Well arrived in Penang safe and well and what a delightful place Georgetown is.
There is some real old world charm here. Populated by Malay,Chinese, and a few Thai and Indians it was once a popular entry point between Asia and the European markets way back when the spice trade was prolific.
Im staying at a backpackers called the Hutton Inn and surprised at the quality of the digs here. Nice and clean with aircond and bunk beds. Out on the streets JLN Citrin is the thrive of activity here. Motorbikes , sporty looking cars complete with neon flashing lights and old men pushing rickshaws to make a living off of the Farangs like me.
First night I sat out almost on the street at a lively cafe/bar and spent the evening eating and drinking. The food in Penang is supposed to be the best in Malaysia. I had a chicken rice is a very popular dish with black pepper which all went down well with a few beers..There was an old man nearby with his rickshaw and as I watched the night go by he didn’t get one lift. I saw heaps of other drivers doing well but he just did'nt seem to be in right spot at the right time.
Anyway I got talking to him and turns out he had been doing this work for 47 odd years. He looked like he was in his sixties or older. He said work was'nt so good compared to 30 years ago when rickshaws were used a lot more extensively. When I decided to head for the hostel I got him to give me a lift.
The usual how much he wanted to take me to my hostel which was about 600 metres away and he wanted 10 ringgit. This is about $3.50 au. It might not seem much but it was quite expensive in Malay terms. Best not encourage a bad trend so I offered him 6 ringgit which he immediately accepted, and truth be know I still think this was to much.
Next day I teemed up with an American 'Josh' who was from Florida and staying at the dorm with me. First stop was the Khoo Kongsi which is a Chinese clan house. (Kongsi = Clan) which is partly a temple and partly meeting hall for Chinese of the same clan or surname. The architecture of the temple was pretty amazing as was the history- See the pics.
As this Friday was a public holiday a lot of normal sights were closed. We wandered over to an old fort. Fort Cornwallis which is not much to look at really. A few old cannons on the walls, a ammo dump and apparently the site where the city's founder Captain Francis Light first landed in 1786.
That night I went with Josh back to the same cafe as the night before. Sure enough there's the old man on the rickshaw. Again we watched him during the night laying on his back watching the world go by.
I joked that I think he must be retired and that the initial fee he asked for the night before was to deter me from having to lug me around the streets.
Next day I left for my next stop, Krabi Thailand.
