The story so far… Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4

After a short break in our room and some coffee to fortify ourselves at the Planters Lounge, we left for Batu Ferringhi for some shopping. I had read the night market opens around 7 pm, but we were eager and left the hotel slightly after 4 pm which in hindsight was a mistake. The drive from the hotel to the Batu Ferringhi night market stretch was around 30 minutes and we got there well before 5! We parked at the basement of the Eden Parade, a smallish, slightly run-down mall.

A ‘Ship’ restaurant on the Batu Ferringhi strip

Batu Ferringhi is one of Penang’s most popular places, a nice long stretch of soft, white sandy beach along a winding road named Jalan Batu Feringghi, filled with a host of accommodation and dining options. Its night market is quite legendary, while its waters are popular spots for a range of water sports activities such as parasailing and windsurfing. The road which is called Jalan Batu Feringghi comes alive every night as vendors set up stalls along this stretch offering everything from fake designer bags and inexpensive pirated DVDs, to handmade local souvenirs and local artwork. One of Penang Island’s most noteworthy attractions, it is a not-to-be-missed feature not only for its sheer size (spanning all the way from Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort all the way down to Hard Rock Hotel and beyond), but also its cool, electrifying atmosphere. I would not say the prices are cheap, but if you are a good bargainer, then you may score a good deal. Don’t buy from the first stall you see an item, walk along and see others and if you feel a particular stall gives you the best deal, go back there. I’d say start at half the price quoted and work your way up. The market opens around 7 pm and goes on till late in the night.

Since we were early, we decided to do some foot reflexology at a Thai foot reflexology place opposite the Shangri-La. We paid RM 35 per person for 30 minutes and everyone with the exception of my helper R did it. It was not the best I’ve had, but was not too bad. While doing the massage, S suddenly remembered some Coconut Oil he had to purchase for a colleague. This was apparently only found in one place in Penang and this was some 20 minutes out of Batu Ferringhi. We went back and forth about going there, but since it was almost 6 pm then, decided against it as by the time we drove there, the place would have closed.

Around 6, we started walking the Batu Ferringhi Night Market Stretch. We walked the whole stretch till after the Hard Rock Café Hotel and it was only when we completed the walk and started turning back, we saw some stalls starting to open. We walked our way back, stopping to see stalls which were interesting and buying a few things. Then hungry, we decided to go an Indian & Arabic restaurant called Maroush which had caught S’ eye earlier on. The food was not too bad, but I found it to be more expensive than Georgetown and the portions smaller. This was the second most expensive of all our meals in Penang.

If you are staying in Georgetown, or even if you stay in Batu Ferringhi, before you hit the Night Market, take a stroll along the Komtar and Prangin malls. You may be surprised to see the same items going cheaper than Batu Ferringhi. For example we saw some canvas bags in the night market selling around RM 12 per piece, which was being sold in Prangin for RM 5. Another example was miniature planes (commercial airlines) which BB loves. We brought one from Batu Ferringhi at RM 28 (the stall was a fixed price one and didn’t allow me to bargain) while in Prangin I saw it for RM 20 in one shop and RM 19 in another, both on the same floor! So don’t make the mistake we did and see what available first before buying at Batu Ferringhi. Personally I found Batu Ferringhi very touristy and so more expensive compared to other places in Penang. It’s nice for the atmosphere and some cheap buys (we brought 6 DVDs for RM 20 which was a steal, but not sure of the quality).

We got back around 9 to the hotel and were fairly exhausted. Surprisingly the place where we had parked the car did not charge us for the parking at all! We must have parked there for more than three hours, but we paid zilch! So this was our cheapest car park payment in Penang…The next day was the last full day in Penang and we had planned a day of shopping.

• Part 1: The Planning and the Preparations
• Part 2: The Hotel                                                                                                         
• Part 3: Kek Lok Si Temple and Penang Hill                                                               
• Part 4: Armenian Street Art, Penang 3D Trick Art Museum and Penang Peranakan Mansion

The story so far… Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3

Day two started with a hearty and yummy breakfast at the Sarkies restaurant in the hotel. Once done, we started to plan the day. Since most of the attractions didn’t open till around 10ish, we went back to the room before heading out to the Blue Mansion. This was a 5 minute walk from our hotel and the books said it opened at 9 am. We reached there around 9:30, but found it closed. The guard explained that they only opened for the tours and the first one of the day was scheduled at 11 am which meant the mansion opened at 10:45 for tickets. We were disappointed but walked back to the hotel to get the car and get on with our day’s agenda, planning to come back here. Later in the day, I read up more about the Blue Mansion and found that it was actually a boutique hotel and that only guests had the run to the place. Others could only enter at the designated tour times of 11 am, 2 pm and 3:30 pm. The tour takes 45 minutes to complete and I read that photography was prohibited. After reading this, we ultimately decided to skip this.

An example of Street Art in Armenian Street

Our next stop was the Street Art at Armenian Street. Penang is famous for its street art which the city commissioned Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic to paint in and around Armenian Street in Georgetown. We saw around 4-5 of these, though I suspect some are not really painted by him. I think some have been painted by random people while some outside shops may have been commissioned by the shop owners to get into the action. Some of the famous ones had queues waiting to take photos with even around 10 am, so I think it will get a lot crowded as the day goes by. We also saw some iron structures across Georgetown which were commissioned by the Georgetown Tourism Board and are a fun and pictorial way to learn about the city’s history. While we were there, we saw only some, though I heard there are 52 of these across the city. Some are super cute and photoworthy! All hotels will have maps to show you where the Street Art is available and there are some tours also which take you around as I saw some tour groups when we were there.

Iron Structures commissioned by Penang Tourism Board dotted across Georgetown

After the street art, we decided to go next to the Penang 3D Trick Art Museum at Lebuh Penang. This was a short 3 minute drive from Armenian Street, but we spent more than 15 minutes trying to find parking space. The streets of Georgetown do not have much space for parking and everywhere we went, we found no space. We finally found space at the Union Street Carpark and paid around RM 4 for a couple of hours. We paid RM 25 for adults and RM 15 for the children as ticket prices at the 3D Trick Art Museum. This was the only place which offered the children’s rate for BB & GG even though we told them they were 12 years old.

One of the exhibits at the 3D Museum

The Museum features two dimensional exhibits with themes of ‘All about Penang Life’ and ‘Modern Classic’ as well as art exhibits with three-dimensional sculptures. There are around 30 odd artworks of optical illusion paintings and sculptures. Every artwork has a sticker on the floor to stand to capture the best shot. The staff is young and super friendly and always offer to help you take good pictures with both your camera as well as their own which they try to sell to you at the end. If you refuse, they leave it with a smile, so I liked that. I dislike pushy sales staff! At the end they also have a small souvenir shop with some tee shirts and other typical touristy things for sale. We enjoyed the place a lot, taking loads of pictures. I am guessing some of the pictures are fairly new as they didn’t seem to be the same as what you can see in blogs. It was interesting and my favourite was the room where when two people stand you have one towering over the other! We spent around an hour there before moving on to our next destination which was a short 5 minute walk away.

The entrance courtyard at the Peranakan Mansion

The Penang Peranakan Mansion was our last stop that morning. We reached there around 11:30ish and paid RM 20 per person. Children below six get in free. They also offer tours if you have five people or more and since we were five of us plus another lady waiting, we got the standard tour which took one hour and then we were free to wander around and take photographs. The ticket price includes the Straits Chinese Jewelry Museum which is located behind the mansion and is in the same compound.

The meeting room at the Peranakan Mansion

The Peranakans, also known as Babas (men) and Nyonyas (women), are unique to Southeast Asia and are descendants of Chinese immigrants who settled down in what was called the Straits Settlements (Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia, especially Penang and Malacca) between the 15th and 17th centuries. They married local Malay women and their culture and lifestyle is a mixture of Chinese and Malay customs and habits. While Peranakan mostly means the mixture of Chinese and Malay, you also have smaller Pernanakan communities like the Indian Peranakan called Chitty, the Arab Pernakan called Jawi and Eurasian Peranakan called Kristang. The community is very fascinating and material for a separate blog post.

The master bedroom at the Peranakan Mansion

The Penang Peranakan Mansion, is a typical home of a rich Baba of a century ago, recreated to offer a glimpse of their opulent lifestyle and of their many customs and traditions. There are over 1,000 pieces of antiques and collectibles of the era on display in a heritage mansion of eclectic design and architecture. Built at the end of the 19th century by one of local history’s famous personalities, the ‘Hai Kee Chan’ or Sea Remembrance Store had once served as the residence and office of Kapitan Cina Chung Keng Kwee. Though not a Baba himself, his Chinese courtyard house was much like a typical large Baba home of eclectic style, incorporating Chinese carved-wood panels and English floor tiles and Scottish ironworks. Kapitan Cina or Chung Keng Kwee was the richest man in Penang at that time, a merchant who arrived from China and who wed a local woman, thus starting his Peranakan dynasty. The house has been lovingly restored and the guides there are quite passionate about the history of the house.

A diaroma of what the family goldsmith’s workshop would have looked like

The Straits Chinese Jewelry Museum is a part of the Peranakan Mansion and there are real exquisite pieces on display which marry Chinese, Malay and Indo-European form, design and motif. The pieces do not belong to the Chung family, but also contain pieces contributed by the various Penang Peranakan families. Pieces displayed include stunning headdresses, earrings, bangles and cuffs and the other ornaments used by a Nyonya woman made out of diamonds, rubies, sapphires, pearls, jade and other precious and semi-precious stones. We also saw beautiful beadwork which is a Peranakan specialty, especially made in the form of shoes and bags. The exhibits will gladden any woman’s heart. I took photos here also though the mirrors at the back of each exhibit plus the glare from the spotlights made photo taking a tad difficult. I did hear photography was not encouraged in this part of the mansion, but neither our guide nor the guards at the jewelry museum forbade us from taking photos.

By the time we finished the Peranakan Mansion, we were famished and so we headed to the Woodlands again for our meal. The hotel was less than five minutes from the mansion and so after a scrumptious meal, we returned back to the hotel for some rest before we went to Batu Ferringhi in the afternoon.

Part 1: The Planning and the Preparations                                                                         Part 2: The Hotel                                                                                                                Part 3: Kek Lok Si Temple and Penang Hill