Our next stop in Malaysia was Penang Island, where the capital city of Georgetown is located. We had read amazing things about the city’s food, culture, and history while researching where to go in Malaysia. Georgetown is the second largest city in Malaysia and an interesting melting pot of many different cultures. We stayed in the Pulau Tikus neighborhood of Georgetown near bustling Gurney Drive in a small guesthouse on Bangkok Lane that was in a converted two-story heritage home. We stayed upstairs in a large room with hardwood floors. The upstairs outdoor balcony space was converted into a large private bathroom attached to our room. I loved the character and location of our accommodation. It was a walkable area and Grab rides around town were very inexpensive as well.
Our first stop after dropping our luggage off was to head to the Evergreen Vegetarian House restaurant, which was just a block from our guesthouse. The restaurant had a large buffet with over 40 dishes of various curries, noodles, dumplings, sauteed vegetables, and mock meats. They also had a soup bar and a case of steam buns with fillings such as lotus, red bean, and mushrooms. We piled our plates with food and then took them to the cash register where a lady eyeballed everything and gave us a price. I am not sure how the price was calculated exactly but we had two large plates of food with many different dishes and drinks for about 20 RM for both of us (4 RM equals about $1 USD). The food was very tasty and it looked like a popular spot with locals which is usually a good sign.
We also visited a few interesting temples that were conveniently within a few blocks of our guesthouse. The Dhammikarama Temple is a beautiful Burmese temple that was built in 1803 and is the oldest Buddhist temple on Penang Island.
There is an active monastery on-site at Dhammikarama. There is also a wishing pool where you can toss coins toward rotating bowls labeled with things such as “good health,” “happy marriage,” etc. I tossed a coin that went into the good health bowl on the first try. There is also a statue of two two Panca Rupa (guardian protectors of the world) standing over a globe. These mystical creatures are said to be the masters of water, land, and air.
Just across the street is the Wat Chayamangkalaram, which is well known for its large reclining Buddha statue. This temple was built by the Thai Buddhist community around 1845. It has a distinctive Thai-style gold stupa and inside the temple behind the reclining Buddha there are walls lined with urns containing ashes of deceased devotees. A photo and short biography of each person is on display beside their urn. Buddhists are usually in the temples to pray and give offerings but all are welcome to visit. Buddhist temples in Penang are welcoming places and visitors are invited to explore at their leisure. It is respectful to dress appropriately and remove shoes before entering the temple buildings. The temples are free to visit but contributions to the donation boxes are always appreciated.
In the evening we walked down Gurney Drive to check out the local hawker market where there are more than 100 stalls selling all kinds of food. We were a little overwhelmed and did not see too many obvious vegan food options so we continued on to Idealite, a sit down vegetarian restaurant listed on HappyCow.com. We did not realize that Idealite was inside the huge Gurney Plaza shopping center so it took us a while to find it. Once we were there we were thrilled with their healthy food focused menu. The restaurant owner actually sat down with us for a bit and explained that their goal is to provide nutritious and delicious meals made with only healthy whole food ingredients. We both tried one of their fresh juice blends and two bowl dishes which were tasty and packed with plant-based goodness.
After dinner we took a Grab to the Penang Avatar Secret Garden. We actually did not even know what this place was before going there but happened to see it labeled on Google Maps and thought the name sounded too interesting not to check out. In the parking lot we paid a man the 1 RM each entrance fee. At first we did not see much except a tower with neon lights on it and a few shrubbery sculptures. We ventured farther into the grounds just past the Thai Pak Koong Temple and discovered a good size area with glowing lights that changed colors draped all over a gigantic tree and its branches. It did have a surreal glowing look similar to scenes from the Avatar movie. All over the grounds were walkways surrounded by different colors of lighting and light up artificial flowers in different colors and shapes. It was like a glow in the dark night garden tour and a fun way to spend an hour or so in the evening.
In the morning we visited Evergreen Vegetarian House again for a quick and easy breakfast and then walked to the Leong San Tong Khoo Kongsi Chinese clan house. The clan house is a place of worship and community center and it has actually been completely rebuilt three times; once after demolition of the original temple and again after the newly built temple completely burned down. Penang is home to a myriad of ethnicities and religious affinities, including a large Chinese population. A number of different languages are commonly spoken in Penang and English is widely understood and often used along with Malay on menus and signage.
We also wandered down to the Weld Quay Clan Jetties area and walked around some of the long jetties which have rows of houses built on them. A clan jetty is actually a village built on stilts and the name of the jetty is after the last name of the residence. These water villages were originally built to house the Chinese laborers employed at the harbor as early as the 1870s. Some people still live there but now there are also a number of restaurants and food stalls catering to visitors. It was sweltering hot outside so we did not stick around too long but did stop to enjoy a frozen ice pop.
We walked around the Little India area briefly and enjoyed a nice lunch, cold drinks, and air conditioning at Tofu Village restaurant. While walking around Georgetown we saw a great deal of interesting street art, some of which is pictured below.
The air in Penang was not quite as hazy as it had been in Langkawi but it was still far from clear as you can see in our photos. We decided to venture up to Penang Hill for sunset as it usually offers beautiful views of the city from a hilltop above. To reach Penang Hill you purchase a train ticket for 30 RM to ride a funicular train up the hill, which seemed more like a big mountain. The train goes rather fast so there is not much time to take in the scenery. The haze had not been that bad earlier in the day but once we reached the top it was so thick that the view of the city normally enjoyed from here was not visible at all. All we could see was haze. Since we were there we walked around the hilltop anyway but honestly without the views it really was not worth the trip.
We had a very nice dinner at Blue Vegan, an Asian Western Fusion restaurant. That evening I had the Black Magic Mushroom Burger with baked fries and coleslaw and Rob had a tempeh burger. Both were delicious and prepared in a health conscious manner so as not to be too oily. Some Chinese Buddhist vegetarians exclude onion, garlic, shallots, leeks, and chives from their diet. These are known as “the five pungent spices” and are forbidden for some sects because they are believed to lead to anger (raw) and passion (cooked). Some Buddhists also believe that their odors repel gods and attract hungry ghosts and demons. Blue did not use any of these five ingredients on their menu. We found this to be true at several other vegetarian restaurants we visited in Penang for the same religious reasons.
In the morning we went to Every Fresh Bar because we were craving smoothie bowls for breakfast. All their smoothie bowls are made with coconut milk and are vegan friendly. We then took a Grab out to Kek Lok Si temple, one of the largest and most celebrated Buddhist temples in Malaysia. After the Grab driver dropped us off we walked through long rows of vendor stalls and then past what looked like a construction site before reaching the lovely temple grounds. The temple complex includes a beautiful seven-tier pagoda and a massive bronze statue of Kuan Yin, the goddess of mercy.
Since it was our anniversary we purchased a prayer ribbon for “being together forever” and hung it on the prayer ribbon tree outside the temple. The temple also had a large rack with various books about Buddhism available for free or any optional donation amount. The temple complex is quite large and we spent a good bit of time exploring the grounds and gardens in addition to the temple buildings.
There was a vegetarian restaurant just outside the temple where we enjoyed lunch. The set menu they offered for two people came with a clear soup, a mock fish dish, some sauteed greens, ma po tofu, and rice. I was leary of the mock fish dish at first but it was a sort of textured vegetable protein with seaweed and it actually tasted surprisingly good. It was a simple but wholesome and filling meal.
Since it was our twelve-year wedding anniversary, for something fun and special to do in the evening we booked a food tour with Food Tour Penang. They provided a tour featuring only vegan local food for us which was great. We met our guide Junie and our driver for the evening Kevin in downtown Georgetown. We went to some of the famous Penang street food spots, including McCallum Drive, the Clan Jetties, New Lane, and Jalan Penang. We also visited an Indian restaurant in Little India.
We were able to try so many delicious and authentic local dishes ranging from noodle soups to stuffed pancakes to desserts. I think we sampled somewhere in the range of fifteen different dishes and we were completely stuffed by the end of the four-hour tour. I hope to write a separate blog post with more specifics about all the food we tried for future reference. This tour not only included opportunities to try delicious local food but also provided a great overview of the history and daily life in some of Georgetown’s historic neighborhoods.
On our last full day in Georgetown we visited one of the local shopping malls to pick up some essentials and decided to go see a movie in the afternoon. We watched Stephen King’s “It Chapter 2” and enjoyed almost three hours of air conditioning in the theater during the hottest part of the day. We also had a delightful lunch at Pinxin Vegan, a 100% plant-based restaurant that also sells eco-friendly products such as wood toothbrushes, reusable food bags, reusable water bottles, and metal straws. Their motto is “food made with love” and the dishes we had were as healthy and tasty as they were lovely. For our last evening in Penang we dined at The Leaf where we enjoyed a nice meal of miso soup, green curry spaghetti, and spring rolls. On our last morning in Georgetown we had breakfast at a South Indian Banana Leaf restaurant up the street from our guesthouse, which cost us less than 6 RM for both of our meals. We were once again amazed by the quality and quantity of food we received for the price.
Penang is a city rich with traditions, history, and culture. The diversity adds to the city’s vibrant feeling. There is a street in Penang called the “street of harmony” where an Anglican church, a Hindu temple, a Taoist temple, and a Muslim mosque all peacefully occupy the same street. Georgetown is a true melting pot with so much old world charm. It had the most interesting food scene of anywhere we have visited so far and we are going to miss the endless fantastic food options.
Everything seems magical! What a wonderful anniversary celebration you had, and the foods look delicious!
What a charming guesthouse, also!
Kerry, what a fabulous place – your pictures are breathtaking and your writing brought the city alive to me — I’m definitely going to read more about it. Thanks for your wonderful sharing of your adventures with us!!!