Review 2020 – Malayana Floating Villa at LWOT and Gua Datok

From the beaches of Penang, we headed to Ipoh to my one of my top favourite theme park, none other then Sunway Lost World of Tambun for 2 nights of back to nature… And seriously I cannot think of many places where I can enjoy nature better then here.

All guests will have have to check in via QR code and have their temperature checked before entering… There is a disinfection chamber which will help sanitise you before you can avail yourself to the fun and meet your furry, feathery or slithery friends… You are of course required to wear masks or face coverings when near others…

We checked in at the Lost World Hotel before being transferred to the Lost World Adventure Park via the buggy which has been made available to glamping or floating villa guests…

It was time to live out some of my fantasies of having a home in the middle of the lake at the Malayana floating villa with the gorgeous view of the lake, surrounding nature, and the stars…

I dumped my belongings at the Natia Floating Villa, whereas my friends took up Haku Floating Chalet – The benefit of staying at Natia and Haku Floating Chalets was you are connected to the other chalet via the “balcony”…

We then headed to the Swan Lake terrace where we indulged in my favorite Ipoh curry mee and a bowl of Ice kacang/ABC…

After having our late lunch, we decide to explore the rest of the wildlife park… After all, Sunway Lost World Of Tambun has over 100 animal species you can discover and I was only too excited to go meet my animal friends, the ones I have met countless times such as Rain the Giraffe, Ruby the Raccoon (though I can’t seriously cannot differentiate which one is Ruby), Awang the Sulphur Cockatoo..

Then there’s also Kiki, Lala the Fennec Foxes and the list goes on… Hehehe before we got tired and decided to just head back and chill in our chalets/ villas…

The Haku and Natia Chalets are tastefully furnished with a queen bed and two single beds at the back “room”… The chalet comes with lights, air-conditioner, flat screen TV, bathroom, power sockets, a cabinet with mirror and hotel amenities, as well as a good WiFi connection ..

We had a BBQ set thrown in and had the time of our lives getting fed good food by the amazing staff from the Lost World Adventure Park who cooked for us, chauffeured us around on the buggy and took good care of us…

The bed was super comfortable and it was simply amazing getting to wake up and watch the breathtaking scenery from my bed and breathe in fresh air from the natural surroundings…

My good friends and I decided to hike up Gua Datok early in the morning before breakfast…

Gua Datok is high on a hill side and it was a steep and strenuous 630 steps climb to reach the cave entrance…

Here, you can see some coral structures, and even find sea shells and admire the palm tree that has grown for years high above the rocks.. All remnants of once upon a time when the cave was submerged in water about 400 million years ago, according to scientists, as our guide Tok Dan / Shahdan told us…

And inside this 400 million year old limestone hill, you’ll find a cavern that has served as a place of worship and a sacred site for some of the locals in days gone by… it is believed that Dato’ Panglima Kinta Ngah Abdul Jaafar went into hiding here and practised meditating, hence the name of the cave, Gua Datok……

There is a large wooden chair, which is said to have been untouched and which faces the direction of prayer for Muslims (arah kiblat)…

There is also a skull of a tapir believed to have been sacrificed in another chamber..

Then there is also the Picasso Cavern, with spiral like drawings that reminds visitors of famous artist Pablo Picasso’s artwork…

We finally got to the other side of the cave, where we enjoyed a birds-eye view of the sprawling valley and fields below… And it was magnificent…

Although it was somewhat challenging hike, Gua Datok is truly worth my every sore muscle…

We practically raced back to to the Sunway Lost World Adventure Park in anticipation of breakfast… Which was served at the lakeside… The menu is given out in the evening and you can choose from western dishes as well as local dishes of fried mee and Ipoh curry mee.. It was one of our best meals because of the venue…

Then we headed to Hippo Kingdom to see Rosie and Hunky the Hyena as well as Juwita… Juwita has an attitude though.. Because while Juwita has a whole pond to swim around in, she just loves to stay submerged underwater for hours at a time near the glass of the underground viewing room.

So here is your chance to take fun or creative photos of you chilling out with her…..

Since we had a pretty late breakfast, we decided to have a light lunch… And that was at the Dulang Tea House…

The Dulang Tea House is between Tiger Valley and Lost World Adventure Park, it is a fascinating throwback to the Ipoh kopitiams of yesteryears which catered to tin miners…

Thus featuring what those tin miners normally ate charcoal toasted bread with curry chicken washed down with roasted rice tea; roti tumbuk with brown sugar and grated coconut or the Merdeka Delight set that is served in a traditional tiffin carrier filled with boiled Tapioca served with anchovies in chili paste, shredded coconut, brown sugar, salted fish & sweet tapioca porridge….

We then spent the remaining day in Ipoh town checking out desserts at Concubine Street and so on before heading back to rest and relax in the cool cosy chalet overlooking the Boga Lake….

I actually had fun feeding my new pet fishes with bread… They came crowding near the water chalets to make their presence known

And part of the next morning ziplining, kayaking and paddle boarding at the Boga lake before checking out…

Don’t worry too much about hygiene or cleanliness as all the equipment are sanitised and cleaned regularly and hand sanitisers are placed there for your convenience …