said to the lady at the counter, “one rojak without the mee,” and she said, “oh pasembur.” Went back to AK and said that he ordered the wrong thing. Rojak comes with mee kuning while pasembur without. Culinary lesson for the day. Whatever the names, both are delicious.

Happy tummy happy us 

Went back to the abode for a bit of rest.

Went to the riverside - Temerloh Esplanade. A scenic place with a suspension bridge. To experience this, you have to climb a few steps and pay RM3 each person. An experience. Yep.


Off to the car boot sale, a few meters away from the esplanade. We felt that it was more of a pasar malam. Ended up not buying anything except for a bottle of mineral water.

Off to another place - Temerloh pasar karat. This is more like it. We enjoyed ourselves browsing the area. I ended up buying a simple blouse etc.


“
Me R u hungry?
AK: Somewhere in between.
”

When the answer is that, it is better to have something. Off to Nazan’s Corner that serves the best char kuey teow in Temerloh. It is. The char was just nice and the taste was delicious. Cop jempol. Though the place is quite a way out, the journey was worth it.

A day filled with jalan2 cari makan. Tomorrow is yet another day for culinary travel of Mbah n Atok.

Night2 everyone.

Night2 kids.


>> Day 2: Temerloh - Janda Baik - Kuala Selangor >>

Location: Temerloh, Pahang, Malaysia

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