Around the World

It was a nice overnight train trip. I met a Malaysian guy that told me about the villages were were passing. We even jumped off at on place called Taiping station. He said it was the oldest station in Malaysia. We were walking down the streets in the middle of the night and when the train whistle blew we ran back and jumped on as it was moving out of the station. He was a real nice guy but seemed to have a paranoia about Jewish people. When the train arrived in Georgetown, Donna and I took the ferry to Penang Island. It only cost 60 sen. We walked around the town and then took a trishaw to the Plaza hostel.

After we got situated at our new place we went sight seeing at the Fort Cornwallis, an old star-shaped fort located on the northeastern coast of Penang. It is named after the late 18th century Governor-General of Bengal, India. Fort Cornwallis was built by Captain Sir Francis Light after taking possession of the island from the Sultan of Kedah in 1786. It was originally built with a nibong (Malay: palm trunk) stockade with no permanent structures, covering an area of 417.6 square feet. In 1804, the fort was rebuilt with bricks and stones by Indian convict labour during Colonel R.T. Farquhar’s term as Governor of Penang. Fort Cornwallis was later completed in 1810. Even though the fort was originally built for the Royal artillery troops and the military, its function historically was more administrative rather than defense. In its entire history, the fort had never been engaged in any battle. Apart from being used for the British Royal artillery troops, the fort was once occupied by the Sikh Police of the Straits Settlements during the 1920s. After our look at the fort we passed by the clock tower and walked through town.

We attended the Sunday mass at St. George's. It is the oldest Anglican church in Southeast Asia and is located in George Town, Penang, Malaysia. It was completed in 1818 on the initiative of the Penang Colonial Chaplain, Rev. Robert Sparke Hutchings

It was Donna's birthday so I took her out to dinner at a Pizza Hut in a modern shopping mall. We had lots of laughs riding the trishaws through traffic and near speeding cars.

We went to a Chinese temple called Kek Lok Si Temple. It was very interesting once we made it through a long maze of street shops selling everything from hats to turtles. The Kek Lok Si Temple (Penang Hokkien for "Temple of Supreme Bliss") is a Buddhist temple situated in Air Itam in Penang and is one of the best known temples on the island. The construction of the temple began in 1893 and was inspired by the chief monk of the Goddess of Mercy Temple at Pitt Street. In 1930, the seven storey main pagoda of the temple or the Pagoda of 10,000 Buddhas, was completed. This pagoda combines a Chinese octagonal base with a middle tier of Thai design, and a Burmese crown; reflecting the temple's embrace of both Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism.

After the temple we took a local bus to Penang Hill. We rode the funicular railway to the top of the hill. It was fun to ride the funicular up the steep incline. The Penang Hill Railway is a two section funicular railway which climbs Penang Hill from Air Itam, near George Town.The total journey takes about half an hour, with passengers changing cars at the mid-point station. The train may stop at other intermediate stations upon request. Construction of the railway took place between 1906 to 1923, at a cost of RM1.5 million. The railway was opened to the public on October 21, 1923. New cars were provided in 1977.It was refreshing to feel the cool breeze on the top of the hill. We walked around the gardens and enjoyed the view of Panang. While were were seeing the sunset, the lights turn on in Georgetown. After we rode the funicular down the hill I realized I had lost my leather cap I got in New Zealand. I tried to see if someone had found it but they were closing up the park. That evening we watched a movie in the hostel lounge called "A place to call home".

We went to the Penang Bird Park by taking the ferry and bus. They ad 300 species of parrots, pheasants, and exotic birds from around the world. The highlights were the Hornbills (of course) and a gigantic 8-foot pink ostrich that scared Donna. Oficially opened by the Prime Minister on Nov 26 1988. Also had a vast collection of orchids, hibiscus, and palm trees.

The sun was so strong and so hot that I got a really bad headache and felt like I was getting heat stroke. I returned to our room and took a nap. That evening I went across on the Ferry and explored Bukit Mertajam. I ended up on a wrong bus with everyone speaking a foreign language and got really lost. I asked the bus driver where we were going and he wouldn't answer, probably because he didn't speak English. A passenger could see my frustration and offered to help. I got off the bus with him and waited with him for his relative to come pick us up around 11pm. He worked in a rubber factory. They drove me to a place that some taxi drivers were washing their cars. He told them where I needed to go and I had a long nice drive to the ferry terminal. I got back around 3am.