Two Sore Backs

Serious writers block – we left Penang four weeks ago! Pat and I have wrapped up our adventures in Malaysia and Singapore. We spent a week at friends outside Athens enjoying Orthodox Easter! Yesterday we moved along – we are driving around the Peloponnese.

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Readers who enjoy our ‘foodie’ commentary will appreciate our next few posts from Malaysia.

Reflecting back, enjoying a good cup of coffee and a nice meal are front and center of our time here. Our meals are as multicultural as the people who live here. Recall Mangeet refers to Malaysia as a cultural salad. Okay I get it!

After 11 weeks we are heat/humidity weary. One of our coping strategies is to duck into a beverage place for hydration and a cool down mid outing. Ironically, heat has a way of dampening one’s appetite. Breakfast and dinner keep us nourished.

Here is how our 4 days on Penang Island unfold. (I’ll write this ‘diary’ style.)

Saturday night

We check in to our hotel on Rope Walk Street.

Our first view of the neighbourhood. Looking south from our hotel to Rope Walk; background buildings are a large mall and highrise. The historic buildings have the ‘five footer’ landings under each awning between the road and the doorways. These five footers are all connected – so a great way to stay out of the sun or rain. They act as public/private spaces. Some shopkeepers take them over and you find yourself walking through part of their store. Or a scooter is parked there. Or a restaurant will have tables there.

Then off to Tina’s Restaurant, a block away.

We have a lovely ‘nyonya’ meal. Tina’s mom works the few tables and Tina is cheffing in the kitchen. It is a small restaurant – just the two ladies. The eclectic decor reminds us of Chinatown restaurants in Vancouver. Tina’s menu is full of the dishes she grew up with (and her mom taught her how to prepare). We want to order the whole menu but settle for pork lorbak (bbq) and fried eggplant and rice. We chat with Tina when she takes a break.

Sunday

It rains in the early morning. It hasn’t rained in weeks! We decide on a return visit to Tina’s for brunch. This time we try a lovely soup along with Penang white coffee. (Sorry again no photos.) Afterwards we just wander around Old Town.

In our travels we come to Armenian Street where we try durian at Durian Baby. In this version, the fruit is dipped in a charcoal (?) sprinkle to preserve the fruit and contain the pungent smell. By the way, all hotels in Malaysia outlaw durian because of its odour. Mainland Chinese visitors (biggest tourist market) come to Penang especially for fresh durian in May and June. WHO knew.

Carrying on we wander over towards the harbour and out along a couple of jetties. My favourite is the Clan Jetty and exists as a residential neighbourhood. The homes are well maintained but close together.

Heat exchangers are a must!

Afterwards we head to Little India seeking out a restaurant for dinner. (We settle on a Sri Lankan place.)

On the walk back we hear evening call to prayers at Kapitan Keiling Mosque.

Pat, the loyal Arsenal fan, heads out much later to watch his team. Arsenal 0-2 Aston-Villa. Oh darn.

Monday

Most mornings our first thought is finding a good cup of coffee and breakfast. We check out Yin’s Sourdough Bakery and Cafe – a short walk away. Coffees are perfect as is the avocado toast.

Then we head for the hills. It is slightly cooler 🙂

We want to check out Batu Ferringhi – a nearby beach town (our friend Pat spent a few years there before moving to Calgary: sadly we missed the opportunity to visit him at BT).

We settle on driving out to tour the Tropical Fruit Farm and along that scenic drive we will pass through BT.

Below is a gallery of photos from the fruit farm tour.

Of interest, those red berries are miracle berries. Why? After eating the berry pulp, which is a bit sour, we pop a different fruit, even lemons, into our mouths and Wow!! that fruit is so much sweeter. It is a before and after exercise. These berries are being developed as a very healthy sweetener and aid to fight diseases like diabetes.

We chew on tree bark – it is from a Sri Lankan cinnamon tree.

The tour is great and we enjoy samples afterwards. Catching a Grab to the farm is easy but we pay a premium to get back to George Town. The farm has connections and arrange for a taxi to come as we couldn’t get a Grab fare. Even the farm has to make a few calls before securing a driver. No worries.

Tuesday

New day same start. This time we wander over to Chau Xuan Restaurant for brunch. Chau Xuan has a Michelin Bib Gourmand rating – so almost 1 star. Food, service and price all are very good. Location is only a few streets away from our hotel.

Here is the review:

We arrive well ahead of the lunch crowd.

noodles and char siew braised pork 👍

At the start of our trip we expected to take some train trips. Instead, buses and planes have been the preferred mode.

My grandfather worked for the Malaya Railway between 1939 and 1952 except during the Japanese invasion during WW2. So we are determined to take the train in Malaysia. And it makes sense to take the high speed train between Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

We buy tickets in advance at the rail station across the harbour on the mainland side in Butterworth. We Grab one way, get 🎫 and take the harbour ferry back to George Town. The ferry is similar to taking Vancouver’s SeaBus except motorcycles are allowed. The waiting room provides the ferry crossing history – first car ferry etc. and there are plans to repurpose the recently retired ferries.

In the previous post I mention touring Pinang Peranakan Mansion. We will go there tomorrow. Today we stop at another mansion, Georgetown Mansion. Both mansions were owned by wealthy families and are beautiful ‘mansion’ museums.

What I appreciate is both the curation and explanations at the Georgetown Mansion – the focus is Malay culture. The Pinang Peranakan Mansion is more visually stunning (and more popular with tour groups).

Coffee break – we check out Forest Cloud Coffee. This place is for coffee experts. And the ac is wonderful.

We wander some more. This time to Campbell Street – the heart of Chinatown. Every Chinatown has an entrance gate.

We splurge on dinner tonight – Tóng

The restaurant is beautiful and our meal is terrific. We have scallops, anchovies with watermelon and a pesto, prawns, and a panna cotta dessert. A surprise at the end, ice cream with our coffee.

Wednesday

Forest Cloud Coffee gets a revisit this morning.

Afterward we find another great breakfast place Pinwheel Resto.

Georgetown is a fabulous walking place.

On the left you see the small ramps for the motor bikes.

A great example of the five footers – how these connect to a covered walkway depending on how public the owner makes their space.

We are meandering in the direction of Pinang Peranakan Mansion.

I have copied the next section from a story board at the mansion.

‘Built in 1894, Hai Ji Zhan was the company headquarter of Kapitan Chung Keng Kwee in Penang. It was also the zi zheng di (official residence) for the Chung family.

Hai Ji Zhan has a integration of architectural elements. It is a bungalow built like a shophouse that crystalises Chinese and Western elements into a unique building.

The architectural plan of Hai Ji Zhan is modified from the double section courtyard houses in Guangdong, China, but now it appears as a double-storey mansion.

The building was constructed close to the street to enable business activities and therefore the five-foot way on the ground floor adopts the outlook of shophouses.

On the other hand, as a compound is seen beside the mansion and a corridor links the mansion to the service quarters, this structure represents the colonial-style bungalows. Such integration of colonial and Chinese (or local) architectural elements is generally called the “Early Straits Eclectic Style”.’

Today visitors see a museum that is visually stunning. The courtyard is beautiful and opens up the house to nature. Here is a photo gallery.

We wander back to our hotel, passing along Armenian Street once more.

We opt for a wonderful steak dinner with a lovely bottle of Pinot Noir. The restaurant is in our hotel, Michelin rated, and service is top class – we are the only customers.

Thursday

Moving day! We return to Amy’s Sourdough Bakery and Cafe. Then head off to Butterworth Station to catch the train to Ipoh. We are going to escape the heat and check out Cameron Highlands.