Penang Excursion Part 1

Immediately after our wedding obligations were over, we rushed back to the hotel, got into our sightseeing clothes and headed out eagerly for our half-day Penang tour. Ting Yi brought her best friend from Kuching, Ing Fei. It was raining but Ting Yi had everything planned out well.

She figured that girls and shopping are a perfect match. She drove us to Bangkok Lane, which is a street filled with colonial bungalows which have been converted into beautiful boutiques. This particular boutique, Chai, was highly recommended by her. We had a fantastic time giving opinions and fashion tips to each other. It reminded me of shopping with my sisters!



This is what Bangkok Lane looks like. It is like being transported back into the past, if only those pesky cars didn't keep driving through this street.

Since Angie and I are both animal lovers, Ting Yi took us to this multi-storey pet store. It has millions and millions of fishes ( it can rival the fish sanctuary near Sarawak Museum). This store carries everything imaginable related to pets. Angie was quite taken by the Pomeranian on sale cos it looked like her deceased pet Pom, Bud Bud.

Alas, it started raining again so we drove around town. I was contented even just sitting in the car, admiring the countless charming colonial buildings. I must applaud Penang for keeping all these historical buildings intact, they create a very unique image of Penang which sets them apart from the rest of Malaysia.

This is a famous gateway, Church Street Pier, which leads to the pier. Later in the night, we returned to this area to have a drink at the bar on the pier.

Where tourist used to haunt Gurney Drive for good food, it appears that they are now turning to cleaner alternatives, such as this place, New World Park. It has a huge hawker center ( a clean one ) plus many small eateries like Old Town Coffee etc.

The Best of Penang Food

Later in the night, we had a 'PENANG SPECIALTY FOOD' dinner at a hawker centre in New World Park where all Penang local food can be found. This is their Hokkien mee. I must admit i was surprised at the third version i've seen so far with the same name. The first type is the brown thick noodles cooked with pork lard which can be found at majority states in central Peninsular Malaysia and the second type is the yellow prawn noodle which can be seen at southern Malaysia and Singapore. This Penang version is actually known as Prawn Mee in other parts in Malaysia.... you say to-may-to, i say to-mah-to....duh....


Oyster Omelette, anyone? The hawkers in New World Park are absolutely generous with their ingredients. This plate of Oyster Omelette packs a punch with at least 8 oysters!! ( Yes, i counted)

Penang Laksa!!!!!!!! I almost went crazy when i saw this. I adore Penang Laksa! From the moment i reached Penang, i kept on reminding Ting Yi that i simply must try Penang Laksa. Trying this bowl of laksa finally confirmed my long-standing suspicion that no other Penang Laksa can rival those sold in Penang. It has a very tasty, spicy and sour soup, which also came with finely chopped fresh cucumbers, pineapples and mint leaves. I love the fact that there were chunks of fish when i tried scooping with my spoon. This bowl succeeded in perking me up, absolute heaven!

While we were all busy stuffing ourselves silly, Ting Yi also got us a bowl of Chendol. After all those oily, sour, spicy and salty tastes, we had to have some sweetness to savour at the same time. Verdict : I still prefer Chendol in light green shade for aesthetic reasons =P

Angie ordered a bowl of 'Lo Bak' to share amongst us. I really enjoyed the pandan-wrapped chicken on the left.

Lastly, a cool glass of Ambula. This local specialty actually tasted something like a cross between sourplum juice and soursop juice. It was both refreshing and palate-cleansing at the same time.

This is the fruit that makes up that drink. It is known as Buah Kedongdong in Malay.

The next morning, the bride and groom brought us out for an early breakfast just before our flight out. Their breakfast sets come in small bowls, just perfect for me. I had Minced meat Hor Fun, and the minced meat was marinated to perfection. The Hor Fun from northern Peninsular Malaysia are well-known for their great taste, and i agree as well...haha...

Angie had a bit of Chee Cheong Fun and Yam Cake. In case you think that the black sauce that came with the Chee Cheong Fun was sweet sauce, i'd like to correct your perception. It was actually a mixture of sweet sauce and prawn paste. Angie didn't look like she fancied the idea of eating Chee Cheong Fun coupled with prawn paste, but no harm trying.

Delightful Penang Snacks

The moment Angie and I stepped out of Bayan Lepas Airport, Ting Yi was already there waiting with a bunch of local tea snacks for us to munch on during our car journey to the hotel, which took about 40 minutes. She had a Rotiboy bun for both of us. Rotiboy is a coffee-flavoured bun which originated from Penang. This was fluffy and melted in our mouths, i'm not sure if this is the case for Rotiboy buns bought outside Penang, so i'll give it a try if i see it elsewhere.


Ting Yi also got us some Egg tarts and Bo Lo Buns from a famous bakery in Penang. I had a bit of this and abit of that, altogether this 'mobile teatime' was a perfect start to our fun weekend in Penang =)



The next day, we sampled some local Mamak fares, such as this Mee Rebus in Bangkok Lane.

We also had a Mee Goreng at the same Mamak shop, which was packed with patrons even though it was 4 pm. Both dishes packed strong flavours and had us wanting for more, but we didn't dare eat too much in order to save some stomach space for the next stop.

This Coconut Juice uncle operates his stall at a back alley, so tourists may not be able to locate him without a trusty local guide. He had hundreds, or maybe thousands of coconuts stacked up behind him.

First, he cut open a coconut and we devoured the juice. When the coconut had been emptied of its liquid, the uncle chopped off a triangular corner of the shell and sliced the coconut into two. The triangular corner could then be used as a natural spoon to scoop the soft, and tender pulp in the coconut. Wow, it was a great way to cool the body down during a sight-seeing trip!

Chih Yin's Married!

The one funny thing about Chih Yin's wedding was that her Chinese ceremony was held the morning after her wedding banquet! She's getting her hair done here. When i was there, i heard many guests gushing about how she looked like Tavia Yeung ( TVB star Yang Yi). He He He....


And the bride is ready to go....

Here are the jie meis sharing a light moment while waiting for the groom and his brigade to arrive.

Some hardworking jie meis, at the same time, was preparing the things to 'sabo' the groom with.

Meanwhile, some jie meis were busy having their photos taken with the bride.

Just one quick photo before we open the door to get our big ang pow!

Wishing you a lifetime of happiness, Yew Leong & Chih Yin....

Imitation is the Best Flattery

Chih Yin and Yew Leong


Ann and Angie ( ciplak version)

Chih Yin's Wedding Dinner

My good friend Chih Yin is finally tying the knot. She's one of my rare friends from Kuantan whom i could actually communicate regarding international sporting events. I'm also very grateful to her for keeping in touch with me through all these years. She's currently residing miles, miles and miles away in Switzerland and i hope that she's enjoying herself and brushing up on her French ( thanks for all those soups you bought me!)

Look at her, getting dolled up on her big night. She's lost abit of weight, though. Perhaps all those Swiss food will be able to fatten her up.



This was taken in the lift while we were walking her down to the banquet hall. Ha Ha Ha, her expression when asked how she met her husband was priceless! She was actually trying to recall it.


A very lovely and sweet-looking banquet hall. I especially love the pink-green combination. The ballroom was also decorated with baby-pink balloons and beautiful flower arrangements.

The reception area had a local Penang feel to it with this trishaw right next to the groom and bride's name.

This is Ting Yi, my ex-schoolmate who was my cycling mate to school every single day for 5 years. I haven't seen her in years yet she is still the familiar girl i once knew, as bubbly and outgoing as she was 10 years back.

The four of us once belonged to different 'groups' of friends in high school, yet we clicked and blended in so well with each other now.

Budget Flying with Angie

What a fine day to fly. The sky's absolutely clear, and it's a long weekend. Let's check out the time of our flight to Kuala Lumpur.... We are so excited right now. It's my first time taking a budget flight and as for Angie, it's her first flight ever! What a day to remember~


Angie poses with the boarding gate.... nice~

We finally reach LCCT in KLIA. Time to check the status of our connecting flight to Penang.

Just a light lunch before getting on the plane. Mmmm.... right now, we are having Malaysia's own local fast food, Marrybrown. Looks like a rip-off from KFC right?

There's our plane, as viewed from our waiting area. Bummer, LCCT makes me feel like i'm in a bus terminal, instead of an airport.

This is not Changi Airport... the lack of entertainment here leads me to browse through photos in my camera.

Yeay... Angie's no longer afraid of flying! Look at that smile...she looks genuinely happy to be in the clouds.

Gelare and Bakerzin

Featuring two eateries that can be seen at many places around Singapore : Gelare and Bakerzin. My vote goes to Bakerzin for their lovely half-price Oreo Cheesecakes and great tapas variety.

Kenny goes fo the Gelare Club Sandwich, a healthy choice... or so it seems...

Till i saw those potato chips lying in the middle of the dish. The sandwich was decked so high that i could hardly open my jaws wide enough to stuff it in.

Iced mocha and latte, for the coffee lover in us.

I normally go for tomato sauce pasta, either with fusilli or penne, especially the former as it traps the sauce in its multitude of folds and every bite of pasta comes bursting with flavour.

Alas, they only had penne.... the pasta was piping hot and pretty tasty minus the prawns. The prawns tasted a little unfresh.... but the tomato sauce hit the spot~

Moving on to Bakerzin, a bowl of yucky pea soup ( it happened to be the soup-of-the-day). Never liked pea soup...and never will.

Seafood pasta! I must say that this one's better than the one i had in Gelare. If you can only have one of them, pick this one in Bakerzin, much better.

I can't seem to recall what this is, but looks like this plate of pasta comes with eggs, and ham. Reminds me of breakfast... i did remember though, that it was nothing fantastic.