Japan Calling

	Rise above the urban cacophony and head to Berjaya Hills for a restful taste of Japan in Malaysia Forty-five minutes after being shuttled from Berjaya Times Square Hotel & Convention Center in Kuala Lumpur, we alight at the entrance to French-themed resort, Colmar Tropicale, before ascending another 800ft in a different vehicle driven by our personal butler. The spiraling ascent is steep but swift. The Japanese Village - set amidst a serene warren of dense forest trees and built at a cost of RM35 million – presides over Berjaya Hills at an altitude of 3,500ft above sea level. We fall almost immediately into a relaxed trance in the crisp, nippy air, where every movement forms a graceful dance and words come out as hushed whispers. SWEET SUITE We are ushered into the Ume Tatami Suite, an exclusive duplex perched on the edge of a lush hillock. An artistic bamboo installation flanks the stone walkway that runs across a pebble garden in the main corridor. Ricepaper lampshades wrapped around ceiling lights add to the exquisite detail that has gone into the suite’s construction.  The focal point, however, lies in its three washitsu (Japanese-styled rooms) where tatami flooring and sliding shoji screens take pride of place.

Tatami (meaning “folded and piled” in Japanese) mats are made of women straw, traditionally packed with rice straw and bordered by brocade or plain green cloth. In the olden days, tatami flooring was only used by the affluent. Shoji screens are composed of translucent washi paper secured onto wooden frames and used as room dividers or doors. These days, many Japanese homes have only one washitsu, if at all, which is commonly used to demarcate an area for entertaining guests.

The evening turndown service takes on a different slant here. The low table and foldable, legless chairs – on which room-delivered meals are eaten – are stowed away and futons are laid out. Guests sleep on the floor above the tatami on the futons, as the Japanese have done in the past. Modern conveniences that ensure a pleasant stay include three well-appointed bathrooms, a kitchenette and air-conditioning.
 With phones disconnected from their sockets, you are encouraged to soak in the solitude and be serenaded by forest creatures. But if things get too quiet for comfort, there is always satellite television in the living room to keep you company.

A western-styled room furnished with a spring-mattress bed, wardrobe, dressing/working table and a homely couch is also available to those unaccustomed to sleeping on the floor. Quiet mornings are ideally spent reading a book on the cosy bamboo-framed chair facing a corner fitted with floor-to-ceiling glass granting a verdurous view of the surrounding tropical wilderness.

TEMPLE OF TEA
The roji, or teahouse, sits on a 1.5-acre Zen garden with a bubbling brook that flows into a koi pond. The man responsible for the teahouse and landscaping marvel is Japanese architect, Kaio Ariizumi, along with 22 other skilled craftsmen.

The teahouse incorporates the use of Japanese black clay Shinto tiles, Japanese cedar wood shingles and copper sheets. Stone lanterns were carved from whole granite rocks and imported from Japan.

The teahouse is also furnished with tatami flooring and shoji screens as well as fusuma (sliding doors made from cardboard and paper with round, indented door handles). A tokonoma (raised alcove) bears a Japanese scroll and, accordingly, a modest display of ikebana (flower arrangement), which indicated the time of year (spring, summer, autumn or winter) before clocks were invented.

Guests can opt to be fitted in a kimono or yukata (for men) before being taken through the rituals involved in the celebrated tea ceremony. In the past, even samurais held the art of tea preparation and drinking – which could last up to several hours – in high regard. Weapons were not allowed into the roji and were deposited on a rack outside the entrance measuring a few square feet called the chumon. The act of entering headfirst in a kneeling position serves as a stark reminder of the humility that even great warriors observed when they participated in the ceremony to clear their cluttered minds.

A SOAKING GOOD TIME
An indulgent evening can be spent at the Tatami Spa, which features a host of treatments ranging from body scrubs to therapeutic hot baths. Each treatment room is furnished with a lounge and wet area with scrub bed, shower and hot tub.

For an authentic Japanese spa experience, sign up for a session in the outdoor onsen (rock bath simulating a hot spring) in an open-air treatment pavilion that also brings you as close to nature as possible while you luxuriate in a soothing rubdown.

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BERJAYA HILLS
KM 48, Persimpangan Bertingkat
Lebuhraya Karak,
28750 Bukit Tinggi, Bentong
Pahang
T +609 288 8888
W www.berjayahills.com

Published rate for the Ume Tatami Suite, which can accommodate a maximum of 10, is RM3,800 nett. Please log on to the website for promotional rates.
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Courtesy of Zero Degrees magazine