Myanmar (Burma) — Penang, Malaysia

I do like Penang, Malaysia

March 2015

It was good to be back in Penang.

It was a short flight from Senai International Airport (JHB), Johor Bahru, to Penang — 1 hour and 10 minutes.

I had forgotten that Penang International Airport (PEN) had a WH Smiths store (newsagents from the UK). It always struck me as odd to be so far from the UK and see a WH Smiths. I think it was the only one in Malaysia. And I can’t recall seeing one in another airport outside the UK.

One thing I always liked about Malaysian airports was the taxi counter where you get a coupon for your trip. It made things so much easier. The taxi coupon counter at Penang Airport was outside the main airport near the taxis. Usually, the counters are inside the terminal.

The road from Penang airport was crazy. There were motorbikes and cars everywhere.

Eastin Hotel, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

When visiting Penang, I usually stay in the historic centre, George Town, as it is an excellent location for food and exploring. But on this trip, I was at the Eastin Hotel on the road to the airport.

I saw many bars, and a large shopping mall called the Queensbay Mall as we drove in. There didn’t seem to be much else around, and I stayed for three nights. It was a nice hotel in an odd location.

The hotel was too far from the centre of George Town to be a tourist hotel. It was too far from the airport to be an airport hotel, and nothing was interesting nearby. But, they must have been doing something right, as the hotel was very busy.

The room was very pleasant and functional. The shower was slightly eccentric as it sprayed water randomly around the cubicle. The staff were helpful (the TV in my room wasn’t working when I arrived, and they had it fixed in no time), and the breakfast was excellent. The hotel also had pretty good Wi-Fi in the room; not the fastest, but it worked. The room also had a ‘hardwire’ to the network, which was quicker than the Wi-Fi.

And that is a top travel tip — always carry an Ethernet cable. I have stayed in many hotels where the Wi-Fi has been terrible or expensive, and the Ethernet port in the room has been open, free, and fast.

The breakfast at the Eastin Hotel had a stunning choice of foods with something for everyone — an exceptional breakfast. The above photo shows my Nasi Lemak, Bao bun, and dim sum combo. Lovely.

My room was at the front of the Eastin. The room had a lovely view of the main road up to George Town, and even though the road was very close, I could hardly hear it in my room.

Croissant — can they offend?

I don’t know where I got this idea, but I thought the humble croissant might offend Muslim countries.

I thought this was because traditionally, unlike the ones above I photographed in Malaysia, they are crescent-shaped.

I remember reading somewhere that the Croissant symbolised the victory of a Christian army over a Muslim army in Europe. And the most likely place for the victory was France, where croissants are a national food. According to Wikipedia, I was wrong and had fallen for an urban myth.

I won’t repeat the Wikipedia material on croissants other than to say that croissants may not be as French as I thought. Croissants seem to have ‘evolved' from many different types of bread and pastries around Europe — mainly from Germany and Austria. The style of bread appears to date back to the 13th century. The croissant was invented in 1838/9 in a Viennese bakery in Paris. The story of the origin of the crescent shape of the croissant, celebrating the defeat of the Umayyad forces at the Battle of Tours by the Franks in 732, is wrong.

So, there you go. It is OK to continue eating croissants in Malaysia and Muslim countries without offending.

Queensbay Mall, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

Near the Eastin Hotel was the Queensbay Mall, and it was a typically large Malaysian shopping mall with a mixture of shops, a supermarket, a cinema, and lots of places to eat.

During my stay at the Eastin Hotel, I ate at two restaurants in the Queensbay Mall — The Taiwan Courtyard (小台阁) and the Nippon Yataimura (日本屋合村).

The Taiwan Courtyard (小台阁) in the Queensberry Mall

At the Taiwan Courtyard (小台阁) in the Queensberry Mall, I had a very nice beef with ginger and spring onions.

My meal came with what appeared to be 'wire clippings’. They reminded me of the bits of wire you clip off an electrical flex when wiring a plug. But, like the rest of the meal, they were delicious and didn't taste of plastic or metal.

The staff asked if I would like a knife and fork because there were only chopsticks on the table. I can cope with chopsticks (just), but they were nice to ask, as it doesn't happen as often as you would expect.

Overall, an excellent meal.

Dinner at Nippon Yataimura (日本屋合村), Queensbay Mall, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

I also ate at the Nippon Yataimura (日本屋合村) in the Queensbay Mall, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia. And it was good.

One slightly odd thing was a few people seemed amused and intrigued to see me in there, and one customer kept smiling at me, especially after I ordered the hot Japanese tea.

Again, another splendid meal.

Queensbay Seaside, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

Just down the road from the Queensbay Mall is the Queensbay Seaside. The seaside was an interesting area that consisted of a strip of land along the coast with a walkway and a cycle track. There was no beach, no sand, only some small mud flats.

The area did seem very popular. When I was there, I saw many people fishing and walking around, enjoying the cool evening breeze.

The cycle track along the seaside.

View towards Penang Bridge. You can see both bridges from the Malaysian peninsula to Penang.

Photo by Author — Queensbay Seaside, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

There certainly seemed to be an obsession with taking selfies along the beach.

Also, there was a lot of fishing going on.

Penang seagulls!

One thing I like about Penang is their ingenious use of motorbikes. Here we have a hot food vendor.

And now for something cold. An ice-cream seller on a motorbike.

It was a pleasant stroll along the ‘seaside’.

Time for a beer.

Berlin's Bier Houz, Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia

The Berlin's Bier Houz was around the corner from the Eastin Hotel.

Nothing spectacular, a standard German theme bar selling overpriced (not their fault; it is the Malaysian tax system) beer — RM30 (£6; US$9) for 500 ml (almost a pint), and bar snacks.

I stayed for one beer.

Possibly, the most forced acronym ever — Subterranean Penang International Convention & Exhibition Centre (SPICE)

Is the Subterranean Penang International Convention & Exhibition Centre (SPICE) the most forced acronym ever? For a start, the building is not underground. It is not subterranean. Second, what about the Centre in the name? Wouldn't that make it SPICEC?

The place was called PISA — Penang International Sports Arena — which worked as a name and as an acronym, but SPICE?

Clearly, the marketing guys got their hands on this one. They liked the word SPICE and then tried to get something to fit.

And as can be seen. It isn’t subterranean.

(And no, that is not some strange car, I had to use panorama mode to capture the non-subterranean SPICE).