Malaysia Part 3: Penang Island

The last part of our trip was off the mainland of Malaysia to the island of Penang.  My friends had booked this trip before I arrived in China so I booked everything for myself after them.  Luckily, I was able to add a roll away bed to the hotel rooms except for our stay while in Penang.  In reality, I can't complain about having my own room at the end of a jam packed trip.  I especially couldn't complain when my room was so nice.

Our resort was super beautiful and on the beach.  It had live music at night and a really good restaurant.  We were able to lounge on chairs by the pool, the lawn, and down at the beach.  I was able to read one and half John Grisham books and be awesomely lazy.  They had tiki bars and thatched roof restaurants across the property.  Unfortunately, it was overcast the majority of our time in Penang but I still managed to get a little burnt because of course I did.  There was a night market directly outside of our resort with stalls lining the streets, which we enjoyed perusing in the evenings.

Two queens pushed together and all for me.

An actual shower!

The girls and tropical drinks.

The beach view.

One afternoon we went into the city of George Town to explore.  Along the coast is Fort Cornwallis, which is an old British outpost.  The rest of the city is much more modern and vibrant with Indian and Chinese influences.  We had an amazing lunch in Little India and enjoyed exploring the city's shops. 

We walked along some old wharves that were lined with shops.

Fort Cornwallis

The main draw to the city (at least for me) was the street art.  You walk along and need to pay attention or you will miss most of the the art tucked away on the sides of the winding streets.  You would need much more time than an afternoon to observe all the work and more is constantly being added.

I swear, Minions are taking over the world.

Wrought iron work.

Children on a Bicycle is the most famous street art attraction in the city.

Stray thoughts:

• Being in Malaysia, and especially in touristy places, there were other westerners and more diversity in general so we didn't stand out so much.  It was quite refreshing.
• The majority of people living in Malaysia speak English!  That was super awesome to actually be able to communicate with people.  We made friends with all our cab drivers and were able to chat with people as we traveled.
• We asked one of our cab drivers what the AWAS signs meant since they were all over the place.  He replied, "All Women Are Sexy."  They are in actuality warning signs to remind drivers to stay alert.  Our driver said it's really the same thing since you need to stay alert around women.

• Thus ends my blog entries about Malaysia.  It was an amazing trip and 7 days really wasn't enough, especially when traveling is put into account.  I highly recommend visiting if you are ever on this side of the world.