It was a hot, sweaty day, and after spending the morning visiting three of Ipoh's most famous cave temples, it was time for a short break. My guide drove me to a local kopitiam (Malay coffee shop) where we sat down for a plate of Ipoh's famous "white coffee", a local specialty where the beans are roasted in palm oil margarine and the coffee is served with condensed milk.
White coffee pairs nicely with another Malaysian specialty: kaya butter toast. Kaya is a type off local coconut jam, and it's typically served in a sort of sandwich on lightly toasted bread with thin slices of cold butter and dunked in the coffee before each bite.
Our next destination was to be Tasik Cermin, or "Mirror Lake".
In the 19th century, thanks to Perak State's tin mining industry, Ipoh was once the richest city in all of Malaysia. Today, the tin mining has dried up, and what was once a large quarry has been filled in to create Mirror Lake.
The lake is surrounded on all four sides by towering limestone cliffs, and the only way to reach it is via a low tunnel carved out of the rock. I donned a hardhat, took a seat on an inflatable rubber dinghy, and set off with a small group of tourists down the long, dark, quiet tunnel.
I was thankful for the hard hats! There were several fairly claustrophobic moments when we had to duck down to narrowly avoid bonking our heads against the rocky ceiling of the tunnel.
After a few minutes, we arrived on the other side. It was like cruising into Jurassic Park! It was quiet, the sounds of traffic outside blocked by the mountains around us so that once the guide shut off the boat's motor, the only sounds were the gentle lapping of water and chirping and buzzing of jungle insects.
Mirror Lake got its name because of the glassy stillness of the water and how on a clear day, it reflects the sky. Unfortunately, it was a bit overcast that day, so I didn't get the full experience, but I could definitely see how reflective the water could have been on a good day.
Tempurung Cave has a long history, and as we entered the humid cave tunnel, Jaiye explained to me about its geographical features and formation, which took place around 400 million years ago when this part of Malaysia was at the bottom of the sea.
A river runs through the bottom of the cave, and experienced cavers (or those signing up to go on a hike with the cave's staff) can trek through the dark parts of the cave which are off-limits to regular tourists and walk back along the riverbed.
A large streak of marble runs the length of the cave just above the waterline. Marble is formed when limestone (itself formed by ancient, compressed shells) undergoes a process called metamorphism, transforming under heat and pressure into a dense, crystalline rock.
The cave is also rich in iron, and you can see plenty of hematite, oxidized chunks of iron, sticking out here and there, easily identifiably by its natural rusty color.
The cave was even used for a short time as a tin mine, and some equipment - mostly old shovels - have been recovered and are on a sort of display inside the cave as a reminder of its more recent past.
We walked along the paved path, occasionally climbing up steep steel steps as we made our way along the cave.
During the turbulent years of the Malayan Emergency in the 1950s and 60s, a guerrilla war fought between British colonial forces and communist insurgents, Tempurung Cave served as a hidden refuge for the communists.
Deep within its chambers, hidden from aerial surveillance and ground patrols, the cave was used as a strategic base of operations, and for a time you could even see their secret plans scratched into the walls of the cave which have since been covered up by the Malaysian government.
Finally, we reached the end of the path - or at least the end of the part of the path that regular unguided visitors like us were allowed to go. This was the "Top of the World", an area with a low ceiling that you could reach up and touch.
It was late afternoon, and we had already seen so much of the areas surrounding Ipoh, but there was still one more site to hit up before heading back to my hotel. Jaiye bought us each a bag of fresh guava to snack on as we got back into his car and set off down the road towards Kellie's Castle, our final stop of the day.
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