Tapah

Tapah is a town in the Malaysian state of Perak and the capital of Batang Padang District. It is one of the two gateway towns to the hill retreat of the Cameron Highlands, the other being Simpang Pulai, and it lies about 49 kilometres southeast of the state capital Ipoh. The name is said to come from the freshwater fish ikan tapah, Wallago leeri, although local people also say it comes from the Perak Malay word for no worry. The Batang Padang River flows through the town, which sits in the western foothills of the Titiwangsa Range, and the Lata Kinjang waterfall, a series of cascades with a drop of about 100 metres, lies roughly 18 kilometres away and can be seen from the North-South Expressway. Tapah stands on the trunk road between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, has an entrance to the expressway at exit 132, and is the main entry point to the old, winding Cameron Highlands road. The nearest train station is Tapah Road.