When people ask me why I'm living in the Cameron Highlands my response is 'I'm from a small town back home so I'm used to places like this'. I didn't realise how much like the O Tanah Rata would turn out!
The hostel I'm working at has a bar attached (The Jungle Bar, check it out if you're in the area!) and it's pretty much the only place to drink that isn't a restaurant in town so a lot of locals go there as well as backpackers. The other night, Wednesday I think but I may be wrong, I was sat in said bar with Bel my hippie Aussie co worker and some travellers trying desperately to avoid the cliche of backpacker banter. There were a few locals in there, bit older than most, drinking a litre of Glenfiddich and they tried to join us around the bonfire but we were leaving, no biggie.
About half an hour or so later me and Bel are in The Highlander, a 24 Jam (Malay for hour, I'm learning!) Indian restaurant when one of the locals from the bar turns up. This man was built, really stocky chest and arms and nothing like your typical Malaysian, and he starts screeaming at one of the staff and throwing stuff off the shelves. He then picks up a plastic chair a few feet from me and launches it, ricocheting off the floor and onto my head before smashing all the plates and glass on the table.
If this wasn't scary enough (I hope my mum doesn't read this!) he keeps on with his shouting and aggression as we back up to the back corner of the restaurant and then points at me and really angrily shouts 'You, English', gives Bel the same look as if he was going to jump over the table and kick our heads in! I was so scared, we ended up asking some big German dudes we bumped into to walk us home. Anyone who knows me knows I have no fear of walking home late and in the dark no matter what state I'm in but because I didn't have a clue who he was or why he was so angry I was so paranoid.
So yeah, Tanah Rata and Ormskirk... Same, same but different! Time to get pissed in KL...
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