Gorge on delicious Malaysian street food, savour the history, rinse the palate with culture and infuse with world renown graffiti.

That, is advice to anyone visiting.

_{Art on walls at Penang's ChinaHouse.}

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Penang Island.

Pulau Pinang or Penang Island is located 20 minutes away (in good traffic) from mainland, and roughly 1 hr from Butterworth (mainland Penang). A 5 hour drive from Kuala Lumpur and less than an hour by flight.

_{On the road.}

The Penang Bridge (Jambatan-Bridge, Pulau-Island, Pinang-Betel nut) has gorgeous symmetry across the foggy island sky.

_{The Penang Bridge.}

The weather on Penang island follows it’s own micro-climate; this means very foggy mornings/evenings (depending on haze-level), abrupt rains followed by strikingly hot days, all in 24 hours.

It is one of my favourite places to be in Malaysia!

Small town city life and island living blended into what’s gained the moniker: Pearl of the Orient.

Complete with winding (baby) cliffside roads, the Andaman sea, and nature reserves.

Travel tip: Located close to Langkawi and operates ferries to Indonesia and Thailand!

History:

Sir Francis Light, a royal navy shipman for the British, became Superintendent of Penang in 1802 after attracting interest and loyalty of Chinese settlers. Francis named the town “Georgetown” after King George-III, and renamed Penang Island “Prince of Wales Island”. Penang prospered with it’s location along the Straits of Malacca, serving as pit stops for merchants coming from the Bay of Bengal heading to Malacca, Singapore and onward to China.

Penang was a soup of culture and tradition! Easily earning the nickname “pearl of the orient”.

So colourful a legacy, the island has retained the best of each culture. This is evident in the remaining architecture.

I will be sharing highlights of Penang in the next few days.

We begin with.....

Must-Visit: ChinaHouse.

ChinaHouse is a trip!

It is the longest shop house-cafe I’ve been to, and took a whole 5 minutes to peruse. Not to mention the happy colours, amazing food and creative atmosphere that makes you want to stay for hours.

This spot has the best cakes in town an offers a new recipe daily. They also sell 7000 slices of cake a month! ChinaHouse hosts 1 bakery, 2 art galleries, 3 shops, 3 restaurants and live music every night.

They describe themselves best:

ChinaHouse is a traditional compound of 3 heritage buildings, linked by an open air courtyard and converted into 14 spaces comprising shops, cafes, restaurant, galleries, live music and bakery.

Start at the entrance of 155 Beach St. Georgetown. Wander through Kopi C Espresso Cafe & Bar. Off to the left, you see into BTB & Restraurant, & Bon Ton the Shop II at 153 Beach Street. Further along, you walk through the Reading Room, a space divided into magazines, books and cds for browsing & buying. In addition to computers and internet access, there is also a childrens book section and kids area with crayons and paints. ~ChinaHouse.

Join me as I walk through….

Beach Street Bakery.

_{Beach Street Bakery: Serving 30 cakes daily!}

The Reading Room.

Bon Ton.

The Courtyard.

Prefer to be seated outdoors instead?
Choose from any of the cozy corners!

_{The Malaysian heat getting to you? Jump in the pool to cool off!
Blending in…}

Art work everywhere…

This one, I really liked:

Malaysia's first, Honesty Shop!
_{The little sign reads "Someone told us we live in a dishonest world, we are here to prove them wrong."💛}

Customers take what they please and leave money in a little basket on the table. Need change? Head to the counter. :)

The Canteen.

_{Impossible to find a seat come nightfall. Swing by for the best bands in town!}

China House is definitely a must see when in Penang!

Even if it's to grab a quick cup of coffee before carrying on with a tight schedule.
It is well worth it!

Visit the website for more information and contact details: http://www.chinahouse.com.my.

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Follow me @BelleKaur.

* Images are my own.

Travel Diaries: Malaysia.

The Perhentian Islands

• Perhentian Kecil:
  The Journey.
  Part II.
  Part III.
  Golden Bay: Part V.
  Part IV.

Diving The Perhentians I.
Diving the Perhentians II.

• Perhentian Besar:
  Travel Diaries: My Bucket List Manifested - Nesting Sea Turtle!
  Bubbles Dive Resort.
  Travel Diaries: Sea Turtle Conservation Project, Malaysia.
  PSA: Look, Don't Touch Marine Life.