On Bukit Larut, Perak

1. Established by the British in ca. 1870 Bukit Larut a.k.a. Maxwell Hills was a gem for Taiping (means ever lasting peace in Hokkien) and Perak. It was meant to be rest and recreation of the British officers who established three firsts for Taiping - First railway line from Taiping to Port Weld (Kuala Sepetang), first prison, near Bukit Jana and first tea plantation before it was moved to Cameron Highlands. And of course Taiping Botanical Garden is among the first in the country. For the visitors like me the only means to go up is to go by the old land-over which made so much noise of great pain and it costs me a mere $8

2. After Independence the place is taken over by Taiping Municipality and what we witnessed today are pure British heritage and legacies which the authority wishes to inherit to the next generation. Going round the Tea Garden, Bukit Hijau and various stations one couldn't miss the fact that ...once it was a great R & R place. It seems to have almost everything ..... a church, a hostel,bridges, palace, rest-houses, telecom station, The Box etc. but most of all the items that interest me the flora and the plant species that were introduced there by the British and also by the Perakians.

3. Prior to this decade it has deteriorated so much that the authorities are considering plans to bring back the past glories and the visitors to the place. I reiterated to my friends who were with me the fact that there are many species of plants named after Bukit Larut (or Bukit Maxwell) by the likes of Father Scortechini, L. Wray, G. King, Kunstler etc, either collected from this area or in the greater Larut district. To me this is pure botanical history and of great interest to the future students of botany and biodiversity.

4. Years ago I visited the place with my scientists friends, Prof. Charlie a microbiologist, Prof. Laily a lichenologist, Prof. Ikram a natural product chemists plus a few more whom I have forgotten. We all enjoyed collecting plant samples and enjoyed the cool atmosphere. Yesterday the mist is still around and Pak Ngah told me at night the temperature goes down to even 12 C. Of course there were plenty of Usnea, Parmotrema etc.

5. I am indeed impressed by the effort taken by Pak Ngah and his friends to begin replanting many species of gingers especially Alpinia and Etlingera, two species of Tacca, many species of ferns especially Huperzia and Cyathea, Goniothalamus macrophyllus (Annonaceae), two species of Begonia, many species of orchids in either rows or avenues or in aggregation in various landscapes. I encouraged them to do so with many more local species and by next year the place is going to look like a garden .........