I really didn’t know what to expect when I visited Taiping, “a small city” located in the state of Perak in northwestern Malaysia. Not too many western tourists stop here as it lacks the flashiness and glamor of such tourist meccas as Penang and Malacca. Probably Taiping’s biggest claim to fame is being the wettest city in Peninsular Malaysia.

Shortly after checking into my hotel in Taiping sometime late in the afternoon, the sky opened up with a very fierce torrential downpour complete with thunder and lightening. It rained hard for all of 15 minutes before it abruptly stopped. It was like the last movement of a symphony and I was tempted to give Mother Nature a standing ovation. After this initial downpour, Taiping was relatively dry for the remainder of my short visit.

As one of the oldest settlements in Malaysia, Taiping is steeped in history. Walking around old town (downtown), there are many old colonial buildings and a little further out is the Taiping Prison and the World War II Memorial Cemetery. By far, the most outstanding thing in Taiping are the magnificent lake gardens.

The Lake Gardens is truly Taiping’s centerpiece – its reputation is justly deserved. I can honestly say that I have never been to a more beautiful urban park. Rising above the lake and the town are the jungle-clad highlands - located just 10 Kilometers away (and at 1100 meters above sea level) is Bukit Larut, Malaysia’s oldest hill station retreat.

Although Taiping has the reputation of being of a small town, it is actually a sprawling city of close to 200,000 people if you include all the satellite communities and towns which make up the metropolitan area. Approximately 60% of Taiping’s population are Chinese with Malays accounting for roughly 30% and Indians 10%. I was told that these three ethnic groups live for the most part in different districts.

In addition, a lot wealthy people from Kuala Lumpur retire in Taiping because it is such a peaceful and relaxing city, quite a change of pace from the hustle ‘n’ bustle of the big city. Most of these “wealthy retirees” have built rather opulent homes around Taiping Lake Gardens but they maintain a rather low profile.

This Traveler can honestly say that Taiping is the most pleasant city that I have visited in Malaysia. While Taiping may be unsophisticated and kind of worn & frayed around the edges, her inner beauty grows on you after awhile.

It should be noted that Taiping has some wonderful Gourmet Chinese restaurants including two that are completely vegetarian. I highly recommend Su Hean – the food was extraordinary, very cheap and 100% vegetarian.