After 5 days of cleaning, making lists of things that are missing in the apartment, shopping and unpacking I needed a break and a chance to get familiar with the country that I decided to live in. Last Saturday I decided to go to George Town, Penang, which is famous for food, street art and a magical atmosphere. It is about 4 hours from KL by car and it’s a perfect idea for a weekend getaway. The hotel I stayed was located close to the main attractions and in the UNESCO World Heritage area so it was easy to reach all the pieces of art like street paintings, museums and buildings that you must see in Penang.
Although it was a weekend, the city was quite empty, so I didn’t face any problem with traffic, free tables and waiting in the queues. Maybe this is why also this city seems to be very magical. I was very impressed by the “3D” paintings on the walls, Chinese architecture, colourful temples and little India where I got my Mehndi. I couldn’t stop looking at the Indian lady’s precision and confidence while making a very detailed henna tattoo on my hand. It took her around 30 minutes to make it on one hand and it was supposed to last around 1 week (but after 4 days it stopped looking impressive ).
During my first evening I enjoyed the small night market in Armenian Street, where I fell in love with hand made bracelets, that you could buy for 2,5 euro and add some elements on your own. They say that Penang is a capital city of food in Malaysia. Maybe I am not an expert, but most of those dishes didn’t surprise me and I didn’t taste anything that was absolutely new for me. There was only one thing I was truly amazed by. This dish called laksa and it’s just a fish noodle soup which you can buy everywhere for less than 1 euro. But the sour and spicy taste (less intensive than tom yum though) made me fall in love with this soup and I hope I can find this dish near my home in KL.
On Sunday morning I rented a bicycle to continue sightseeing, observing local life, tasting coffee and trying to stop time. The sunny weather was just perfect for cycling and cumulating energy for the new week and new project. I visited one of the must see places in George Town, which is a large chinese clanhouse Khoo Kongsi, that has been built around 650 years ago. It belongs to the Chinese family that came to Malaysia from South China and nowadays the place is a major tourist attraction and continues to play a supportive role for clan members (education, settling disputes etc). The highly ornamented architecture made a good impression, but the story of smart family members, their activities and achievements impressed me much more.
I have a feeling though, that those 2 days weren’t enough to discover this city well and to find an inspiration, so if I only find another free weekend, I will be definitely back to Penang.
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