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If you have missed my previous entry on Railway Tourism Malaysia, please read HERE because this entry is a continuance of Railway Tourism Program. As I have mentioned earlier, about 90 people including domestic and international tourists as well as media delegates were divided into three homestay groups. I got what I wanted that was Homestay Kg. Beng.

Prior to arrival at Homestay Kg. Beng, my knowledge was limited to it being the shooting location for films such as Anna & the King and Sara (starring Ida Nerina and Shamsul Ghau Ghau) and the famous “Janda Anak 7 dan Lembu” raya advertisement. The advertisement is one of the best raya advertisements thus far, well… atleast for yours truly.

Homestay Kg Beng

Kg. Beng is located 15km from Lenggong town aka Perak Man town. I was caught unprepared when we were transferred to a jetty at approximately 2am for a boat ride to Kampung Batu Ring. The boat ride took 15-20mins for which I remembered shivering throughout the journey. Like I said, I was unprepared for the early morning adventure.

Before you get confused between Kg. Beng and Kg. Batu Ring, allow me to explain that although the homestay is known as Homestay Kg Beng, there are 6 villages that form Kg. Beng; they are Kg. Durian Lubuk, Kg. Beng Dalam, Kg. Dusun, Kg. Sekolah, Kg. Durau dan Kg. Batu Ring.

For the sake of completeness, Kg Beng and Kg Batu Ring are divided by a lakeside of approximately 1km. Legend has it that because of the scenic panorama of the area, Sang Kelembai few rocks from Gunung Ring, Jeli before human habitated the area. Thus, the name Kg. Batu Ring. It was also said that Kg. Beng got its name from the son of Pattani king who ran away following the flow of Perak River. He was known as “Tok Beng”.

Homestay Kg Beng : The Experience

We were divided into a group of 4 people and handed over to our adopted family. My adopted mother’s name is Mak Ramizam. She stayed all by herself and her kitchen was full of fruits especially the durians!! When we were at Kg Beng, we missed the durian season which had just ended. We were lucky because Mak Ramizam’s cousin came by and stocked her fruits for us to eat.

The houses in Kg Batu Ring are typical wooden houses with some modern touch. Some of the houses are built on stilt so as to avoid animals and floods.

Majority of the village people catch their own fishes and grow their own vegetable. Fruits are plucked from their orchads. The environment was serene and it somehow relaxed our mind from the bustling city.

What I like most about Homestay Kg Beng is the lake area especially during the morning. Since our activity on the first day requires us to travel to Lenggong, we were taken on boat rides to and fro Kg Batu Ring. Even at 10 am, the mountain terrains which could be seen from Kg Batu Ring were blanketed by mists. As we travelled slow to the jetty, we passed by houses where kids would come running to the edge of the water waving frantically to our boat.

The smell of fresh air filled the space. I was freshened. The last time I experienced similar feeling was in Inle Lake, Myanmar.

When we came back from Lenggong, it was already 4pm. Mak Ramizam kept feeding us with fruits; this time with the king of fruit. Durian. In the evening, some of the participants strolled down the village, some trekked to the nearby waterfall and some joined the locals cooking for dinner.

I joined the cooking team for I thought mingling with the locals would provide the fullest homestay experience. So, I pulled the stool and clean the fishes. I had no problems with ikan kembungs, so why not try cleaning the palm-size talapia fishes. Boy, it was not the same. There are skills I have yet to learn. I tried, hard.

The thing about village people is that they do the chores super-fast. By the time we arrived at the hall area, most of the tasks were finished. Village people like festivities where they would gather at one place and cook together (rewang).

Later that night, we had our dinner while being entertained by the kugiran group.

It was in deed a memorable experience in Homestay Kg Beng. I would recommend you to give Homestay Kg Beng a try. Telecommunication network is luxury, facilities are traditional but the experience is worth the troubles. If you like to follow my trail, you might want to consider this package below:-