Travelling In Our Own Backyard

One of my personal objectives when I started to plan for my travels some time last year was to make sure that I cover the whole of Malaysia as well, in addition to my dreams of travelling to all these exotic places abroad.

That's because I realised that I have not stepped foot on all the Malaysian states! Wh..hwat? *slaps forehead*. Oh, was I that unadventurous then when I was in KL? (actually.. more like, broke)

I wrote out the names of all the 14 states, including FT, and the 'untouched' list is as follows:

Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor, Perak, Kedah, Perlis, Negeri Sembilan.

That's 7 freaking states - half of Malaysia! Passing through does not count, minimum is a day trip. I do remember going to Pahang during A Levels, though for the life of me I cannot recall for what reasons; I remember we stayed in Fraser's Hill and even visited Teluk Cempedak.

I'd like to cover them in one sweep. Going by long distance buses and trains. The grand plan is to disembark in Johor Bahru, take the train up for as far as it goes, then take the bus, stop by interesting places, maybe jump off somewhere in Perhentian or Redang, must eat keropok lekor in KT, must eat nasi kerabu in KB, maybe to the Thai bordertown (is it Golok?), cross over to the West Coast, go north right up till Bukit Kayu Hitam, and then take the KTM train back with stopovers through Perak and Kedah and then all the way to KL/Seremban.

Or it could work in the opposite direction too. I think.

I'll skip Langkawi first coz I plan to go there on a separate trip. The same with Taman Negara, I'll need at least a 3D/2N for that, with KL as my jumping off point.

As for Sabah tanahairku, I'm happy to say I've finally covered all major towns including the east coast :). Except for Lahad Datu. Hmmm, wonder what will bring me there.

Sarawak : been to Miri, Mulu, Kuching. Maybe I can visit Sibu since there is a direct flight. I have yet to decide whether to return to Mulu once again or divert to Niah on my next trip to Miri.

To complete the top half of Borneo, the plan is to go by road to Brunei. And I also want to try reach Brunei via ferry from Labuan. Maybe go by road and return by ferry?

I plan for all this to happen latest within 2010, so there's plenty of time to plan. My 2009 is quite packed already - heh :) - and resources are stretched. I've been advised to avoid the end-of-the-year monsoon season. Am not sure whether there's any peak seasons, apart from the major public holidays - when city dwellers leave KL en masse - which must be avoided at all costs.

Further consultations needed with SMEs to fine tune details.

Anyone?