Penang, Malaysia

Using the liberal allotment of Thai holidays to our advantage, we spent a long weekend in Penang, Malaysia. It was an easy 1.5-hour flight from Bangkok. Penang, with its mix of cultures, is well-known for its array of delicious food and our first stop upon arrival was a collection of hawker stands along the seaside strip called Gurney Drive.

An abundance of food-on-a-stick options:

We chose chicken satay, fish cake, chicken in pandan leaf and garlic sausage. All great.

Also on the menu were laksa penang and mee goreng, along with fresh apple and watermelon juice.

And, of course, the dessert stand.

The next morning, we began the task of working off our meal at Fort Cornwallis, the oldest building/structure in Penang.

And then past some old colonial municipal buildings.

And, finally, to Chinatown, which is a large reason that Penang was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site. The buildings and storefronts are much as they were long ago, both in terms of architecture and wares.

We came across several Chinese temples and clan houses, such as this one, which was burning the largest incense sticks we had ever seen.

We also passed through some of Penang's famous Little India.

We visited Chong Fatt Tze Mansion, a restored late 19th century mansion owned by the man they called "the Rockefeller of the East." Like the Jim Thompson House, no pictures inside which was a bummer because it was really cool.

And then a trishaw ride back to the hotel.

One of the nice things about our hotel was that he could use its free shuttle to its sister hotel on the beach in an area called Batu Ferringghi. This was quite useful as the afternoons were pretty hot and the kids can only take so much sightseeing.

The next morning, after happening upon a public aerobics session...

...we took a funicular up Penang Hill.

At the top, we got some breathtaking views of George Town below.

Eliana and Izaak climbed in a model of the old wooden funiculars that they thankfully no longer use.

Eliana guarded the hill from invaders.

We saw the Hindu temple that was built for the workers who built the tramway.

Eliana got a henna tattoo.

Afterwards, more hawker stands for lunch. This egg tart may have been the only local food Eliana ate all weekend.

But she did take in some of the local leisure activities.

Samantha and Eliana also purchased some batik, which Eliana wore out...

 

...to more hawker stands!

Shane had his first noodles that night.

Another trishaw ride home...

The next day was Mothers Day, which we spent touring a tropical spice and plant garden.

And then one last lunch on the Andaman Sea.