Penang

After 30+ hours we checked into our hotel in Penang, an island  off the northwest coast of Malaysia.

 

The heat hit us as we stepped outside the airport - hot and humid!

Penang is blessed with a multicultural history, a combination of East and West. Claimed by the British East India Company in 1786, Penang is filled with colonial architecture, temples, and museums. Malaysia gained independence from the British  31st August 1957. 

Every street scene has so much to take in, either gritty and historic or bustling with activity, motorbikes, street traders - going for a walk is like being in a living museum and the smell of incense fills the air.

Quick facts for those interested

•  1.77m population,
• 1,048 km2 (405 sq mi)
• Malay is the official language 
•  English is widely spoken
• Chinese immigrants make up the majority of the population 60%
• 61.3 % follow Islam, 19.8 % Buddhism, 9.2%  Christianity, 6.3% Hinduism & 1.3%  Confucianism, Taoism, or other  Chinese philosophie

We have arrived in time for two festivals, tomorrow is Islamic New Year and from 25 Jul 2022 - 12 Aug 2022 the Hungry Ghost Festival is on and it's a chance to appease dissatisfied spirits.

  We saw small food offerings set up outside homes, joss sticks lit, paper money (hell bank notes) being burnt  to satisfy the needs of  hungry ghosts and  to ward off  trouble and bad luck. We saw lots of stalls selling paper money and incense for the festival.

We are still waking up on San Francisco time so started our day early as the city came to life. We wandered through the Chowrasta morning market as the locals shopped for their supplies. 

Lots of exotic looking fruits.

We saw a very busy fish market too.

The motorbike is the vehicle most people use and everyone is wearing masks.

We went into a large air conditioned mall to cool down  and came upon the FIBA World '3 on 3' basketball series. We watched Malaysia vs Mongolia - gals, Malaysia vs Vietnam - guys, China vs Vietnam - gals. The games were 10 mins and just watching made you feel exhausted even with the AC. The  Malaysian President was there  cheering on the home side.

This ginger pussycat was in a little side street stall, he was a rotund beauty but obviously wandered - he had a little bell on his harness.

Jet lag or the heat hit us and we retreated for some local laksa and lime& cucumber juice - delicious.