Penang Oh Penang

source: Rileklah.com

Penang is a popular tourist destination in Malaysia's northern part. The distance from Kuala Lumpur is approximately 360 kilometres, and if you take a car, you will arrive in 3 hours and 42 minutes non-stop. However, we usually stop at a rest stop on the highway along the way, so the total time it takes to get here is about 5 hours.

You can also take a flight and land at Bayan Lepas Airport, or take public transportation such as buses and trains. Here are some options for you to consider. My friend and I chose to travel to Penang by car because it is more convenient. There are various attractions for us to see and visit, including the famous street food destinations in Penang. Consequently, driving is preferable to taking public transportation for us.

We went on Friday, when the new school holiday season began, and there were a lot of cars on the highway. We left at 7 a.m. from Kuala Lumpur and arrived in Penang at 12 p.m. We only stopped for breakfast in Tapah for 30 minutes before continuing to Penang via the second Penang bridge.

1. Penang second bridge, Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah

When I visit Penang, one of my favorite things to do is to cross the Penang second bridge. This bridge, with a length of 24 km (15 miles), is a symbol of modern architectural engineering and is the longest in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. It was named after the 14th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah. It is a new twin road toll bridge in Penang, Malaysia, that started building in 2008 and was completed in February 2014. It connects Batu Kawan on the mainland of Seberang Perai to Batu Maung on the island of Batu Maung. After the first Penang Bridge, this is the second bridge that connects the island to the mainland. The bridge cost RM 4.5 billion and was built with a large loan from the People's Republic of China's government.

Of course, every time I cross this bridge, I get excited because I am so interested of the design. This bridge takes 20 to 25 minutes to cross and has a speed limit of 70 km/h. This bridge makes it easier for those coming from Perak or Selangor who want to go directly to Penang without stopping in Seberang Perai, and it also takes less time than the first bridge. Interestingly, if London has the London Bridge and Japan has the Tokyo Bridge, we are not left behind with our two bridges in Penang. To use this bridge from the direction of Kuala Lumpur, take the North-South Highway to exit 157, which is the Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah Bridge Intersection, and follow the sign board.

2. Transfer Road Roti Canai 

source: Flickr

We arrived in Penang around 12.30 p.m. after leaving Selangor.

Then we went to Transfer Road Roti Canai stall for brunch. It was named a Transfer Roti Canai because it was on Transfer Road in Penang. Transfer Road Roti Canai is one of Penang's famous Roti Canai stall. This stall received a lot of customer from various states because of its deliciousness, I did a Google search for several ‘roti canai’ in Penang, but only this ‘roti canai’ stall received positive feedback for its taste and cleanliness. Understandably, my friends are particular about hygiene. So, I am picky about finding a clean restaurant that is also delicious and popular. The service is extremely fast.

Roti canai transfer RM8 

This is roti canai transfer. The preparation is also quite unique. The gravy was flooded and there was a piece of chicken on the roti canai. To be honest, this is the first time I has eaten roti canai like this.

Roti Bakar RM3 

After eating, we continued to check in at Cocoa Mews which is a place for backpacker’s budget hostel located at Little India the city of Georgetown. We rested for a while and at 2.00 pm we went out for a walk to Penang Street Art. In fact, there are many interesting places you can visit in Penang and they include historical places, places for sports and recreation, children’s places as well as places to take beautiful pictures.

3. Penang Street Art 

If you come to Penang, do not forget the mandatory activity to do is to take pictures on Penang Street Art. Here, there are many interesting and beautiful wall paintings. For those of you who are good at posing, you are well suited to be here.

Boy on a Bike 

Little Children on A Bicycle

I Want Pau 

Children Playing Basketball

Brother and Sister on a Swing

Old Soy Milk Stall

For those who are visiting Penang for the first time and want to visit Penang  Street Art, each wall painting is not located in one location, but you must walk around it, and some are located quite far from one wall painting to another. If you are unsure where one of the wall paintings is, you can get a map with a wall painting guide from the hotel where you are staying, go to the tourism centre, or you can also refer HERE.

My advice for those want to visit here, plan on a weekday instead of school holidays or weekends because visitors and tourists are too many and you have to line up to take beautiful pictures on each of these wall paintings.

4. UpSide Down Museum 

Due to the hot weather and my friend was getting restless, we left and continued our journey to the UpSide Museum. The Upside Down Museum or Muzium Terbalik, located on Kimberley Street in George Town, Penang, is an interactive museum. The museum first opened its doors to the public on August 8, 2015. It provides a one-of-a-kind experience in which only humans are right side up!

It is like walking around an upside-down house. Visitors can walk from room to room, seeing the upside-down living room, bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom, as well as upside down cafes and shops. Currently, the museum is open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

5. Ais Tingkap

Our next destination to the famous drink stall in Penang is Ais Tingkap, from the Museum UpSide Down, you can just walk here. Here it is famous for its sarbat water, the result of a combination of young coconut water, sugar water and ice cubes that are ground as well as a spray of fragrant herbs from the sarbat root to add flavor. Other mixtures that are also included in a glass of sarbat ice include basil seeds, a bowl of flowers and grape gum which are said to be able to cool the temperature in the body. It was our choice to stop for a while to get rid of tiredness after taking pictures at the Museum Upside Down while enjoying this nutritious drink. 

Ais Tingkap RM2.50

You all should try the taste of this syrup water are difference from the others, only in Penang!



6. Retaurant Kapitan

After a tiring day we decide to go back to the hostel to rest and shower before heading to our next destination.

source: freemalaysiatoday.com

Next destination, we went to dinner at Kapitan Restaurant which is a “World Class Naan Bread And Briyani Claypot” located at Lebuh Chulia Georgetown Penang and only 3 minutes from our hostel. This Kapitan Restaurant is the suggestion of a friend who once came to eat here, she said the Fish Head Curry here is delicious. But that day we only ordered Nasi Briyani and also Roti Naan because most of the menu was sold out. People say when you come here you must try Briyani Chicken Chop with Milani but there is no sustenance for us that day.

  

All these dishes make us very full when we eat here, everyone does not finish eating. This Kapitan Restaurant offers a lot of great Indian and Malaysian food at very reasonable prices. If you like butter chicken with Naan you should not miss to eat at this restaurant. The restaurant is very popular with the locals and is very busy at dinner time.

She is my bestfriend. Her name is Nazhirah 

hehe >.<

our late night activities end there.  

 

Roti Bakar Telur Goyang - RM4

Second day in Penang, it was our last day here before returning to Kuala Lumpur. We managed to go to two other places around the island, namely breakfast at Roti Bakar Hutton Lane and also to Bukit Bendera. Roti Bakar Hutton Lane Toast is very famous here.

you guys can check it out the ticket price HERE. 

A little history about Bukit Bendera is that it is a resort that covers several peaks in Penang, Malaysia. It is located in Air Itam, 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) west of downtown George Town. Flag Hill is named after one of the most developed peaks, Flagstaff Hill. Flag Hill covers several hills, with the highest peak on Western Hill being 833 meters (2,733 feet) above sea level. The hill can be clearly seen from the lowlands as a hilly and wooded area. It was used as a refuge during the British colonial era, and is now a popular tourist destination in Penang. Since it is a school holiday, many people want to ride this cable car. So we bought a fast lane ticket because we didn't want to queue long. Normal and fast lane ticket prices are much different and refer to the picture below for ticket prices. The time taken to queue is also vastly different. When I wanted to buy a ticket, I asked the ticket machine how long it took to ride this cable car and the answer was 2 hours. So without wasting time I continued to buy the fast lane ticket and as soon as the cable car arrived, we could continue to ride it. The time taken to top is 5 to 7 minutes. On that day, the weather was a bit hazy so the view was a bit gloomy and the view to see the Penang Bridge was a bit limited. The atmosphere and scenery from Flag Hill is breathtaking and you can also see the beautiful at night. It was just a bit dark going down the cable car. The cable car also operates until 11pm and the ticket counter is open until 10.30pm. You can refer to the Bukit Bendera website for more information here.

After lunch and touring the area, we headed back downstairs with the return ticket we had purchased. There are also have Restaurant on Bendera Hill. After lunch me and my friends went down and continued our return journey to Kuala Lumpur. On the way back, there were too many visitors queuing to take the cable car. The fast lane tickets we bought made it easy for us to get down from the long queue.

We returned to Kuala Lumpur at 2pm and arrived at our house at 7pm. Although the holiday in Penang is only 2 days 1 night and it is quite simple our itinerary, but we feel very fun and satisfied with this vacation.

Hopefully my sharing above about the holiday experience in Penang 2 days 1 night can help you who are just coming to Penang for the first time and planning a short holiday in Penang. In fact, when we go on vacation, it is not the time period that is the measure for us to build memories together with our loved ones, but the precious time that is the memory for us to always remember the most beautiful memories with them.

 

Hopefully this covid-19 outbreak can end quickly so that we all can travel as usual.

 

I Really miss to travel Again : ')

 

Thanks for reading.