Penang- Pearl of the Orient (and darling of the Malaysian hipster-verse)

The island of Penang sits just north of the Malacca Straits and, like any strategically important place, has seen more than its fair share of foreign invaders, settlers, traders and travelers. The English claimed formal possession of the island in 1786 and promptly went about creating a trading centre to rival that of Dutch Batavia (present day Jakarta). And while Penang's importance declined with the foundation of Singapore, the island has remained one of the most economically important states of Malaysia today.

Georgetown, the island's capital, reflects the various foreign influences in its inhabitants, architecture and (most appealingly) its food. In Little India you can find Bollywood flicks at Lakshmi Video, browse saris in a bewildering range of colours and munch on dahl, paneer and Galun Jamun to your hearts content.

 

Chinese temples and beautiful old shop-houses in varying states of decay are a constant reminder of Chinese dominance in trade and the local economy. 

This dominance (Chinese are estimated to control 90% of the Malaysian economy) combined with poverty among rural ethnic Malay and an unsuccessful policy of government positive discrimination has been the source of inter-ethnic tensions for decades. Not that you'd ever know it- the steamy streets of Georgetown seem remarkably harmonious.

While there are lots of reasons to love Georgetown, it was the appearance of dozens of tragically hip cafes serving Illy and Lavazza that sealed the deal for us. After spending more than half a year in the caffeine wilderness of Russia, China and South-East Asia we were overjoyed to find proper coffee...even if it did mean blowing large percentages of our daily budget on the luxury. 

After hitting the Sang Som we'd brought from Thailand one night we woke with raging hangovers and decided to go out for breakfast. We had two coffees each (macchiato- oh joy!!), juice and some kick-ass, fancy pants egg-based brekkies....the bill came to a jaw-dropping AUD$30, almost half our daily budget, but it was worth it. A rough comparison would be dropping AUD$120 on eggs and bacon back home. Where are young Malays are getting the money to fund their forays into the hipster-verse??? 

 

After spending a few days wandering the backstreets of Georgetown we rented a moped and drove to the Kek Lok Si Buddhist Temple just outside the city. 

Kek Lok Si is supposedly the biggest temple in SE Asia and won points from us for the liberal planting of grass, trees and flowering shrubs (instead of the concrete-fest that usually dominates temples in Asia). We also visited the Botanic Gardens where we somehow failed to find the waterfall that forms the centre piece of the park. It seems that even after successfully navigating our way around foreign cities for the last two years, a well planned out and thoughtfully signposted garden can still defeat us.