Malaysia, Penang (Clan Jetty)

The Clan Jetty of Penang is a walking distance to the Heritage Area of Georgetown. As it falls on a Sunday that day, the jetty was extremely crowded with tourists and local holiday-makers. The residents, on the other hand, could be seen making full use of this opportunity to set up stalls, mostly selling souvenirs, in front of their homes. 

The Clan Jetties have been around in Penang since the late 19th century. There are presently 6 jetties in total and each belonged to a particular clan. This means that the residents living in the jetty all have the same surnames.

In the past, the clans living in the nearby jetties could be antagonistic towards one another as rivalries over work consignments often occurred.

Walking along the planks, I came across a nicely kempt 'corridor', with potted plants on the side. I was amazed at the level of cleanliness here because the water below did not look like it was clean enough for anyone to take a dip. Notice the fire extinguisher? It's really important to have this because fire is quite prone in the area.

To someone who doesn't live near the sea, this was definitely a rare sight for me. Imagine waking up in the morning, looking out of the window and watching the sunrise... pure bliss...

All the houses here are on wooden stilts. I also noticed that some houses have air-conditioners. It's really amazing how modernity and economic progress has positively affected the lives of the people here. 

If you read the history of the clan jetties, these areas could be referred to as slums in the past because these are actual settlements of the poor immigrants who came to Malaya. The immigrants ended up building houses over the sea and lived in very unhealthy and dense conditions because they had no money to buy lands.

Many boats can be seen along the jetties. I guess many who live here continue to make a living as fishermen.

Look at these nets and cages! They are in various shapes and sizes, for they have different purposes. Well, that's all for now. 

Malaysia, Penang (George Town)

Yay!!! It has been a long time since I last update, but I'm back with more adventures.

I went to Penang last June for a short trip. There were quite a number of places that I really wanted to go to but there was just not enough time. Even then, I did enjoy my trip tremendously and this is one trip which I want to do all over again.

This was my mode of transport in Penang: the Hop on hop off bus. There are two routes available - the City tour and the Beach tour. I took both routes during my short stay.

Overall, I find the bus comfortable and I could choose to sit in the air-conditioned area or the open-top area. Plus, the bus goes to all the attractions in Penang so it is really convenient.

I alighted at George Town to visit Penang's cultural and heritage area. Lines of beautiful shop-houses greeted me and I love how the buildings were carefully restored and maintained. Most of the shop-houses were occupied by restaurants and souvenir shops. 

There were many tourists in Georgetown as it was the weekend. 

Featured in the photo above is a town-bike, a four-seater bicycle in striking shades of red and yellow. Families can rent these town-bikes to explore George Town or they can ride a bicycle or rickshaw. It was pretty interesting but in the end, I decided to take a walk at my own leisurely pace.

  
























The Lebuh Aceh Mosque in the background is a 19th century mosque built by the Acehnese when they settled down in Penang. The mosque is historically significant as it used to serve as a place where pilgrims going to Haj congregate before they depart to Mecca by sea. 

I went for mural hunting in George Town. It was fun and I really walk a lot that day. These are some of the murals which are not that popular with tourists.

The murals make the place very interesting. At noon, the heat became quite unbearable so I decided to explore areas that have more shade. 

My next post will be on the Clan Jetty Heritage Home. Until then, stay tune!!

Malaysia, Melaka

This must be my umpteenth time in Melaka. I love going to Melaka for a short retreat because it's not too faraway from Singapore. Plus, it's a quiet town so there's no crowd or traffic. For me, the whole point of being here is to just sleep, eat, and sleep. 

I can still cover the whole heritage area of Melaka though, in just one day when I'm here. That's what I normally do when I am bored out of my minds. My starting point is always at the Independance Memorial and then I'll walk up towards the Melaka Sultanate Palace Museum.

It's good to visit the palace because this is where we could learn about the system of governance during the time when the Sultan ruled Melaka. The picture below features the King Audience Hall, also known as the 'Balairong Seri' in Malay.

Paramewara was the first Sultan of Melaka. He took up the name of Iskandar Syah later on in his life, after he converted to Islam. 

Under his rule, the nobles who reported to him were the 'Bendahara' (main royal advisor & chief justice), the 'Penghulu Bendahari' (minister for finance), the Temenggong (minister for home affairs), and the Laksmana (minister for defence/naval force). These were the prominent ones but there were others too. 

A stone throw away from the palace is the Porta de Santiago, which means a small gatehouse. It used to be part of the A' Famosa fort (The Famous Fort) built by the Portuguese, after they defeated the Melaka Sultanate army and secured Melaka as one of their important outposts along the Spice Route. The fort later on fell under the Dutch and then to the British. The British eventually destroyed the entire A' Famosa fort because they feared that the fort would be used against them. And so Porta de Santiago is the only building that remains until today. 

Making my way up the hill...

I came across a Dutch graveyard and the ruins of the St Paul Church. You can see the Straits of Melaka from here. This must be the best spot to monitor the seas during the olden times. Right next to the church is the Governor's Museum, where the Dutch used to reside and work. 

I didn't stay long here because there was nothing much. Instead, I walked down the road and came across the Literature Museum. In here, I read about Malayan poets and writers. I'm actually quite amazed that I could recognise two of the writers featured in the museum: Munshi Abdullah and A. Samad Said. I've read some of their works too before.

It appeared that I was the only one in the building at that time. There was no one at the reception counter when I walked in, so I decided to leave. The place felt abandoned and dark. Against my better judgment, I think I got spooked out.

Frankly speaking, I've been to so many museums in Melaka that I've forgotten their names. After seeing so many artefacts in one day, it was time to get out and be in the open. I knew that I could get claustrophobic if I were to stay in an enclosed area for too long.

Finally, I have reached the Christ Church, the Stadhuy and many other red buildings that could be seen here in the Red Square. The redness of the buildings was quite daunting. I really don't like the colour. They were originally painted white by the Dutch but I don't know why the British decided to repaint them red.

I took a walk along the Melaka River after that. It was a nice walk if only the sun was not too sunny. By the time I'm done with my walk, I was drenched with sweat and needed a cool bath. 

Overall, it was a good exploration for me and a nice exercise. I need to get a bite now!! Ciao.

Malaysia, along Malay Peninsula

The ship left Singapore at 5pm and is set to travel north-west along the Malay Peninsula. According to the itinerary, we will reach Redang Island, which is located in the state of Kuala Trengganu at 11am, the following morning.

Map taken from: http://www.dive-the-world.com/maps-malay-peninsula.php

So, while on the ship, I have dedicated myself in appreciating the white, fluffy clouds..

...and the beautiful sunset along the Malay Peninsula.

It was really windy on the deck as we tried to get to the ship's railing. We could have been easily swept off balance if we do not make our way carefully.

We spent quite a long time just watching the stunning sunset and the frothy sea water made by the ship. After that, we seek for other fun activities we can find on the ship. There's nothing much to do seriously other than gaming at the ship's arcade or reading my storybooks at the cabin.
 

Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur (KLCC)

I went to Kuala Lumpur for a short retreat in March. It was a last minute decision because I couldn't get the budget flight to Krabi, Thailand. They were fully booked! We then, opted for the nearest outlet - KL, for only 3 days/2 nights, to indulge ourselves.

We stayed at a studio suite at Parkroyal for the first time. Actually, there's nothing more I like to do, other than lazing around on the nice coach with a good book.

Nice cushions too.. and a big LCD TV. The fully equipped kitchen is another plus point.

We went for a walk at Bukit Bintang, which is deemed as the shopping belt of KL. I bought some books at Borders in Berjaya Time Square. It was kind of nostalgic for me because I missed the Borders at Wheelock, Singapore, which had to close down.

On the second day, we went to KLCC.

Going to KL is like going for an eating spree for me. I don't really shop but I love to eat!!

Featuring here is my soupy Wantan Noodles. It was a huge portion for me but I'm really hungry because I didn't eat lunch. This is like my lunch plus dinner at 4 pm.

The Petronas Twin Towers form a striking contrast to the night sky. 
 

Standing at 451.9m high, it took 7 years to build this magnificent structure! We didn't go up the skybridge though because we need to queue and it's a long wait before it was our turn to go up. The Petronas is still the tallest twin skyscrapers in the world while the record for the tallest building goes to the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. 

In this age, every country seems to want to build their tallest structure. It is said that the India Tower is going to be the next 2nd tallest building in the world when it is completed in 2016. South Korea is building its tallest skyscraper, Lotte World Tower by 2015. The US is also building its One World Trade Centre by 2013.