Banjaran Hot Spring Spa …. and A Wine Cellar to Mesmerise You

Nestled in the limestone hills surrounding Ipoh lies a delightful sanctuary where you can relax and pamper yourself. The Banjaran Hot Spring Spa is a 5-star retreat sanctuary consisting of 25 luxury villas offering holistic wellness and spa experiences, unequalled hospitality and distinctive Asian grace. Strategically located 15 minutes from the city of Ipoh, it is just 2 hours drive from Kuala Lumpur and 1.5 hours drive from Penang. It is situated on a 16.59 acre valley fringing a cluster of towering limestone hills and features an amalgamation of natural caves, pristine jungle, waterfalls and geothermal hot springs.

Geology

The thermal springs at The Banjaran are a natural and relatively rare phenomenon. Groundwater flows naturally at the base of the hills at a temperature of 65 to 70°, at a rate of about 3 millions liters per day (approximately 2,000 liters/minute). The water comes from a deep underground reservoir fed by rainwater that has slowly percolated downwards through the limestone hills and the underlying granite. As it makes its way down through the rocks, the water picks up minerals and dissolved ions.The water also warms up on its way downwards. Because of the heat radiation from the earth’s mantle, temperature increases with depth at a rate of about 3 to 4° per 100 meters, referred to as the geothermal gradient. Taking into consideration an average surface temperature of 25° and the fact that the water would have cooled down by about 10° on its way back upwards, groundwater would have reached a temperature of 80° at about 1,500 meters below the surface. Buoyed by dissolved gases and the higher pressure in the subsurface, groundwater eventually travels back to the surface as it encounters a fault or fractures in the rocks and comes out bubbling as a hot spring at the surface. Hot water is captured at The Banjaran to feed the steam room, a natural sauna, to fill the hot lake and to warm up the pool. The amount of carbon dioxide not produced by capturing and using naturally hot water at The Banjaran is roughly equivalent to the carbon sequestered by about 110,000 tree seedlings grown for 10 years.

Wining & Dining

At The Banjaran, only the freshest organic fruits and vegetables are used. The Pomelo restaurant serves the freshest premium seafood, meat and poultry that richly enhance the overall flavour and nutritional value of each meal.


Private Wine Cellar

Probably one of the most unique and mesmerising places at Banjaran is the private wine cellar which is located in a large 280 million year palaeozoic cave in one of the nearby limestone hills. Sealed with a large door and grill the entire cave has been air-conditioned and fitted with lights with piped music to create an incredible area for storing wine, hosting dinner parties or meeting at the bar …. all located within the cave. I use the word mesmerise as this was the exact phrase used by one of the waiters who guided us to this feature …. and he was not wrong! The private wine cellar belongs to Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, the founder and chairman of the Sunway Group but is open in the evening for drinks or you can book dinner here.

Tirtha Empul Temple

Tirtha Empul Temple was built in 926 A.D. during the Warmadewa dynasty (from the 10th to 14th centuries), at a site where there was a large water spring.

On the left side of the temple is a modern villa on the hill. built for President Sukarno's visit in 1954, which is now used as a rest house for important guests.

More than a thousand years ago a powerful King named Mayadenawa ruled over a vast area which included Bali. Mayadenawa possessed the spiritual power to transform himself into anything he desired. Unfortunately he misused his powers and became a cruel, black magician.

A priest named Sang Kulputih appealed to Indra to come to earth to kill Mayadenawa.Because he had many spies, Mayadenawa learned about the upcoming attack in time and managed to organize his defenses. However Lord Indra's forces were superior and therefore victorious. Most of King Mayadenawa troops fled, leaving him almost without defense.

Then the war was interrupted by nightfall. When Indra's forces slept, Mayadenawa stole into Indra's camp, walking on the sides of his feet as to leave no foot prints, and created a pool of poisoned water. This way of walking gave Tampaksiring its name, for tampak siring is Balinese for 'without imprints'. He left as he came and when Indra's forces woke up the next morning and discovered the water pool, they drank from it and became violently sick.

When Indra found out what happened, he created a large spring of fresh water by stabbing his flag pole to the ground.The clear water was able to cure the sickness of his army. The spring was called Tirtha Empul, which means bubbling spring.

Mayadenawa fled, chased by the forces of Indra. During his flight he transformed himself a number of times, but he couldn't trick Indra with his disguises. When he had transformed himself into a stone, he was shot by Indra with an arrow. A stream of blood flowed from the stone, forming the river Petanu. And for a thousand years this river would be cursed. Rice fields irrigated with its water would make the rice grow fast, but once harvested, blood would come out of it and it would smell bad.

The death of King Mayadenawa is symbolic for the victory of good (dharma) over evil (adharma). The day of Mayadenawa's death is still celebrated, every 210 days according to the Balinese Pawukon calendar, and this day is generally known as Galungan Day.

Cherry Blossom

April is a good time to visit New York .... the weather is not too cold and the streets are full of blooming cherry blossom trees. The picture above was taken in the Greenwich Village area and with the colourful springtime flowers also making a show this really made the streets look great. 

You Can Never Hold Back Spring

YOU CAN NEVER HOLD BACK SPRING

Tom Waits

You can never hold back spring

You can be sure that I will never

Stop believing

The blushing rose will climb

Spring ahead or fall behind

Winter dreams the same dream

Every time

You can never hold back spring

Even though you've lost your way

The world is dreaming, dreaming of spring

So close your eyes

Open you heart

To the one who's dreaming of you

You can never hold back spring

Remember everything that spring

Can bring

Baby, you can never hold back spring

Baby, you can never hold back spring