Not
many people, even in Malaysia, has heard of the jungle train. Even the KTMB
staff. Ask me, I tried to ask them for the tickets for ' jungle train ' and
they looked at me as though I asked them for a ticket to the moon.
For all of you who don't know, the Malaysian Jungle Train ( or simply known as
jungle train, or East Coast Line ) is built between 1910 and 1930. Long
stretches of the track was then removed to build the Thailand-Burma railroad (
The Death Railway ) and it officially starts from Gemas in Negeri
Sembilan to Tumpat in Kelantan. It's described as one of the scenic train
journeys and it passes through the sparsely populated and dense jungles of
Peninsula Malaysia, close to the Taman Negara and Kenong National Park.
Here's a simplified picture of the route.
I
was in KL Sentral where I started my journey, so I got the ticket to Wakaf
Bharu ( the stop for Kota Bharu ). The train, Senandung Wau, departs every
night at 8:30pm and ETA to Wakaf Bharu is 9.21am. It's advisable to take the
daytime train to take advantage of the sceneries, however from KL, there is
only one train and it is Senandung Wau. Apparently, the daytime train departs
from Woodlands in Singapore at 5am and does not stop in KL even for
refreshments. You might not get to see much of the sceneries until it's a
little brighter, and that's probably from Kuala Krai onwards probably.
I checked into my coach, W8 ( economy seating, RM30 one way ) and the chairs does not recline. You got to endure the whole journey with a stiff neck. You can also go for the superior class ( RM40 ) or a sleeping 2nd class berth ( RM48-RM56). I opted for the economy seating because I just wanted to know how it's like. Not so cool, especially for a 13 hours + journey.
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| My seat |
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| The economy class seatings |
The train departed at 8.32pm from Sentral and out into the pouring rain. I was in the building for so long that I didn't realize it was raining so heavily. The train chugged past all the usual Komuter stations, and I watched the KL jam near Serdang in full swing. Oh well. I sank into my seat and tried to sleep. I looked at my watch. 8.53pm. Bloody hell.
There was an old Kelantanese woman next to me, so I didn't get to stretch my
legs as often as I would have liked to discomfort to her. At some point I must
have fell asleep, because when I woke up we were already in Gemas station,
where the train stopped for a VERY long time.
I have no idea why the train stopped for almost 1.5 hours. I saw a few guys smoking at the platform, and everyone else around me was sleeping, so I continued sleeping. I woke up again when the train blew its whistle and slowly left Gemas. It was pitch dark outside, but I could make out silhouettes of buildings, and a small ' HOTEL ' sign. There were lights from small houses, roads, and motorbikes whizzing through the darkness. Then it was the whole dense jungle again.
I know there isn't much to see at this point, so I tried to sleep again. At
about 1.45am, the train stopped yet again, this time in the middle of the
jungle. It was so dark I couldn't even see the tracks. Why would they possibly
stop in the middle of the jungle and not in any stations? And in true Malaysian
style, no announcements either. Everyone was peering outside at the
darkness to see what's going on, but obviously nobody saw anything.
When I woke again, the train was still not moving. I glanced at my watch and it
was 2.43am. It would be close to 3.45am until the train moved again, and nobody
had any idea why the long wait. I settled to sleep again.
I woke up again ( I can't possibly do anything else when it's dark except sleep
) when the train stopped in Kuala Lipis station. Time: 6.45am. The train was
supposed to arrive at Kuala Lipis at 4.20am, according to schedule. Obviously
it was not the case. It was getting brighter so I guess I am in luck to see the
sceneries after all. I was hungry at this point, having finished all my snacks on
the train each time I awoke. I got up for some pictures and walked to the
restaurant car.
The restaurant car was located 2 coaches away from me, and I smelled it before I saw it. Aroma of nasi lemak and fried noodles wafted in the air. The car was full, everyone had the same idea to have breakfast at the same time. I found a place ( thankfully by the window ) and ordered coffee and toasted bread. Both cost me RM5. Thankfully the toasted bread was tasty. I sat there while watching the world go by, or more accurately, the jungle go by. Occasionally, we'd pass a big, milk tea colored river, valleys, gorges and in one case, even a Muslim graveyard at the edge of the jungle. The sceneries minus the jungle was amazing alright.
The restaurant car worker was eyeing me suspiciously for some reason, and he plonked down in front of me and asked in a Kelantanese dialect " Pegi mane?' ( Where are you going? )
" Wakaf Bharu ", I answered.
" Oooh, jauh, kite sampe dam kul dua belah tengah " (" Ooh, that's far, we'd probably be arriving at about 12 past ") , I nearly choked on my coffee.
The schedule said I would be arriving around 9.20am. Worse case scenario, I
expected to arrive before 10am. But 12 past? I was swearing under my breath.
He then told me that the train was spoilt near Jerantut station and that's why
it's late. They stopped to fix it. So that was why the long delay. The least
KTMB could do is inform the passengers. Huh!"We're lucky to be arriving at 12 past, it's still considered early. The train 2 days ago arrived at half past 6 " Again, I nearly choked. Seems like this happens frequently. I don't know what the passengers from the 2 days ago train did, but I fully intend to write a complain letter to KTMB when I return home.
After breakfast, I went back to my coach. Everyone was already up and about
like one big happy family. I stood near the doors of the moving train and
keeping some men who were smoking company. I tried to take in the view that was
passing : jungles, rivers, valleys, jungles, roads, jungles, cars, small
villages, jungles, towns, estates, little dilapidated houses, jungles, shacks,
graveyards, morning markets and more jungles. It was interesting to see the interiors
of the dense jungle, and with weird names I otherwise would not have heard of
like Chegar Perah, Sungai Nal, Kerambit and To Uban.
At the Tanah Merah station, a group of schoolchildren boarded the train. They
entered the coach with such enthusiasm and happiness I can only assume they
were going to a fun fair or something. Maybe fun fairs in Kelantan are held in
the mornings, I don't know. They were so noisy and talkative and curiously
looked at me and my camera, but nobody attempted to talk. They all got off at
the Pasir Mas station, and the train was blissfully quiet after that.Finally after what seemed like eternity, the Wakaf Bharu station arrived. I swung my backpack and grabbed my gear, and walked out to the platform to buy a return ticket that night to KL. The guy manning the ticket counter told me that there are no ticket available to KL for 2 consecutive days ( !! )so I was forced to change my plans and take a bus back instead. I stayed in Kota Bharu for one night at KB Backpackers ( dorms RM10, privates from RM20 ) which was located conveniently on the main street, across the bus station. I went to Pantai Kundur to watch the sunset, but not much views was forthcoming so I had little photographs.
I returned to KL with a Transnasional bus, that sold me a ticket for the 8.30am bus but the bus only arrived at 9.30am. No explanation from the staffs was forthcoming either, so I gritted my teeth and only arrived in KL at 7.30pm, with the jam and rain in tow.
The jungle train experience was a good one, albeit a little boring. I was lucky
because the train stalled and it was bright from Kuala Lipis onwards, so I
could soak up the view, but in usual circumstances, this might not have been
the case. The train was also fast moving that made taking photographs a bit
impossible. I had the jungle train on my list and now I can safely tick it
off. It's definitely worth the ride if you like long train journeys and
you do get to see some interesting things as well, like motorboats moored far
down the river and thunderous waterfalls.
By the way, Kota Bharu is a HOT town.
Read more on the jungle train, fares, schedules and online ticketing at
www.seat61.com, and www.ktmb.com.my
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