Just to break the routine of the same-same (local politics was getting tiring since it was going nowhere!), I went on the electric train upcountry to Gunung Jerai in Kedah last Monday. It was my first ride on an electric train and a pleasant experience in packing sightseeing all in a day!

The train left KL Sentral at 7.20am and arrived in Ipoh at 9.30am, enough time for a morning snooze, and sleep-restored, I was ready for the day’s outing! I went with a group who were joined by a few others in Ipoh who also brought with them packed nasi lemak for breakfast.

There is a bar-styled cafeteria on the electric train but it serves 2in1/3in1 drinks and packaged meals. If that’s not your preference, bring your own drinks and snacks. I bought two McD coffees, poured them into a small flask and enjoyed it with snacks throughout the journey!

If you plan your trip properly, you can get off at Ipoh, sight see there and have a good meal before resuming the journey on the next train to your destination.

We didn’t get off at Ipoh as we were heading to Sungai Petani as the train doesn’t stop at Gurun from where we drive to Gunung Jerai.

Another two hours on the train and it whizzed past plantations, tree and trees, swamps, kampungs. Occasionally, we caught glimpses of the Titiwangsa Mountains. The scenery was of an old world like in Teluk Intan (old name is Teluk Anson) where I had spent my early years and which I forgot with all the development in the Klang Valley where I now live that crowded out those memories of a past world!

Sitting relaxed in cushioned seats, watching that world fly past was a reminder of how fast the urban areas in Malaysia have developed, yet, some areas remain refreshingly intact — hopefully, with the benefits of modern amenities.

The most beautiful scene we went through was after Ipoh, when the train cut through on elevated tracks across Malaysia’s first man-made lake, the Tasik Bukit Merah. The lake was built in colonial times in 1906 to impound water to irrigate the surrounding padi fields. The tracks for the electric train was built in 2013.

Within another two hours, we reached Sungai Petani, got off, and took the pre-arranged bus to the Gurun railway station. Waiting vans took us up a winding road to a landing area on Gunung Jerai where the Gunung Jerai hill resort is situated. The summit is inaccessible.

There were shops outside the resort but they were closed. We had prepacked lunches, then walked up to the built-up resort area which opened up to a panoramic view of Kedah’s rice fields. There’s an entrance fee of RM2 per person to get into the resort area. Or pay RM5 per person for a car-cart ride to the resort for those who don’t want to walk.

When we were there, it was cloudy. It seems on a clear day visitors can see Langkawi over the sea in the distance.

It’s a pretty resort with stunning wild purple flowers lining the 15-minute walkway to the viewing areas. It also has a cafe selling drinks, cakes and snacks. And clean toilets!

Then, in vans we came down to the Gurun railway station to take the train back to Ipoh where we spent a night.

The Gurun railway station is small but at its entrance you get an outstanding view of country beauty. The station is surrounded by groves of trees with homes nestled among them. Beyond are the towering rain-forested mountains! I was so captivated by the view that I forgot to take pictures!

In Ipoh, we stayed at a fancy hotel, had a great breakfast the next day, walked around and had lunch and then went to the Ipoh railway station and took the train back home.

The train ride was enjoyable with comfortable seats and clean coaches — even the toilets were clean! I have only one complaint about the train. The overhead luggage rack was sooty, stirring up dirt and dust when luggage is pushed in with some of that stuff falling onto your clothes. That’s something that KTM, which runs the trains, needs to clean up! Otherwise, no other complaints!

I went with a group of adventurous boomers, who were good company, chatting, laughing, singing along in the train (some even dancing!) and dancing away in a session in a room we booked after dinner to let our hair down!

It was a short but well-spent one-night trip, memorable for the fun-filled company we kept and a sweet reminder of the old-country charm of where we come from.