Butterworth to Penang, Malaysia.

Monday 7th December 2009:

A pleasant 5am start. Caught the 6.27am to Butterworth, brilliant name for a place. Izzy and I decided that we'd have to visit Butterworth purely for its name value. Having consulted the Lonely Planet Guide, we were informed that the only reason to go to Butterworth is in order to go through it to get the ferry to Penang. Rubbish. And how correct the guide was- bit of a shit hole. Sorry but it was! Also the hottest day ever to be ferrying a backpack around. Mmm sweaty. Also, Malaysia seems to have a serious ATM-deficiency. Not so convenient when we needed money in order to catch the ferry over to Penang. Luckily we had a few Thai Bahts between us and we just exchanged them for some Malay Ringets.

So finally in Penang, we got ourselves over to a hostel, still no sign of an ATM, could be a bit tricky to pay for anything at this rate. Anyway we were lucky that the guesthouse we were staying at let us into our room before we found ourselves some money! We went for a walk, searching in vain for a bank. Finally came across one, obviously relieved, and then our cards got rejected! Oh dear. Now the best thing to do is just look for another bank, but this was the dilemma- there didn't seem to be any more! We thought our UK banks had stopped our cards, time was ticking and we had no money for food, drink or accommodation. Ah. I think it's safe to say that the panic was setting in just a tad. We walked for a few miles and eventually came across a different bank. But would we get any money this time? Luck strikes. Funny how safe you suddenly feel with a bit of money in your pocket. So it was time for dinner by this point, and then back to the guesthouse to pay for the room. It was a long day to say the least. I look forward to a sleep tonight before we explore Georgetown, Penang.

We got up on Tuesday refreshed and ready to go. Roof-top breakfast- very nice. But a very intense sort of heat over here, going to need lots of water! Georgetown is great, really interesting architecture; the colonial influence is evident everywhere, and it's great to see the contrast between the old and the newer buildings. I really like how they've kept the old buildings, obviously to their advantage- great for tourism.

We visited the Penang Museum, I learned that Frances Light founded Georgetown, made some deal with the locals to gain ownership- you know how it works. Ha ha I didn't pay that much attention I'm afraid. Interesting history though: Penang was built upon the communities of the Chinese, Indian and Malay people ('Orang'= people in Malay), each community carrying out its particular function to keep industry moving. I love that these people still exert their influence upon the city and coexist peacefully in the same area, creating their own specialist areas where their tastes and traditions dominate. Had a stroll through Little India, great atmosphere; would be brilliant to visit India one day, so much to see, stalls, shops, homes, people all crowded around one area. I love experiencing different cultures, so interesting to see how people live in their own communities where they are comfortable to simply be themselves. The picture to the right is clearly not Little India, that was Chinatown. Bit of clarification to those of you not paying attention to the minor details.

We carried on our walk to the Town Hall, again a beautiful site and reminder of Georgetown's colonial past. Then over to Fort Cornwallis, not a great deal to see, so Izzy and I decided to climb some of the canons instead. Got to make it worth the price of the ticket after all. Ha. Immaturity strikes. Despite the heat, there is a phenomenal amount of greenery in Malaysia; a beautiful park surrounds the fort and overlooks the harbour. Stunning scenery. Really glad we decided to travel down through Malaysia, always good to catch a bit of something new!