Aman Rimba...The Place.

When Carm first mooted the idea of a weekend getaway for our long Labour Day weekend, she asked me to check out their website.

This is what it said,"Nestled in the hills of Janda Baik, Pahang resides a secret haven by the name of Aman Rimba. Laced with endless natural tropical beauty, timeless tradition and serenity of the highest level, Aman Rimba is a private getaway from the world you have come to know."





I browsed the photos on the website and I thought it was OK only. Maybe because I've viewed dozens of other villas' websites like those in Bali, thus have higher expectations.

Aman Rimba is in Janda Baik. Some friends and I car-pooled and we left PJ rather late. The journey was supposed to take only 45 minutes but we were stuck in bad traffic. We keyed in the co-ordinates into our GPS and it showed us there easily enough.

We arrived about 1 am so I couldn't really see much of the property. We were received by Izham, who looked after us during our stay. He was really helpful with our luggages and he warmly showed us our rooms.

archway leading into the main living area...

Caryn, JJ and I stayed in the first "dwelling" (for lack of a better word). It was really a Kampung House on stitlts! It had a large living area (with 2 day beds), a bedroom and a bathroom...

Walkway leading to our Kampung House, called Sireh...

The Kampung House we stayed at was made entirely of timber and it incorporated certain contemporary design principles which i felt was relevant to our comfort.





I've been to a few kampung houses before but i've never seen a better decorated kampung house...





I must say the owners put in effort to succesfully give the place a warm cosy feel that transports us back to simpler times...



The decor was strictly traditional Malay, artfully designed with simple fine lines and softened with neutral colored fabrics on the windows, sofa sets and carpets...


I particularly liked the paraphenalia on this chest of drawers. Check out the Rice Farmer's straw hat, the antique fan and sewing machine!



The designer must have carefully chosen each piece of decorative item to make the place feel lived in... For example the glass cabinet, the candles, the framed picture, the books on the shelf...



Our 4 poster canopied bed... flanked by stand-lamps that cast a comforting glow... The rooms were airconditioned... Each time we walked into the room we couldn't help but snuggle in!





I decided to walk towards the main dweling "Kantan 1 and 2" but we later renamed it "HQ"...


The next morning i walked about Aman Rimba and was pleasantly surprised at the marvelous architecture and gorgeous landscape! The photos on the website definitely didn't do the place justice!


Check out the delicate carving along the roof of our living hall...our chef cooking us some eggs for breakfast...and the peacocks hoping to catch some fallen crumbs!



We had all our meals here, played board games, watched some movies (esp in the afternoon when it got too hot do be outdoors) and sang karaoke with the projector and huge screen...

The swimming pool with the resistance training apparatus...

The low lazy hammock...big enough to carry 4 of us!

I enjoyed feeding the many birds wandering around Aman Rimba...

The little hut that was the kitchen. It's named "Kuali" : )

The view from one of the 3 smaller villas... Weils and Freda stayed in this one...

The bridge we had to cross between Kantan and the rest of the dwellings...

Kantan is a modern designed house with 2 huge living rooms, 2 master beds, 2 day beds and 2 bathrooms...It's nestled in between lush green foliage overlooking the swan lake...





I went cycling after breakfast, walked up the steps of Kantan...and smelled the sweet fresh air : )

In one of the two living rooms...

On one of the 2 day beds... Kantan can be divided right down the middle with a screen so that it becomes 2 seperate suites (Kantan 1 and 2 ) with their own master bedroom, day-bed, balcony and outdoor jacuzzi...








I really liked this tulip-looking pendant lamp. The clear acrylic "petals" make up the blades of a fan... lovely design!

the Day-beds...

The master bedroom...

The large dressing/ bathroom area...

Outdoor shower and Jacuzzi...

My favourite tulip pendant fan-lamp again... But this time in chocolate color...

Each master bedroom had a small study table...

Like i said earlier, the designer didn't miss a single corner when it came to decorating. He kept a continous flow of traditional malay feel with really cute articles...

He even decorated the study with a Malay Keris...Very nice touch i feel...

And of course the lighting was well done too...
Punctuated with interesting pieces like this rattan lamp...

A closer view of Kuali the Kitchen at night... When it's not in use the awnings can be lowered to shut the entire hut. Just like a Malay warung! Cute!!

There were 2 outdoor bathrooms for us to use whenever we were
too lazy to walk a little further to our own rooms...

Made entirely out of bamboo on one side... this bathroom had only 3 walls! It's quite a thrill to use. Gotta keep checking that no one pops his head through the bushes... : )


The shower thats super nature-friendly. Made entirely out of bamboo... Very creative!

Aman Rimba has a policy of renting out the entire place to one group of people only. So we had the entire place to ourselves and ourselves only. The privacy we enjoyed was truly something we appreciated. I could wear whatever i want...squawk horribly during Karaoke sessions...leave our SLR cameras wherever we pleased... And nobody could interfere and tell us what we could or couldn't do! I must say that is the best policy they adopt.

The 2nd best thing about Aman Rimba? The food!
We were fed 4 buffet style meals a day. They served us really really good malay dishes...


Nasi Lemak for breakfast...


Steamed rice with meat and vegetable dishes for lunch...


...with dollops of spicy sambal...droolss...


Steamed fish (we actually caught the fish earlier from the lake : ) )


My favourite-st?? The Pisang Goreng with bubur barley dessert...


Aman Rimba is truly a haven for city people like us. It was such a retreat to get away from the stress and grind of our daily lives. I can't remember ever spending a whole weekend just resting, chatting, cycling, swimming, singing karaoke, playing in the river, eating good food, having massages... and not having to leave the property at all. The accomodation and facilities were beyond my expectations and the service impeccable. It was truly a self-contained holiday place and a wonderful one. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone!


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http://www.amanrimba.com