Good morning lovely people.❤️
Firstly, apologies for the numerous spelling errors in my last post! 😳 I put this down to trying to type it on the train whilst keeping the blind open and admiring the view!
I’ve been here in Penang and Georgetown for a couple of days and I love it.
As I guessed it is much more pedestrian friendly and not as high rise.
It gives me Old Town Phuket vibes. I guess they have a similar colonial and migrant history.
When I arrived at Butterworth train station my loose plan was to call a Grab as I thought the ferry terminal was further away (there is a road bridge across to the island) however the ferry terminal is linked to the train station, handy.
So having battled with people to get on the lift (more on this sort of behaviour later 🤨) I followed the signs to the ferry, it was a pretty long walk and involved a fair amount of queuing, I also managed to drop my case on my foot, 🙁 but I made it to the the front of the ticket queue and had to pay for the ticket on a card. So I paid 32p on my credit card (the conversion fee is going to be way more than that!) and boarded the ferry, it didn’t take long.
I got chatting to a family from Ontario, with 2 early teen children all of whom were travelling with just a very small backpack 🎒Impressive. I thought I was good keeping my case under 18kgs. 😂
My hotel here is lovely, in a beautiful old building and my room is still the original wood, and smells lush (no mouldering fruit smell!)
The pool is tiny and approx 2inches deep…😂 but enough to submerge and cool off after a hot day.
My first evening I wandered into the main part of town, about a 15 min walk. I found a bar and grabbed an ice cold beer! 🍺
The area I’m in has lots of street food stalls, they are all really busy but I’m a bit of a coward and don’t particularly want to try anything. I opt instead for a nice little restaurant. I had a delicious Nasi lemak, rice, chicken satay & and fried egg Yum!
Then I walked back to the hotel. It’s been a long day.
My first full day in Georgetown was going to be spent exploring and enjoying the street art and architecture.
After a tasty breakfast of omelette and Tea. I set off. As I left I could see the very dark clouds and hear some thunder. I walked for about 10 mins before it started to really rain. I had my fetching rain poncho in my bag, but it appears to have been made to fit a small child not an adult with a large bum!
I ducked into a rather swanky hotel and had more tea whilst
waiting for the storm to pass. After about 40 mins it had slowed a little so I figured I’d chance it. I left and bought a small umbrella at a 7/11.
I was trying to orientate myself using a ridiculous map, but was really struggling. I’m normally pretty good at finding my way and directions. Eventually I was able to figure it out!
I stopped to have a little tour of the Kapitan Keling Mosque, which was beautiful and interesting, by the time I came out it had stopped raining. 😃
I continued my walk and found the street art and the beautiful little streets I’d been searching for. So pretty and also reasonably quiet. I’m sure this area is very busy at night. I continued my walk and by the time I got back to the hotel I’d done around 15,000 steps, I also had a couple of blisters.
I had a dunk in the pool to cool off and then remembered that the receptionist had mentioned a roof terrace.
OMG! It’s so perfect. Lots of seating, lots of shade, a beautiful breeze and no people. I will definitely be making use of this in the future.
I thought I’d head back into town for dinner, there was a restaurant that had great reviews, Chinese influenced. The reviews clearly worked because it was rammed and there was also a massive queue. By now I was starving and my feet hurt so I didn’t fancy queuing. The restaurant I’d visited the night before was closed so I had a sit down in a bar with a beer to consider my options.
Just as I took the first sip of my beer a huge Rat almost ran over my foot.. 😳 Jesus, it made me jump. 🐀😬
I’d passed a good looking place earlier, so I went back. It’s a middle eastern restaurant, it was very pretty inside. I ordered a Chicken Biriyani dish and a lemon iced tea.
Oh wow! The food was awesome, possibly the best meal so far. The tenderest chicken and the rice and curry side were gorgeous. Not like an Indian Biriyani.
The bill was less than £8 honestly, it was so good, I’m going back. ❤️
After my delicious dinner I walked back to the hotel on my aching feet. As soon as I got to my room an alert came up on my phone saying I’d used all my data, on my Malaysian Sim. I need the data for ordering Grabs, so asked at reception where the nearest place to top up was, she said literally round the corner. So I took my aching feet and off I went.
Sadly the shops machine was broken (I’m not convinced seeing as the assistant stood chatting on her phone for 5mins, whilst ignoring, I just don’t think she could be bothered doing it) so I had to walk right back to where I’d had dinner to the 7/11! 😩
A very helpful young fella did some stuff on my phone and announced that I had 7 days data left! And nothing to pay WTF! Result. 👍
By the time I got back I’d walked just under 21,000 steps my feet were not happy!
On Thursday due to the blisters and a nice bruise on my foot, I figured I’d have a day with less walking.
With this in mind I purchased a ticket for Penang Hill. The highest point in Penang with gorgeous views and funicular ride to the top.
After another lush breakfast of poached eggs on toast and tea. I set off. It took around 20 mins in a taxi to get there. The driver told me the queues were taking around 2hrs…yikes! I did have a fast track ticket but still. Thankfully he was wrong and the queues were minimal.
I was at the front of the queue to board but was pushed aside by a couple from Germany or Switzerland, seriously WTF is wrong with people, you’re not going to get there any faster. Twats.
The hill and the ride is very steep and I have to be honest I didn’t really like it 😳 Especially when it slowed right down to pull into the station at the top, I just kept imagining it falling backwards…! I swear my worry about heights is getting worse!
Anyway, it was worth the worry and the shoving. The views were amazing, if a little hazy. It was also fresh and cool and smelt of flowers and trees. So fabulous.
I saw some stunning and huge butterflies 🦋. I had a walk around and found myself at ‘Penang Habitat’ an attraction I thought was elsewhere on the hill, and had planned to visit tomorrow.
It’s basically a beautiful rainforest experience. A walk through the forest and the canopy. This was a much more authentic and enjoyable experience than the Eco Park in Kuala Lumpur.
I figured as I was here I might as well do it.
It was absolutely stunning. So incredibly beautiful and peaceful. I saw more butterflies, a few monkeys, and a rather confused bat. 🦇
Once you Finish the walk you have the option of walking back to where you started approx 2k or there is a free buggy ride. I opted for the free ride. 😄 The not walking much plan seems to have gone slightly awry!
The buggy is on a first come first served basis. I know this was going to be challenging from the get go.
The first buggy arrived and it was a bit of a free for all, but a guide from ‘Habitat’ was there and organised people a little. We waited for the next buggy to arrive, which it did after about 10 mins, which was fine, it was a lovely place to sit. There were at least 7 of us who had been waiting, but when the buggy arrived a new group of 5 just jumped on. Well, by now I’m hot, I need a cold drink and probably some sugar! So I was like, Hello! No! You have to get off there is a queue and you’re at the back of it! They stared at me, I explained again that they had to get off and wait their turn. Eventually they got off, one older man very reluctantly and giving me evils! But to be honest I’m a little fed up with it! I’ve spoken about this in previous blogs, I always try to be polite, move out of the way, allow people ahead of me etcetera, but I’m done.
I’ve been pushed, shoved, elbowed and in KL a big guy walking down the street whacked me in the stomach and didn’t even apologise! So that’s it, no more Ms Nice Claire! 😡😂😂
I’m now back at the hotel, sitting writing this on the rooftop with a beer and some crisps! Happiness and order are restored. 😍❤️
No new books yet.
Again, any recommendations on the book front are gratefully received.
🩷💚🩵💙
Hereandthereclaire.com 