Penang, Malaysia - A Foodie Paradise

Awesome Street Art in Georgetown

If you look at any Penang blog, almost every page you'll find is related to food. The tiny island on the Northwest of Malaysia is world famous for its unique, delicious cuisine. Being the foodies we are, Penang was always near the top of the wish list of places to visit during our time in Asia. We spent a total of 5 nights in Georgetown, the island's capital & quickly found out the place has more to offer than food.  Georgetown is filled with beautiful, old colonial buildings and retains a lovely small town charm. The hostel we stayed at in Little India is actually one of Georgetown's many 'heritage houses' - well preserved homes which display unique architectural styles brought about by the multicultural society who took up residence here. The quaint streets are flanked by these colonial houses, Malay mosques, Hindu and Chinese temples & awesome street art! The city is simply a joy to wander around & we now know why it's dubbed 'The Pearl Of The Orient'.

Such a Fun Night at Red Garden with Jenny!

Hilarious Lady Boy Show!

Our first night in Penang was very memorable. We met Jenny, the nicest cab driver upon arrival and she invited us out that night to join her and her family for dinner, drinks & entertainment at one of Penang's most well known night markets - Red Garden. It turns out Jenny is kind of a big deal in Georgetown, so we were given VIP treatment all night and she seemed to know everyone! We had way too many beers, dish after dish of incredible Penang hawker street food & really enjoyed the raunchy lady boy show even though we didn't understand most of it! Jenny introduced us to all kinds of friends including the owner of the extremely successful Red Garden market, nearly every waitress stopped by to gulp down Carlsberg with us, and I even got to talk to the star of the night - the lady boy after her(his) gig. It was then that something unexpected happened. She grabbed my hand and pressed it against her breast. Jenny's old Chinese father who hadn't spoken a word of English all night then said to me - "Apples or Oranges?" Seriously, that is the hardest I'd laughed in a long time! A great night out & a great introduction to Penang - thanks Jenny!

On Top of Penang Hill Overlooking Georgetown With Some Monkeys!

Monkey Beach at Penang National Park

During our time on the island, we climbed the exhaustively steep Penang Hill & pissed off a ballistic monkey at the peak who jumped off a roof & sprinted straight at us! He chased us for a good 30 yards before finally stopping after I screamed at him!! We enjoyed a leisurely evening watching the sun set over Georgetown & the sprawling Malaysian mainland in the distance. One day we went to Penang National Park & hiked through the jungle to deserted Monkey Beach. We looked down at the jungle on the canopy walk, refreshingly took a dip in the natural pools & lounged on the beach for hours. We learned about Penang's interesting history at Fort Cornwallis & strolled around the countless halls, pagodas & lakes that make up Kek Lok Si Temple.



Like I mentioned before, one of the main reasons we came to Penang was the food and it definitely didn't disappoint. It's a tough call, but overall I think I liked Malaysian food more than Thai food - call me crazy! The incredible cuisine here is a result of Penang's convenient location on the Straits of Malacca. This strait has been the main shipping channel between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, linking major Asian economies such as India, China, Japan & South Korea for centuries. The influx of exotic cultures has resulted in a uniquely Malay blend of flavor. There is very traditional Indian & Chinese food on the island but there's also one-of-a-kind dishes you'll only find in Penang. 5 days eating our way through Penang has changed my palette forever & I'll never forget the incredible flavors that make this tiny Island such a food paradise! Here are some of the highlights:

Breakfast of Choice in Penang - Roti Canai (Indian Flatbread with Spicy Curry Sauce)

Killer Chinese Food at Tek Sen Restaurant (Twice Fried Pork, Fish Head Curry and Sauteed Asparagus With Shrimp)

Incredible Indian Specialties at Jaya

Rojak (Sweet & Sour Fruit & Veggie Salad)

Keeping Cool in Penang's Heat with Refreshing Ais Tingkap (Rose, Coconut & Basil Seeds)

Hokkien Mee (Spicy Prawn & Pork Noodle Soup)

Incredible Nasi Kandar (Indian Curry Buffet) at Line Clear - Anthony Bourdain Knows Best!

Chendul (Sweet Shaved Ice Dessert with Coconut Milk, Palm Sugar, Kidney Beans & Rice Noodles)

Penang's Version of Pad Thai - Char Koay Teow (Way Better BTW)

Grilled Stingray

Penang Asam Laksa (Sour Tamarind Based Fish Soup)

Kickin' It in Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur from Above

Our schedule allowed us only one week in Malaysia, but what a fantastic week it was! We hopped on the short 2 hour Air Asia flight from Siem Reap, Cambodia to the modern, bustling capitol of Kuala Lumpur & were immediately shocked at the stark difference in culture! After our 21 days in Cambodia, we had become accustomed to the travel difficulties that come with such an undeveloped nation, not to mention the last 5 days exploring 10th century temples of Angkor. Our first taste of Malaysia was like jumping into the future! We were confronted with a plethora of modern, air-conditioned bus options for the ride from the airport to the city proper. We had arrived back in the 21st century!

Hokkien Mee Mee at Lot 10!

Kuala Lumpur - where to begin! Bright lights, clean streets, new motor vehicles! This city has grown from a sleepy Chinese village to a bustling metropolis of 6.5 million people in only 150 years! The growth & wealth is on display everywhere you look from the massive Petronas Towers to the electronic subway system to the swanky bars lining the streets. Not many 150CC Honda Dream motorbikes here. Ducati's racing around corners & high performance Bentleys cruising the streets is what we witnessed. For a little perspective our first night, we wanted to see the city from above so we headed up the 1400 feet to the top of the KL Tower. The view from here was stunning & is actually a higher (and cheaper) viewpoint than the more famous Petronas Twin Towers! Kuala Lumpur's modern city seemed to sprawl on forever in the distance. KL is a bit short on must-see attractions actually. The real charm lies in wandering around shopping & eating your way through. We ate that first night at a legendary food court in the bottom of one of the countless malls. This wasn't your run-of-the-mill food court. Lot 10 Hutong has restaurants that have survived 2nd and 3rd generations. It's considered the only heritage hawker center in Malaysia. Each of the 30 stalls has been around for over 40 years! We really felt for a second like we were back in Beijing, strolling along the narrow cobblestone Hutong streets, catching whiffs of amazing meals being stir fried all around us & gorging on authentic Chinese cuisine. Needless to say, a big reason why we came to Malaysia was the food!

Glorious Batu Caves

Pesky Lil Fellas

We hopped on a subway the following morning for a visit to the Batu Caves. Located 8 miles north of KL, this limestone hill has a series of cave temples that are some of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India! We eeked our way past 140 foot golden statue of the Hindu God Murugan (largest in the world BTW) the and up the 272 steps surrounded by curious, aggressive macaque monkeys & fruit bats squeaking above. Quite an experience! Once inside the massive, dark caverns we watched local people getting blessed at the colorful temples & it was really our first taste of practicing Hinduism. So different than the Buddhism of Thailand - that's for sure! That evening, we went to KL's main attraction & landmark - the Petronas Twin Towers. The tallest building in the world from 1998-2004 until eclipsed by Taipei 101, they are still the tallest twin towers in the world today. The buildings themselves are so impressive. They dominate the skyline especially lit up at night & serve as a symbol of the nations soaring success. The mall inside the buildings is almost as impressive as the gorgeous outside. We watched Gravity in a state of the art IMAX theater which was so sweet!

KL's Main Attraction

Malaysia has an extremely diverse environment. The influence of a variety of cultures is obvious. Everything from the people to the architecture to the food is a fascinating blend of Malay, Chinese, Indian, Persian & European. It was a bit strange for us to be confronted by a variety of people who looked like they could be from China or India, yet they were locals. The countries in mainland Southeast Asia don't have nearly the diversity that Malaysia does. Islam is the national religion so we saw our fair share of women covered head to toe in black burkas. They even had segregated train carriages only for females. We had a delicious lunch of indian fish-head curry & proceeded to one of the coolest museums I've ever been to - The Islamic Arts Museum. This ornate, lavish 4 story building houses an impressive collection of priceless Islamic artifacts from ancient texts of the Qaran to weaponry & current pilgramiges to Mecca. I didn't know much about Islam, so it was very interesting for me to learn about it's history & principles. Particularly awesome was the room filled with scaled models of mosques from all over the world.

No Guys Allowed

So Many Mosques!

We strolled through Chinatown checking out a beautiful Sri Mahamariamma Hindu Temple which happens to be KL's oldest & richest. We learned about the history & culture of KL at the Kuala Lumpur City Gallery. That evening, we checked out Jalan Alor which is totally street food paradise. Such an overwhelming array of local delicacies on offer, but we opted for a delicious claypot chicken rice. After 3 fun days in KL, we were ready for the 4 hour bus ride to our next destination - the Island of Penang!

Killer Claypot Chicken Rice!

Daily Prayer at the Hindu Temple