We landed on Penang and got a taxi to Georgetown. Mid route we thought we might be in for a bid of trouble when the driver pulled the taxi over at the side of the motorway next to a waiting man, having been on and off her mobile the whole way. Then she got out the car and he got in and we carried on our way as if nothing ever happened. Taking in our surroundings, we agreed we had found the seediest street in town and our travels so far, with music thumping, drunkards revelling and lady boys pouting as we wandered in the night looking for somewhere to stay. We settled on an Indian run hotel, as a departure to our Chinese favourites, and made do with an internal room with a window looking back into the corridor. Very definitely for one night only. Next day up we found a new hotel further back from the strip and back to old faithful - a Chinese hotel with a fabulous 50's air, although not too musty considering. It was a great mix of wooden panelling, linoleum flooring and metal framed windows with luxury of luxuries a bath, and less luxurious a toilet that exploded water across the room everytime you flushed. A quick mention to management and the loo was fixed by the time we came back from breakfast.
One of our walks across town led us to a big old lighthouse, which we took the chance to sneak up since, the stairs led all the way down to the ground, and it was unguarded. We got a great view from the top but thought we were going to get a row when making our escape we were shouted back by an attendant. As it was, he only wanted to give us a couple of posters for our experience and get us to sign the guest book. Malaysians seem to love guest books and free souvenirs. Despite being very tourist driven, Georgetown still has a lot of old charm about it if you only step one or two roads back off the main streets. There is a trail you can walk with the aid of a leaflet that takes you past people who are still working traditional crafts from their workshops on the roadside. These aren't people who have geared up for tourists but genuine tradesmen who have been doing these trades for the last forever. One man we found was an incense stick maker, who looked about fifty but was actually eighty and looked the top of health. His main buyers are people who buy the incense sticks to burn as offerings at the Chinese temples. He was the only one in the end we had the patience to walk to as the heat was unbearable and some of trades people didn't seem to be where they should be, the traditional coffee roaster being the most disappointing.
Having wandered the traditional lanes with ramshackle buildings, we headed into the town centre and got a lift to the top of the Komtar Tower. This is the tallest building on the Island, built in the 70's using the most hideous and unimaginative concrete design principles as is so common of the era. It looks like something that failed the audition for towering inferno, and proved impossible to find the lifts for, hidden in the heart of the darkest ugliest brown and yellowest mall you might imagine, filling it's ground floor. A slow lift to the top with a very unpleasant, and uninterested man who has the responsibility of pushing the buttons and all the self importance that goes with it and then you get spat out at the top to face a grossly unreasonable fee to see the view. It was 50/50 whether or not to go in, but in the end we did. The view was good everything else was dreadful. To try and compensate for the price, you get a couple of freebies. A cold drink so disgusting you can't even make yourself drink it to get your value, and two home made postcards which are so cheaply produced you wouldn't send them to your dog. Presumably, the Karaoke that was blaring out, exclusively for the use of the manager/prat that kept mincing around and bugging us was also to be considered free entertainment.
After all this excitement, there was nothing left in Georgetown for us but the rest of the Island lay waiting, and most tantalizingly, the snake temple. We hired a car for a day so we could see the most things as they were all spread across the island. Really, we mostly only wanted to see the snake temple but justified the hire by scheduling in a few other attractions. The snake temple was billed as being like something out of Indiana Jones. A temple with all the old stuff you'd expect and dripping with snakes off all the artifacts. The snakes, were allegedly, rendered safe by the burning incense in the temple. We turned up full of expectation but found that the temple was being done up and they had instead shifted a big gong and a couple of other artefacts into the attached office wing where a handful of snakes had clearly been plonked on top of the stuff. The best bit about the whole experience was when we first stepped through the door and before you could say 'oh look a snake' I had been wrapped in a python and a viper by a bloke wanting me to buy a photo of it from him. I explained the photo would only get crumpled in my bag and besides it was an outrageous price and then found myself negotiating the cost of Nicki taking a picture of me on my own camera while I stood there dripping with snakes and sweat. Other highlights of the day was the funicular railway that went up a hill side. It took about 20 minutes and we had to change trains half way up. The train, originally built in the early 1900's was originally a flop when on it's grand opening in front of the king, it was discovered that the engine wasn't strong enough to push it up the hill. You might have thought they'd have tested it first. A hundred years later and no such problems, it's all driven by cables now and it still serves as a necessary train service for the village at the top. We later visited a really impressive little aquarium which possibly turned out to be the highlight of the day, despite being a 'value-added extra' and being well hidden in the middle of the airport industrial estate. While there, looking at examples of local fish and corals we reflected on our scuba experience in the pool and remembered some people we met in Bako who had told us tales of their Diving exploits and their insistence we should try some in Thailand. We decided that maybe we would if we found the opportunity.
Another couple of days were spent around Georgetown before we arranged a 12 hour 3 minibus journey that would take us from Penang across the Thai border to Phuket.
One of our walks across town led us to a big old lighthouse, which we took the chance to sneak up since, the stairs led all the way down to the ground, and it was unguarded. We got a great view from the top but thought we were going to get a row when making our escape we were shouted back by an attendant. As it was, he only wanted to give us a couple of posters for our experience and get us to sign the guest book. Malaysians seem to love guest books and free souvenirs. Despite being very tourist driven, Georgetown still has a lot of old charm about it if you only step one or two roads back off the main streets. There is a trail you can walk with the aid of a leaflet that takes you past people who are still working traditional crafts from their workshops on the roadside. These aren't people who have geared up for tourists but genuine tradesmen who have been doing these trades for the last forever. One man we found was an incense stick maker, who looked about fifty but was actually eighty and looked the top of health. His main buyers are people who buy the incense sticks to burn as offerings at the Chinese temples. He was the only one in the end we had the patience to walk to as the heat was unbearable and some of trades people didn't seem to be where they should be, the traditional coffee roaster being the most disappointing.
Having wandered the traditional lanes with ramshackle buildings, we headed into the town centre and got a lift to the top of the Komtar Tower. This is the tallest building on the Island, built in the 70's using the most hideous and unimaginative concrete design principles as is so common of the era. It looks like something that failed the audition for towering inferno, and proved impossible to find the lifts for, hidden in the heart of the darkest ugliest brown and yellowest mall you might imagine, filling it's ground floor. A slow lift to the top with a very unpleasant, and uninterested man who has the responsibility of pushing the buttons and all the self importance that goes with it and then you get spat out at the top to face a grossly unreasonable fee to see the view. It was 50/50 whether or not to go in, but in the end we did. The view was good everything else was dreadful. To try and compensate for the price, you get a couple of freebies. A cold drink so disgusting you can't even make yourself drink it to get your value, and two home made postcards which are so cheaply produced you wouldn't send them to your dog. Presumably, the Karaoke that was blaring out, exclusively for the use of the manager/prat that kept mincing around and bugging us was also to be considered free entertainment.
After all this excitement, there was nothing left in Georgetown for us but the rest of the Island lay waiting, and most tantalizingly, the snake temple. We hired a car for a day so we could see the most things as they were all spread across the island. Really, we mostly only wanted to see the snake temple but justified the hire by scheduling in a few other attractions. The snake temple was billed as being like something out of Indiana Jones. A temple with all the old stuff you'd expect and dripping with snakes off all the artifacts. The snakes, were allegedly, rendered safe by the burning incense in the temple. We turned up full of expectation but found that the temple was being done up and they had instead shifted a big gong and a couple of other artefacts into the attached office wing where a handful of snakes had clearly been plonked on top of the stuff. The best bit about the whole experience was when we first stepped through the door and before you could say 'oh look a snake' I had been wrapped in a python and a viper by a bloke wanting me to buy a photo of it from him. I explained the photo would only get crumpled in my bag and besides it was an outrageous price and then found myself negotiating the cost of Nicki taking a picture of me on my own camera while I stood there dripping with snakes and sweat. Other highlights of the day was the funicular railway that went up a hill side. It took about 20 minutes and we had to change trains half way up. The train, originally built in the early 1900's was originally a flop when on it's grand opening in front of the king, it was discovered that the engine wasn't strong enough to push it up the hill. You might have thought they'd have tested it first. A hundred years later and no such problems, it's all driven by cables now and it still serves as a necessary train service for the village at the top. We later visited a really impressive little aquarium which possibly turned out to be the highlight of the day, despite being a 'value-added extra' and being well hidden in the middle of the airport industrial estate. While there, looking at examples of local fish and corals we reflected on our scuba experience in the pool and remembered some people we met in Bako who had told us tales of their Diving exploits and their insistence we should try some in Thailand. We decided that maybe we would if we found the opportunity.
Another couple of days were spent around Georgetown before we arranged a 12 hour 3 minibus journey that would take us from Penang across the Thai border to Phuket.
2 comments:
Hey guys, you're doing/seeing some amazing stuff! I'm really enjoying your blog. Have fun, safe travels! Love, T :-)
I see my other sister.
*giggle*
I love my fam!
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