After leaving the mainland of Malaysia, we crossed a brand spankin' new bridge to the island of Penang, where it claims to have the best hawker food in the world. The whole "hawker food" concept is a new one to me--the idea of picking a street corner or street and sampling dishes from a variety of stalls. Definitely an experience that is good for the pocket books and taste buds :)
We pulled into the Eastern Oriental Hotel, an old British colonial building, and hit the streets to check out the city of Georgetown. Little did we know that we were in town for the biggest party of the year, the Chinese New Year Festival Celebration! Ringing in the year of the rabbit, over ten city blocks were closed down for Chinese children games (reciting Confucius sayings, making paper flowers, etc.), Recycle Fashion Shows with accompanying Madonna music (me with my favorite contestant in the picture), live rabbits, Chinese acrobat shows and numerous food stalls. As we walked into the festival, a group of street performers displayed their skills in the national sport of Chingay--balancing a 30 foot bamboo flag pole on their heads only to "head it" back to their teammates to land on their chin! It makes the "Original Tin Man of Chicago" street performer look like a nobody! After an evening of games and shows, we hit the food stalls. The Midwest girl in me could not contain my excitement when I saw a corn pancakes sign! Absolutely delicious AND innovative! Delicious fried noodles, dumplings, and honey chrysanthemum tea followed, although tough to follow my opening dish. I stood amidst the body to body crowd marvelling at the midnight fireworks. What a party :)
It took several cups of coffee to get me moving the following morning for our city tour of Penang. After a stop at Fort Cornwalis, we couldn't miss Cheung Fatt Tze's, the 19th century Chinese tycoon/player, Blue Mansion. With a strikingly beautiful blue color, the mansion was built for his favorite wife (number 7) and offers great insight into Chinese architecture and the principles of feng shui. A blue mansion could really only be followed by the Temple of Supreme Bliss (Kek Lok Si) and the Pagoda of 10,000 Buddhas the site did not disappoint. Although the big tourist attractions were a hit, the real adventure came when we got to Gurney Drive, the longest and busiest hawker stall street in Penang. Situated along the sea esplanade, Gurney Drive offered Malaysia's top dishes and of course, we had to try. The char kway teow won my award--Chinese flat rice noodles fried with prawns, bean sprouts, sliced chilis and corn! By far, the largest stall was the International Satay Man--over 10 different kinds of meat being grilled right in front of your eyes. With stained shirts and full tummies, we strolled down the Straits of Malacca until our bodies just couldn't take it anymore. I collapsed in my bed, anxious for an early morning flight to the island of Langkawi.
After leaving the mainland of Malaysia, we crossed a brand spankin' new bridge to the island of Penang, where it claims to have the best hawker food in the world. The whole "hawker food" concept is a new one to me--the idea of picking a street corner or street and sampling dishes from a variety of stalls. Definitely an experience that is good for the pocket books and taste buds :)
We pulled into the Eastern Oriental Hotel, an old British colonial building, and hit the streets to check out the city of Georgetown. Little did we know that we were in town for the biggest party of the year, the Chinese New Year Festival Celebration! Ringing in the year of the rabbit, over ten city blocks were closed down for Chinese children games (reciting Confucius sayings, making paper flowers, etc.), Recycle Fashion Shows with accompanying Madonna music (me with my favorite contestant in the picture), live rabbits, Chinese acrobat shows and numerous food stalls. As we walked into the festival, a group of street performers displayed their skills in the national sport of Chingay--balancing a 30 foot bamboo flag pole on their heads only to "head it" back to their teammates to land on their chin! It makes the "Original Tin Man of Chicago" street performer look like a nobody! After an evening of games and shows, we hit the food stalls. The Midwest girl in me could not contain my excitement when I saw a corn pancakes sign! Absolutely delicious AND innovative! Delicious fried noodles, dumplings, and honey chrysanthemum tea followed, although tough to follow my opening dish. I stood amidst the body to body crowd marvelling at the midnight fireworks. What a party :)
It took several cups of coffee to get me moving the following morning for our city tour of Penang. After a stop at Fort Cornwalis, we couldn't miss Cheung Fatt Tze's, the 19th century Chinese tycoon/player, Blue Mansion. With a strikingly beautiful blue color, the mansion was built for his favorite wife (number 7) and offers great insight into Chinese architecture and the principles of feng shui. A blue mansion could really only be followed by the Temple of Supreme Bliss (Kek Lok Si) and the Pagoda of 10,000 Buddhas the site did not disappoint. Although the big tourist attractions were a hit, the real adventure came when we got to Gurney Drive, the longest and busiest hawker stall street in Penang. Situated along the sea esplanade, Gurney Drive offered Malaysia's top dishes and of course, we had to try. The char kway teow won my award--Chinese flat rice noodles fried with prawns, bean sprouts, sliced chilis and corn! By far, the largest stall was the International Satay Man--over 10 different kinds of meat being grilled right in front of your eyes. With stained shirts and full tummies, we strolled down the Straits of Malacca until our bodies just couldn't take it anymore. I collapsed in my bed, anxious for an early morning flight to the island of Langkawi.
the photo with your favorite contestant--- she's invited to Vegas Rd.2 in that outfit!!
ReplyDeleteit took out my *Like* to begin that comment. Great shot!
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