Penang. Food paradise as they all imply. (well there are other things Penang is famous for but i can't remember what). Oh, ya.. by the way I'm back in Kuching. Cat city as they always say.
The flight to Penang on Airasia was satisfactory. Well, they got a nice hotdog on the flight whicj costs RM7!! And then we have Penang International airport which seems advance but looks very old-fashioned. Feels a little like the Xiamen International Airport I been to last year.
So I arrived at Penang at around 5pm, 30 minutes ahead of schedule. Not bad for Airasia right? Then, my family and I headed towards Gurney Drive. (Just in case you didn't know, Gurney Drive a popular tourist attraction which is by the seaside, well, to me, a lagoon side which commands a fascinating view with cool winds if you are living on the 21st floor in my mother's friends apartment like I did. If you are jogging along the pavement of the seaside which has little or no sand in a lovely afternoon, brace yourselves for a foul stench. If you are lucky, you'll see monitor lizards and mudskippers.) For your info also, Gurney drive was also hit by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami abeit a minor one.
On the first night, we went to One Stop Midland shopping complex. It used to be a very popular shopping complex 6 or 7 years ago until shopping malls like Queensbay mall came into the fold. So we ate a great chinese restaurant. It cooks the best sald prawn I ever tasted. In fact, for a prawn-hater like me, I just can't help but want more.
On the second day, 13th December, we went to some hawker stalls for breakfast. We wanted to tasted Penang's renown char kuey tiaw. Unfortunately, the stall ain't operational on that day. So I had to settle for wanton mee, which has one or two kiaws and more noodles. Ain't that tasty if you ask me. After breakfast, we went city touring on a chartered tranpsort (a must if you want to make the most of your vacation.).
First stop, toy museum. Penang boast of the world's only second toy musuem. Containing toys worth millions of ringgit, this is a must see for toy lovers. It has the best collection of star wars toys too.
Next stop is is the Batik Factory. Nothing astonishing here. It just teaches you about how batik is created and you get to buy batik stuff here. One thing I learnt is that batik clothes are very original. If you find another person wearing the same batik shirt as you, you probably got an imitation.
Along the way to our next stop at the Tropical Fruit Garden some few hundred feet above sea level is Batu Ferringhi, the most captivating beach I seen so far. The sand and river is so so so so so clean. It looks absolutely beautiful. Strangely, there aren't any waves. On the way to the top of the hill to the Tropical Fruit Garden is one of Penang's 2 dams and many lush green trees. A good stop for photographers.
The Tropical Food Garden is a haven of local fruits. Did you know we have something called the custard apple in Malysia? Ok fine.. how about the buffalo horn nut? It is looks exactly like a buffulo horn., hence the name. At the end of the guided tour up the fruit hill, we got a treat of a fruit buffet. Sadly, no durians because the durian season there is around mid-year.
Buffulo Horn Nut
After that, it is a trip to to the snake temple. As the name implies, it is a temple full of snakes, in cages that is. Of course there are a few on the loose but they don't too much. Most of the time, they play dead and are there just in you bizzarely want to take a photo with them. It is quite educational to be there. Lot's of information about snakes and dangers and precautions, only a RM3 entrance fee. Just remember, look at the info given, not just the those slimy wrigglers and it will be a trip well taken.
Oh ya, I forgot introduce our driver. His name is Mr. Khoo. A great guide if I may say so myself. Gives lot's of information and worth your money.
After the snake temple, we are off to another temple, Kek Lok Si Temple. Make no mistake, it isn't a place where they sell a type of non-exixtent cake called Lok Si. It in fact is the biggest temple in South-East Asia. It is huge! Even a Buddha statue can cost 75 million. That is around 18 of my church!!! But nothing much there except a panoramtic view of one side of the city. Oh ya, there a street descending downwards from there too. But as they are near the temple and may be contributing to temple funds, I decided not to buy anything
Finally, our last stop in Penang: The Coffee Tree. Well, you heard of Coffee Bean but it is nothing compared to Coffee Tree. No, not that coffee products grows on tree here. IT is actually just a shop selling lot's of types of coffee.. and chocolates. Better still, they let you taste each kind. Their white coffee is truly great! And their tiramisu chocolate is superb. This is one of the palces you most not but I guess most of the time will miss as it is not that famous for some reason.
That night, we went to Queensbay mall, the longest and largest mall in Penang. It's the first time I step into TGI Fridays and boy the food is super great! If you say Secret Recipe is nice, TGI Friday's is 3 times better. The price too. But if two sets of aroundRM 30+ can feed 5 mouths, why not? I can't wait for The Spring to open in Kuching.
The flight to Penang on Airasia was satisfactory. Well, they got a nice hotdog on the flight whicj costs RM7!! And then we have Penang International airport which seems advance but looks very old-fashioned. Feels a little like the Xiamen International Airport I been to last year.
So I arrived at Penang at around 5pm, 30 minutes ahead of schedule. Not bad for Airasia right? Then, my family and I headed towards Gurney Drive. (Just in case you didn't know, Gurney Drive a popular tourist attraction which is by the seaside, well, to me, a lagoon side which commands a fascinating view with cool winds if you are living on the 21st floor in my mother's friends apartment like I did. If you are jogging along the pavement of the seaside which has little or no sand in a lovely afternoon, brace yourselves for a foul stench. If you are lucky, you'll see monitor lizards and mudskippers.) For your info also, Gurney drive was also hit by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami abeit a minor one.
On the first night, we went to One Stop Midland shopping complex. It used to be a very popular shopping complex 6 or 7 years ago until shopping malls like Queensbay mall came into the fold. So we ate a great chinese restaurant. It cooks the best sald prawn I ever tasted. In fact, for a prawn-hater like me, I just can't help but want more.
On the second day, 13th December, we went to some hawker stalls for breakfast. We wanted to tasted Penang's renown char kuey tiaw. Unfortunately, the stall ain't operational on that day. So I had to settle for wanton mee, which has one or two kiaws and more noodles. Ain't that tasty if you ask me. After breakfast, we went city touring on a chartered tranpsort (a must if you want to make the most of your vacation.).
First stop, toy museum. Penang boast of the world's only second toy musuem. Containing toys worth millions of ringgit, this is a must see for toy lovers. It has the best collection of star wars toys too.
Next stop is is the Batik Factory. Nothing astonishing here. It just teaches you about how batik is created and you get to buy batik stuff here. One thing I learnt is that batik clothes are very original. If you find another person wearing the same batik shirt as you, you probably got an imitation.
Along the way to our next stop at the Tropical Fruit Garden some few hundred feet above sea level is Batu Ferringhi, the most captivating beach I seen so far. The sand and river is so so so so so clean. It looks absolutely beautiful. Strangely, there aren't any waves. On the way to the top of the hill to the Tropical Fruit Garden is one of Penang's 2 dams and many lush green trees. A good stop for photographers.
The Tropical Food Garden is a haven of local fruits. Did you know we have something called the custard apple in Malysia? Ok fine.. how about the buffalo horn nut? It is looks exactly like a buffulo horn., hence the name. At the end of the guided tour up the fruit hill, we got a treat of a fruit buffet. Sadly, no durians because the durian season there is around mid-year.
Buffulo Horn NutAfter that, it is a trip to to the snake temple. As the name implies, it is a temple full of snakes, in cages that is. Of course there are a few on the loose but they don't too much. Most of the time, they play dead and are there just in you bizzarely want to take a photo with them. It is quite educational to be there. Lot's of information about snakes and dangers and precautions, only a RM3 entrance fee. Just remember, look at the info given, not just the those slimy wrigglers and it will be a trip well taken.
Oh ya, I forgot introduce our driver. His name is Mr. Khoo. A great guide if I may say so myself. Gives lot's of information and worth your money.
After the snake temple, we are off to another temple, Kek Lok Si Temple. Make no mistake, it isn't a place where they sell a type of non-exixtent cake called Lok Si. It in fact is the biggest temple in South-East Asia. It is huge! Even a Buddha statue can cost 75 million. That is around 18 of my church!!! But nothing much there except a panoramtic view of one side of the city. Oh ya, there a street descending downwards from there too. But as they are near the temple and may be contributing to temple funds, I decided not to buy anything
Finally, our last stop in Penang: The Coffee Tree. Well, you heard of Coffee Bean but it is nothing compared to Coffee Tree. No, not that coffee products grows on tree here. IT is actually just a shop selling lot's of types of coffee.. and chocolates. Better still, they let you taste each kind. Their white coffee is truly great! And their tiramisu chocolate is superb. This is one of the palces you most not but I guess most of the time will miss as it is not that famous for some reason.
That night, we went to Queensbay mall, the longest and largest mall in Penang. It's the first time I step into TGI Fridays and boy the food is super great! If you say Secret Recipe is nice, TGI Friday's is 3 times better. The price too. But if two sets of aroundRM 30+ can feed 5 mouths, why not? I can't wait for The Spring to open in Kuching.
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