Welcome to the DARC Side

I just had words that my host from the party yesterday only just left DARC after an overnight stay and a hefty lunch. They hired a room which Anita used to shower the kids yesterday, a nice a roomy one, complete with the usual mod cons. As for the lunch, they served nasi padang every Sunday afternoon. And the patron were not charged a single sen, but urged to pay for what they thought the meal was worth .... And this novel concept permeate through to all aspects of the place. A strong sense of community.

As I mentioned, we took up membership to the place yesterday. It only cost us RM180 form the whole family forms year. And we would later get discounts for use of the facilities and horse riding lessons which according to my friend, were the most reasonable in town. You would not get the price anywhere near what offered anywhere else.

DARC offer care and training for the horses in their stable. They relied on members to volunteer in terms of time and money to make the place work. Therefore, the members felt that the place belonged to them, and most of the members hang around there regularly. You could even go a step further and sponsor the individual horses. And when it came to riding time, you would be able to ride your horse for free.

They adhere to strict regulations in terms of attire and etiquette. Members were briefed on the safety and precautions when riding and being around these animals. By training, you would gradually master the technique and could even became trainers yourself, or enter tournaments. A bit too early yet for us. We had yet to start any lesson. That would come in the coming weeks.

DARC however was not all about horses. Apart form the room and facilities for parties and events, they have motor cross, archery, gyms and play area for children. Around the rooms, they also had a swimming area for children. They have fencing lessons, and of course the restaurants. We had drinks yesterday while watching a football match at the centre.

Safety firstI don't think we were this good .... yetI had to convince the boys that swimming during party was not a good idea .....Of course you can choose to stay here overnightThe main issue would be logistics for us as we had to travel across town to get to Denai Alam. It should be bearable traffic on Sundays via the highway. And fitting that into their swimming lessons and later, sports clubs, their weekend would be full of activities.

As I mentioned, DARC had quite an atmosphere and we felt good signing up for membership. We would start our riding lessons soon, and it would not just be the kids, but for Anita and me as well.

More information about DARC here.

Horse-riding Party

Idlan had to miss his swimming lesson today - we would be taking him there tomorrow. Instead, we were in Denai Alam, attending the boys' friend's birthday. It was a party with a difference.

It was held at a horse-riding club - Denai Alam Riding Centre (DARC). We were not exactly familiar with the place, but the GPS helped us out. Although it did sent us through too many traffic lights. We were sure we would have got lost without the maps. But it was worth the search.

DARC is a family-orientated riding club, where the owner took up unwanted horses and raising them, often nursing them along the way. Most of them had been turned into rides, and the members could take ownership by way of sponsorship of individual horses or even come in as volunteers. But I would blog more about DARC later.

We started off all excited about the horses. My boys had never been up close with horses before, and the only time they had a ride was at Fraser's Hill a few years back. After being showed around, Idlan especially wanted to have a ride but he had to wait until the party started. That was after they had a pat and fed the horses some carrots.

I was starving by then, and even though it wasn't really a sunny day, it was still very warm and humid. The boys had some ice-cream to cool down while waiting for the party. The food was prepared by DARC, and the roast lamb was especially good.

The birthday boy was brought in on a pony for the cake-cutting. Then came the horse-ride for all the kids - when Idlan and Irfan got their first taste of riding on the back of a horse. They wanted more. And they persuaded me enough to become a member of the Centre.

I then had to leave DARC to attend to an admission at the hospital, with the rest continuing with the party. They were still dancing by the time I comeback, drenched in sweat, needing to take a shower. I was with the Dads watching football instead - Man City getting beat by Everton.

We finally called it the night at around 10. Our host would be spending the night at DARC - they have rooms for rent for those who wanted to ride early the next morning. All in all, it was an interesting party, and with us now being a member of DARC, we would definitely be coming here again and hopefully would be starting riding lessons soon.

Fraser's Hill - Day 2, Part 1 - Breakfast and the Outing

I slept like a baby last evening. Especially so when the boys decided to leave me to sleep alone on the bunk bed. The two of them and Puan Anita were huddled away on the four-poster bed.

I got up the earliest, at just just after seven. It was pretty nippy outside and the bathroom floor was as cold as ice. A quick hot shower and changed. Before I managed to sneak outside, Puan Anita woke up. Soon after, the boys were jumping on the bed. We hot the maids in, got them in the bath and headed for breakfast.

Idlan getting ready for breakfastThey served full English breakfast here and those were on the house. We are talking homemade croscent, jam and butter, followed by sausages, bacon and choices of eggs. Toast and cereals were also there if you fancy. Unbelievable!

I had omellete with cheese and mushrooms. Those certainly hit the spot. I counted 4 tables being occupied. I am sure the place would have been busier during weekends. It was Monday then.  As a result, the waiters were able to attend to my boys every need. The fact that they wanted only sausage and no bacon. They wanted to pour their own fresh milk into their tea. They wanted to run around in between mouthful of scrambled eggs. Irfan does not want any beans because according to him they are stinky! Oh man! They were really the bosses!

Looked like Maria Tunku Sabri has been hereWhile waiting for the food to sink down, Anita did some research about places to visit for the day. Since we have elderlies and children with us, hiking was definitely out. There were many beautiful trails around here. They were very well mapped and cater for all level of adventure. There are the simple ones with minimal gradient while others that were damn right brutal. Some of them lead to waterfalls and they are plenty of those if you are really keen.

Hmmm! Chillies? Big ones?

We learned however by the end of the day that if you were looking for flowers, Cameron Highlands is a better bet. There were a few nurseries advertised here, but they were pretty poor. Maybe they were out of season. There were certainly no roses and strawberries, and not much butterflies either.

Arriving at Allan's WaterDeciding what to doWhile enjoying the view

We decided to start the day about half a kilometer away at a manmade lake called Allan's Water. There is a pedal boat here and the place was very well maintained. Next door is a small nursery but again, there was not much on show.

The area where the archery and horseriding activities were hosted is called 'The Paddock'The barn where the horses livedEnjoying the rideNext stop was at the other side of town near the Golf Club. There is a small stable here with a few horses. Idlan was really excited and I took him with me for a ride. Nope, the horse was hardly running. It was just a gentle walk around a small circuit. Cost me RM4 and RM3 for Idlan. Irfan was too small to get on. There was also archery range next door. Further along is a small putting green. It was unfortunately closed that day, so we got Idlan a small plastic golf set to play back at the hotel garden later.

It was soon time for lunch when we finished with riding. We went to Shahzan's Inn, back in the town center. There is a Chinese and Malay restaurant here that opened for lunch and dinner. The resort looked slightly older than Puncak Inn across the road and in need of a make-over. Nearby is a playground and a small garden which the boys went to while waiting for food. We then headed back to the hotel right after, for some rest before a touch of golf and scones later.