Highlights of my Ipoh trip
I knew little about Ipoh. A quick google search led to some rudimentary information- Ipoh is a town in Perak, has a majority Chinese population, has great food, caves, shopping malls and an amusement park, started off as a mining town, dwindled and now reviving, has beautiful colonial architecture, located in between Penang and KL, oh and did I already say GREAT FOOD? And yeah, my knowledge pretty much ended there. So here are the highlights of my first trip to Ipoh!
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| Ipoh railway station |
1. THE FOOD
People come from near and far, queues forever snaking even on off-peak hours, tales of tantalizing food are aplenty.. and Ipoh did not disappoint!
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| You don't have to go to places with rave reviews to enjoy good food. These were from Restoran Kam Wan in Canning Gardens and cost us RM27.85 for two people! |
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| Highly raved Funny Mountain soya bean! It was so smooth and was selling for RM1! |
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| Freshly baked pastries from Sin Eng Heong! They were so good we willingly |
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| Dimsum from Ming Court! Please come prepared and be ready to say no if they pile dishes on your table. |
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| This one is a hidden gem (at least for foreigners)! We were taken by our homestay owners here for dessert on our last night and it was so GOOD! Huge servings for sharing! At Tong Sui Kai aka Dessert Street |
2. Old Town
Ipoh old town was gorgeous! Colonial architecture, booming cafe culture, street art... It was a very pleasant stroll!
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| Concubine lane |
3. Malls
Some might consider it a shame that the malls made it to this list but here me out first! The air-conditioned malls were definitely a relief from the sweltering heat outside.. and coming from Singapore, there were some unique things we found, like pet shops selling snakes and lizards (illegal in the fine city) and interesting ones such as pellet guns gaming shops. There were also lots of food offerings so we stuffed ourselves even more.
4. RM2 shop
Yes, a 2 ringgit shop! Well, slightly more.. with the GST, Eco-shop sells products at RM2.12! We went twice during our visit and it was next to Ipoh Parade so it was very conveniently located! They had a huge variety of products! From snacks to household items to toys and even clothes! UNO cards for RM2.12 anyone?
5. Day trip to Cameron Highlands
Having heard from our homestay owners that this was doable, we went on a day visit to Cameron Highlands. We enjoyed the cooler weather and were treated to gorgeous views of the misty tea plantations and yummy strawberries! Check this post for the write-up!
6. Night markets
This is probably one of my favourite! There are night markets every night in Ipoh, though the location varies. Our homestay owners brought us to these delightful stalls for two nights. They were not overly crowded, but still had substantial foot volume. Serving the usual pasar malam offerings such as muah chee and cendol to the less common durian and lok lok, there were things to munch on for everyone! I really enjoyed the atmosphere. Interestingly, they also sold stinky tofu! It was not that bad!
4. RM2 shop
Yes, a 2 ringgit shop! Well, slightly more.. with the GST, Eco-shop sells products at RM2.12! We went twice during our visit and it was next to Ipoh Parade so it was very conveniently located! They had a huge variety of products! From snacks to household items to toys and even clothes! UNO cards for RM2.12 anyone?
5. Day trip to Cameron Highlands
Having heard from our homestay owners that this was doable, we went on a day visit to Cameron Highlands. We enjoyed the cooler weather and were treated to gorgeous views of the misty tea plantations and yummy strawberries! Check this post for the write-up!
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| Vast tea plantations |
6. Night markets
This is probably one of my favourite! There are night markets every night in Ipoh, though the location varies. Our homestay owners brought us to these delightful stalls for two nights. They were not overly crowded, but still had substantial foot volume. Serving the usual pasar malam offerings such as muah chee and cendol to the less common durian and lok lok, there were things to munch on for everyone! I really enjoyed the atmosphere. Interestingly, they also sold stinky tofu! It was not that bad!
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| Stinky tofu! |
There is much more to see and do (and eat!!) in Ipoh and this list is by no means exhaustive. There are cave temples, hot springs and amusement parks just to list a few, and I want to explore more of this booming town on the next visit! Cheers!
Notes:
- Uber and Grab. For those vehicle-less people like us, these apps were a life saver. We used them almost everywhere, to and from the airport and between malls! Much cheaper than taxis, our rides were very pleasant and had many interesting conversations with drivers!
- Walkable? Ipoh might not be the most walkable town but it is possible and doable. There are always Uber and Grab if it too far or if it is too hot to walk.
- Safety. Some Uber drivers warned us of the many dangers in Ipoh. We heard stories of pick-pockets and burglary but we did not feel like we were in danger at any point during our stay.. Though, we avoided going out late at night with the exceptions of the night markets. This said, precaution must be taken like elsewhere in the region.
- Also, I am very grateful to our homestay owners for being very friendly and approachable (we only needed to send them a whatsapp message whenever we needed help or suggestions). Thank you for making our stay in Ipoh a smooth sailing one!
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