Food Time - George Town, Malaysia

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My next destination was again another four hour bus ride to Butterworth where I would transfer onto the public ferry bound for Georgetown - the capitol of Penang. Penang is an island just off the west coast of Malaysia and was a former British Colony,stronghold, and fort. Seems the Brits have former colonies everywhere I travel. And people say the USA is imperialist. I digress. So on Penang I only had one thing in mind - food. The Penang cuisine is renowned worldwide as one of the best. This is again due to the many influences at play (Indian, Chinese, Malay). Seems strange to come to a place just to eat, but it is what it is. I found a cheap hostel and set out walking around the former colony.

I again found myself right in the middle of Chinatown. It was strange to see buildings that had obvious British influence and construction covered in Chinese signs and buddhist offerings. I did make it to a museum as well that explained the history of Penang and had some really interesting old photographs. As night descended I hit the hawker stalls and had fantastic curries, noodles, and chili dishes.

My favorite dish in Penang was Laksa. Laksa is a fish stock based soup flavoured with tamarind which gives it a distinct sour kick to compliment the fiery chilies. Throw in some thick white noodles and some vegetables and you have a dish unique to Penang.

Not a whole lot going on in Georgetown. My one shining accomplishment was securing a visa to enter Thailand. Now if you travel overland into Thailand you get a free 15-day visa. This is not going to be enough for me and I did not want to have to worry about doing so called "visa border runs" while I was in the country. So I paid $RM110 (about $37USD) and surprisingly easy received a 90-Day tourist visa from the Thai embassy in Georgetown. I don't plan to stay 90 days, but at least now I am sorted for my trip north to Thailand.

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Photos

pigs
You just don't see this type of thing whilst walking down the street in Denver.

opium
Ahhhh, the good old days in Penang. Before the British came and ruined everything with their rules and regulations.

cendol
Cendol!!