The Asian Melting Pot: Penang - The Pearl of the Orient

An aerial view of what I thought was a small beach town in NW Malaysia!

Beautiful Penang.....I was so excited to be able to get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city of KL to go to Penang in the NW corner of Malaysia. We went to see what our team members were doing there and how they were reaching University Students. In conjunction with that we were able to spend a couple of days relaxing on the beach in Batu Ferringhi. One of the reasons for getting away was to be able to focus solely on our mission in KL and brainstorm some ideas to make this ministry our own yet keeping some of the things that was working from the previous person here.

We drove the 4 hours to Penang from KL. It was a beautiful drive but very costly as there were tolls along the way with a major payout at the end.

Since Kuala Lumpur is situated in the Klang Valley, I should have realized we would have mountains around us as we drove out of the city....however that never crossed my mind and I was pleasantly surprised at the scenery we encountered during our drive. There were always mountains around us and the clouds seemed to be puff balls just hanging in the sky. It was an interesting ride as the rest areas are not quite like ours.....They had little stalls that sold, of course, Asian food and fresh fruit. I was actually looking for a McDonalds for pancakes. Also, there were no fast food restaurants off the exits either....so no pancakes on the ride down....settled for fresh fruit....better for me anyway.

Below is a view of the drive on the bridge going onto the island of Penang. Penang is a very beautiful city and has a more quaint feel that KL. There is a section called Georgetown that has 100 year old shophouses and colonial villas that give it it’s distinct historical atmosphere.

Penang is the most populated island in Malaysia and has the highest density of population. It is a paradise for food lovers and was voted “Best Street Food” in Asia by TIme Magazine in 2004. It is especially famous for “Hawker Food” that is sold and eaten roadside strongly featuring noodles and fresh seafood. Whenever I mentioned we were going to Penang they would say the food there is distinctly Malaysian....not like other cities in Malaysia. I am sooooo sad to say we really did not try the Malaysian food......One night we ate at Hard Rock Cafe that was just down the street from our hotel and I had a delicious Cheeseburger....One night we ate at a Lebanese Restaurant that was so-so.

I was not impressed with the beach itself......I have read that there are concerns in Malaysia about the beaches and the cleanliness of them. Garbage is left on the beaches and the waters at the beach have been tested and found to contain numerous pollution sources. Beaches in Penang are losing tourist each year to beaches in Thailand and even East Malaysia. Even though the the beach we stayed at was not the cleanest it definitely was a haven for shells. They were just laying on the beach for someone like me to grab them by the hand full! However, the beach here is like the beach back home......everyday it is different depending on how the waves come in......that is why I love the beach so much. It is unpredictable. There are tide pools one day, not the next......shells plentiful one day, not so much the next day. Always leaves you wondering how you will find it the next day when you go out.

As we were walking the beach toward this fishing village a local lady came down the beach and Dennis, as usual, started up a conversation with her. One of the things he asked her is if Penang was affected by the Tsunami in 2005. She said that it was but not to the extent that Banda Ache in Sumatra was affected. Someone had called and reported what had happened and the people were given an hour to vacate the beach. She said the tsunami wave came up to the beach, hit the mountain and went 30 feet straight up in the air. They are at a higher sea level than Banda Ache is so the damage was not as bad. This little fishing village that is pictured took a terrible hit and almost completely wiped it out. I remember that time very well as we were in Bangkok, Thailand at the time and the beaches in Thailand took a terrible hit wiping out the livelihood of many people as they did not have insurance to be able to reopen.

Love the guy just squatting on the rock looking to the ocean
Wonder what he is contemplating?!?!

As soon as the night began to fall the sidewalk and open areas around the hotels and restaurants became a hopping street market....selling everything from music cd’s, batik pictures, pocketbooks, jewelry, lacquerware, Indian wall hangings, t-shirts and crocs. You name it and you could probably find it for a decent price. My great find were 3 Batik prints that I am going to have framed and hang in my living area over the couch. Tell me what you think!