Tuesday, 17 March 2009

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?"