Is it Penang or Pinang. I am not sure and I don't think the city knows either as it both spellings are all over the place. I have been here since tuesday and I have really liked the town. I am staying in chinatown right in the middle of everything. Little India is just at the end of our street and it is great. The food has been amazing here. We found a bakery a few doors down where they sell the most amazing bread and do great beans on toast. So we have been going there ever morning. Kapitans in Little India does the best tandori chicken and we feasted there tonight.
Lots has happened in Penang. We got taken to a chinese opera out in a village on the edge of town by a volunteer we meet at the buddhist centre on Love lane (great name). It was a very surreal night. We arrived before the show had started and meet the actors and Es was half forced to try on some of the costume. After some staged photos with a dude in a scary beard we watched some of the show. It was great. Loud, clourful and didn't understand any of it. We didn't stay to watch all of it as we wanted to go to little India to see the beginning of the celebrations for the festival of light. It was less of a frestival and more a beauty contest. Before we got to little India out guide for the night took us to see some local singing. It was an outdoor stage surrounded by old men dancing like little girls to women singing in costumes taken from 80s hookers. Funny does not cover it.
The next day (have no idea what day as they all blur into one) we went to a big temple on the outside of town. This is where my camera fell down a loo. Boo hooo. It was buggered and has now been replaced. The temple was not that spectacular as it turns out as it was covered in scafolding. The stressful event of pulling my camera out of loo was enough for one day.
