Cowbright: Penang, Malaysia – a private tour around island (pt 1)

Entering Swettenham Pier Cruise Harbor - Penang, Malaysia

We docked around 7 a.m. in Penang, Malaysia this morning and had to meet our driver at 9. We had booked a tour called “Private Highlights of Penang.” Fortunately for us, he spoke very good English and his car was air conditioned. Not only that, he has worked in tourism for many years so he was a great person to show us around.

our tour guide for the day

First a little about Penang. It is the 8^th most populated state in Malaysia with a population of 1.8 million (65% Chinese and 21% Malay) while the mainland population is 44.5% Chinese and 43% Malay. The state has two parts - Penang Island where George Town (named after Britain’s King George III) is located and Seberang Perai on the Malay peninsula. There are many languages spoken in Penang but Malay is the national language and every Malaysian speaks Malay. All schools (both public and private) teach English as well.

His plan was to drive us around the entire island, stopping at a dozen or so highlight points. The first thing he did was show us a map along with a list of stops he wanted to make. But since it was a private tour, we were able to pick and choose the things we wanted to see and he was happy to stop for me if I saw something I really wanted to photograph. Several times Ronnie chatted with him in the car while I got out for a photo op.

Our first stop was at the Chinese Clan Jetty, an early Chinese settled in Penang. Unlike in our country, houses here are passed down from one generation to the next. No doubt our guide had been there countless times, so he stayed in the car and let us walk up and down the jetty so I could grab a few photos.

one of 7 clan jetties in Penang today

typical home front (shoes off, altar outside)

proximity of houses with water below

Chinese man working in front of his home

view from end of jetty

Back in the car, we drove through Little India, an ethnic Indian community located in the city of George Town, Penang’s capital. The oldest Hindu temple in Penang is located there. I got out just long enough to snap this photo of the temple. Little India was a colorful area that would have been interesting to walk in if one had all the time and energy to do so.

Sri Mahamariamman Temple

We then drove down the 180 year old Street of Harmony – a street that has temples, mosques and churches all in close proximity. He pointed out the Goddess of Mercy Temple (Penang's oldest Taoist temple), Kapitan Keling Mosque (Muslim), Sri Mariamman Temple (Hindu) and the St George’s Church (Anglican). These are all open to the public (as long as one is modestly dressed). I hopped out of the car just to snap a few photos from the outside.

Goddess of Mercy Temple

Kapitan Keling Mosque

St George's Church

Next he drove us down a street where the Thai Buddhist Temple (1845) and Burmese Buddhist Temple (1803) sit just across the street from each other. Again, I got out to snap a few photos. I only took photos from the outside but it was amazingly gaudy with oversized grotesque featured statues and dragons out front covered in thousands of colored, mirrored tiles. I did not go inside this one.

Thai Buddhist Temple (from street)

Chaiya Mangalaram Thai Buddhist Temple

Directly across the street from this one was the Burmese Buddhist Temple. I wandered over there to snap a few pictures. It was not just one big temple but an entire complex. As I was walking around snapping photos, I realized that there was a group of monks in the area where the giant Buddha (?) statue was. They were sitting on the floor and people were milling around outside with trays or baskets of food items. Within a few minutes, the monks got up and came outside. The people who had brought things formed a line and the monks came outside carrying bags or holding their robes in such a way to form a pocket that people could drop their items into. By the time they had reached the end of the line, their bags and clothing were full (literally) to overflowing.

I realized that this must be what they call a monk donation ceremony. Myanmar was on our original itinerary but Oceania struck that country off the list due to safety concerns. While there we were to attend a Monk Donation Ceremony but of course that was cancelled with the itinerary change. There are 4 or 5 "events" that everyone attends on a world cruise and that was one of them (they have now planned something else in place of that one). Anyway, early on I was curious as to what a Monk Donation Ceremony was and here I had accidentally attended one. lol

So I googled it and found the following.

"There are some 300,000 monks living in the Land of Smiles. From Phuket to Bangkok, visitors are almost guaranteed to see a few of them in Thailand. Their yellow and orange robes are very recognizable in a sea of modern-day clothing. Many Thais will start their day off by giving offerings to monks who are collecting donations in the streets.

Every man in Thailand is required to become a monk for a period of time before the age of 20. Though the expected time length is about three months, some will stay as little as a day or two. The majority of monks remain for at least a few weeks. Young men do this in order to receive good karma and merit. Those Thais who are affluent or have money are considered to have very good karma. Those who do not have money are thought to have behaved poorly in a previous life, thus, not having good karma."

Burmese Buddhist Temple

part of the complex

vertical view with monks on floor

As you may have guessed, Ronnie and the guide were sitting in the car while I was walking around in a Buddhist temple. I was snapping away and no one seemed to notice me or be bothered by my presence or my taking photos. About the time the monks were done with their donations, a large tour group (from our ship) was arriving.

Lastly, he took us to the Snake Temple. Our guide told us there are actual snakes inside and they believe them to become sacred once inside. (?) We had "zero" desire to go inside so I just snapped a few photos of the front like I did of all the others except the Burmese one.