Palatable Penang

I visited Penang for the first time in February. Enough hearsay about the famous local food, and being told the assam laksa I'm having "is not the real thing", I decided to brace myself, sacrifice my waistline and embark on a Penang Foodie Tour.

True to its reputation as the makan paradise, I found myself immersed in Penang's street hawkers so much so that it's eating most of the time and I even demand 'repeat' for the favourites. Meals are usually washed down with jus timun (cucumber) or umbra (hog plum). I have put up a collection of photos here on facebook for a visual feast.



We made attempts to 'walk off' the calories by visiting Snake Temple, Khoo Khong Si, Penang Hill, Batu Ferringhi Night Market, etc. over the three days. It felt much warmer in Penang than Singapore, perhaps due to lesser greens and mostly low-rise buildings?

Overall it was an interesting and rewarding little holiday. Surely I will miss the local cuisine, and I can now ask "have you tried the real laksa in Penang?"

Missing Half a Year

*With a wave of the wand* This blog is now updated. Well, vaguely.

In summary, The New Job's definitely kicked in, I'm getting used to the new culture and schdeule, thankful for the fact that I've still a good job in this depressing climate however long it may last - both the job and the recession. That's about as much as I can speak about my job, really.

2008 was crap, basically. Falling out of the bath tub hitting the head on the first day HAS to be an ill omen. If it wasn't for happy thoughts (some of which I made up), it would be a year of misery indulgence. Anyhoo, that's all past. Over.

It's time to reap better luck the year of the ox promises, for us draconic types. Having survived last year, one would feel that peace, harmony, good health and erm, road safety are all that should be desired. It's also important to be good to yourself: don't feel like doing anything? Be lazy. Feel like having the occassional fried food? Have it. Someone says something offensive? Forget it. Eyes cannot see properly? Lasik.

Unlike the past where internet access was never a question, I now get to enjoy surfing only few days a month. Inevitably the blog gets neglected. But I will try and keep it going. It's like saving an old plant.