Trying Not to Melt in Penang
Our time in Penang was a bit strange. We never planned on stopping there, but we weren’t able to book train tickets from Thailand to Kuala Lumpur. Rather than take an extremely long bus trip all the way, it made sense to break up the journey with a stop in Penang. At this point in our trip, we were getting kind of burnt out so we probably didn’t put as much effort into things as we should have. It didn’t help that our hotel room had no windows, and the hotel played annoying elevator music in the hallways loud enough that we could hear it in our room.
Penang is hot
Most of what we found about the island was about food, though Andy did find a few other attractions for us to check out. One day we wandered around after lunch, which we quickly realized is the worst time of day to be outside. It was way too hot, shops were closed, and no one was around. They were all smartly hiding out away from the heat.
We continued on anyway to find the Clan Jetties. These are a set of jetties named for different Chinese clans who live there. It sounded interesting, but when we arrived we felt out of place. Sure, it’s a bit of a tourist attraction and we even saw a tour bus pull up and dozens of people spill out to take a look. But this was essentially people’s homes. Neither of us felt comfortable taking pictures, and we quickly left.
>>Check out one of Malaysia’s best beaches on a hot day instead!
British Fort
Next we went in search of the old British fort. But again, that heat was wearing us down. Luckily we saw a hawker market across the street, skipped through traffic to get there, and sat under a fan with some cold drinks for awhile. Eventually we moved on, passing colonial architecture on our way towards the fort.
The walls around the fort indicated that it was quite large, and we could see a lighthouse within those walls. However, by the time we finally found the entrance, it just didn’t seem worth paying the entry fee. I was content to sit in the park outside of it, drink some water and try to regain some energy the weather was draining out of me.
Penang Hill
I usually enjoy seeing places from above, so when Andy read about Penang Hill we decided to go check it out a few days later. It was interesting to get out of George Town for a bit and see other sections of the island from the bus, though our decision to get there in time for sunset meant we were on a crowded bus during rush hour. (Click here for info on how to get there.)
Once we arrived, we paid 60 Malaysian Ringgits (about US$18.37) for our two roundtrip tickets on the funicular. At about 823 meters (2750 feet) above sea level, it was a nice break from the heat and certainly gave us the opportunity to see George Town and the east side of the island from above. Unfortunately, it was rather hazy. People also live up there, so there was a police station, playground, Hindu temple, a mosque, and more. But there wasn’t a ton to do besides have drinks at the overpriced restaurant.
Despite my rather lackluster impression of Penang, it was certainly an interesting place to be for a few days, and I’m glad we stopped there. The few food markets we saw more than made up for the underwhelming sights. If we ever end up back in Penang, I think I’d be happy to spend my evenings eating satay and my days hiding from the heat.
You might also enjoy:
- How Much We Spent Traveling in Malaysia
- How Much We Spent Traveling in Southeast Asia for Two Months
- My Experience with Food in Penang
- Kuala Lumpur Do-Over
April 24, 2014 @ 9:48 AM
You have to see more of Penang to appreciate it. It is an amazing place with great food. The jetties were very disappointing–definitely a wasted couple hours.
April 24, 2014 @ 10:40 AM
I’m sure you’re right. We were there for 4 nights, really only 3 full days, and we were just exhausted from the previous 5 1/2 weeks of travel. If we ever end up back that way, I wouldn’t mind a do-over. I did really enjoy most of the food we tried, and I can see why Penang has such a reputation for food. FYI my post about our food experience in Penang goes up on Monday.
April 24, 2014 @ 10:40 AM
My mum visited Penang over 30 years ago and still raves about it. While I would like to go there one day I just don’t feel very drawn to it. Although eating lots of satay might just get me there sooner!
April 24, 2014 @ 10:55 AM
I had no real urge to go there until we weren’t able to get train tickets to Kuala Lumpur and decided to break up the bus journey. I think Penang has potential to be a really interesting place to visit, but it was bad timing for us. If we ever go back, I really do think I’d be fine with night market hopping. The satay really was amazing!
April 24, 2014 @ 10:48 AM
I’m glad you said your impression was lacklustre because mine was, too. It may have had something to do with being sick while I was there, but even the great food everyone had told us about didn’t seem that great to me at the time. And I can totally relate to it being waay too hot out during the day – we got lost en route to our hostel when we first arrived, in the midday sun! Walking round with all our bags was not fun…
April 24, 2014 @ 10:57 AM
OMG I can imagine! Luckily we arrived at night, and somehow the van dropped us off just a few blocks away from where we were staying. Yeah, I wasn’t impressed overall, but I did really enjoy the satay we found at the Macalister night market. I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to return to Penang, but if we do end up back there, I’m putting all my touristic energy into food.
April 25, 2014 @ 2:40 AM
“I think Iād be happy to spend my evenings eating satay and my days hiding from the heat.” Sounds ideal to me, especially the satay part. Thanks for sharing your experience. I always like hearing the good and the bad.
Happy travels š
April 25, 2014 @ 1:13 PM
Thanks Lauren! Penang definitely had it’s ups and downs, and good food is always a big plus in my book!
April 25, 2014 @ 11:31 AM
It’s SO hot there. We stepped off the ferry with our packs and walked to our hotel and within about 2 minutes, we were both drenched in sweat. I don’t miss that right now. I’ll take the 10 degree, windy weather…for now.
April 25, 2014 @ 1:14 PM
Walking around in the heat with backpacks on is the worst! I’m finding my window of comfortable temperatures is getting narrower and narrower over time. I can’t take the extremes in either direction.