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Penang,
Penang
Georgetown
temple
nightlife
Malaysia
hotel
airport
island, Pulau
Pinang,
Penang
Bridge,
Malaysia,
Chinese,
Penang
island,
British
Colonial
Times.
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-Penang
Malaysia “The island of betel nuts”, or Pulau Pinang
is the best known tourist destination in Malaysia.
Most of the people on
Penang island are of
Chinese and Indian origins which guarantees a real
exotic environment.
Numerous
nationalities migrated to Penang Malaysia or
Pulau Pinang since British Colonial Times
colonization leading to a very interesting mix of
culture.
In Penang
the different
cultures
express themselves by lots of unique food with roots
in India,
China
and the neighboring countries
Thailand and Indonesia.
Numerous festivals are on during the whole year. One of
the most famous festival in Malaysia is Thaipusam which is very
similar
to the vegetarian
festival in
Phuket Thailand.
The Phuket festival seems to be somehow a copy of
Malaysian Thaipusam and that one has its roots in
India.
Penang is about
two hour drive from the border to
Thailand and about 4 hour drive north of
Kuala Lumpur. The toll way starts a bit
south of the Malaysian Thailand border and
runs all the way down to Singapore via Kuala
Lumpur that means Penang is easy to access.
Penang is linked to the
mainland by the 13,5 km
Penang Bridge, the
third longest bridge in the world -picture
below-. There is also a car ferry
which actually offer a much smoother
ride. Penang Malaysia or Pulau Pinang is also served by various
airlines on domestic and international
routes, plus by a railway (the railway
station is at Butterworth, opposite
Penang island), about 6 hours
travel out of Kuala Lumpur.
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Over the years
Penang Malaysia or Pulau Pinang has
mutated into Malaysia's main beach resort
destination. Penang or the
'Pearl of the Orient" is probably the best
known of all Malaysian tourist destination.
The size of
285 sqkm seems quite large but most of the
island are steep hills that means the
useable area is quite small have a look at
the
satellite map
that tells more. For q quick overview have a
look at our
Penang map
If
you want to relax in an exotic environment
with plenty of beaches, a partially colonial
flair and a old Chinatown at Georgetown,
Penang is probably the right place. Penang
hotels are plenty and easily available all
over the island in every price range.
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Here is a panorama view
from Komtar Tower, the
highest building over Pulau
Penang, the Harbor and
Georgetown.
There are dream hotel
accommodations at the
beach sites and at
Georgetown and discounted
deals on budget hotels, but
not only, certain luxury
hotels in Penang offer also
some price deals via online
hotel bookings. A good
alternative on your Penang
travel is to rent a
apartment, in particular at
Georgetown Penang plenty are
available.
Penang is not only
catering to tourists,
honeymooners and
backpackers, the island is
also actively promoted as a
retirement destination.
Penang is also a business
destination since there are
many manufacturing plants
near Penang airport
producing all kind of
electronic goods.
-The most
impressive construction
in
Penang Malaysia
or Pulau
Pinang is the Penang
bridge. The construction of the
Penang
Bridge started in 1982 using
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Penang view from Komtar
Tower over the Harbor and
Georgetown

Penang Bridge from
Butterworth to Georgetown
Penang. |
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a cable-stayed concrete girder
similar to the
San
Francisco Golden Gate Bridge.
The high-rise buildings
on Pulau Penang opening
up great panorama views over
the Andaman Sea, the Penang
Bridge and other travel
spots. High rise
accommodations are excellent
vacation spots when you like
to stay in Georgetown and do
the short ride to the
beaches with the taxi if you
like.
Just click to one of the
internet booking services to
choose your Penang vacation
accommodation according to
your preference, hotels in
Penang are plenty so you
won’t have a problem to find
the right for you.
Since almost every area
at Penang has a good
infrastructure and
everything around works
quite well (except taxis)
good service and the easy
access to communication
makes a stay on Pulau Penang
a pleasant one.
Penang Nightlife
is on until 3 am but its not to the extend
of nightlife as in neighboring Thailand,
especially
Phuket nightlife. Vibrant nightlife at
Georgetown Penang and
other places such as
Batu Feringgi
is the right stuff to relax
after a
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Penang Luxury Hotel
E&O at Georgetown |

Penang Budget Hotel
at Chinatown
Georgetown |

Penang Georgetown
Chinatown |

Penang Georgetown
little India |

Penang Nightlife at
Slippery Senoritas
Georgetown |

Penang Nightclub at
Georgetown |
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afternoon on the beach. The
distances are short on Pulau Penang means
it is easy to move around,
except at rush hour late
afternoon. There are clubs and discos,
karaoke lounges and hidden
parlors with mainly pretty
Chinese girls from
Malaysia and
China.
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-Penang Tours
Penang tours are also
very easy organized, I
hired a very knowledgeable
tour guide some time ago, he
came with his car and we had
a great day all around
Penang for Ringits 100,- ,
that’s about $ 30, |
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Penang Rickshaw Tours at
Georgetown
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Penang Tours Fort Cornwallis
Georgetown |

Penang tours little India
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-Some gigantic mosques,
like the one pictured here
show the peoples faith.
Actually this mosque is not
in Penang Malaysia or Pulau Pinang directly its on
the mainland a couple of
km
before the turn to the
Penang Bridge. The different cultures
od Penang
are also visible by the styling of houses and
temples.
Plenty of mosques are
around and a good amount of
them are all new, there is a
lot of money from the Arab
peninsular flowing into
Malaysia since about 30
years and this goes hand in
hand with new mosques and a
visible
Islamization
of the country. Malaysia is
mainly a muslim country but
until about 30 years ago it
was not so much expressed in
public as it is now.
-Penang Temples & Pagodas
Indian Hindu Temples, various
Chinese
temples, Churches
the colonialists built.
Plus magnificent Buddhist
temple and pagodas with
Thailand or Siam and
Burmese roots
enrich the |

Marvelous Mosque near the highway
from Thailand to Penang |
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architecture and addressing
different philosophies. It's
really amazing how many
different kind of temples
are around in such a small
place like Georgetown,
Penang Malaysia or Pulau
Pinang. Virtually there is a
Chinese and / or Buddhist temple or mosque on
"every second"
corner.
The
Siamese or Thai Buddha temple
pictured at the left is a great
example of Thai dedication to
Buddhism and workmanship.
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Thai
Buddhist Temple Penang. All
about Penang, Penang, The island of
betel nuts, Pulau Pinang, Penang
Bridge, Thailand, Malaysia, Penang
island, steep hills, British
Colonial Times,
China,
Indonesia, festivals, Thaipusam,
vegetarian
festival in Phuket Thailand |
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-The Kek Lok Si Temple on Penang Hill
is within a beautiful scenery on
Penang Island offering a an
inspiring panorama view.
In
and outside the temple are images of
Buddha, carvings, and sculptures.
In 1885, a Buddhist monk from
Foochow, China, was appointed the
abbot of the Kuan Yin Teng Temple.
He thought the right place for this
Penang Buddhist was at Air Itam
village and with the help of some
private donors, the Kek Lok Si
Templewas constructed. In 1904, the first phase of this
Penang temple complex was completed,
among other relics and artifacts,
the temple is home to a set of
Buddhist sutras given by Emperor
Kiang Xi, as well as handwritten
scripts presented by Empress Cixi. The `Pagoda of a Million
Buddha’s', one the temple's finest
buildings, was built under the
Buddhist monk Poon Teong. The
construction started in 1915 and was
completed 15 years later.
Standing
at 100 feet in height, the Rama VI
Pagoda, as it is known, is a
combination of Chinese, Thai and
Myanmar
pagoda architectural styles. The
Pagoda was named after the Thai King
who laid the foundation stone. It is
no surprise then that it is the most
well-known landmark in Penang. The
Kek Lok Si Temple is
another beautiful
Chinese temple of
Penang or Pulau Pinang. The
octagonal basement reminds
of a
Buddhist pagoda,
it’s middle part reminds at
a
Thai pagoda whereas
the upper part looks like a
Burmese one.
Buddha’s statues
and images from all over the
world have been placed in
the temple. Another
well known Chinese temple is
the Dragon Mountain Temple.
It sometimes looks like the
people of Penang Malaysia
were competing who create
the most magnificent temple.
But it's not only
temples and pagodas,
in 1818 English built St
George's Church here. Others
pray in Captain Kling’s
mosque, which bears the
nickname of an Indian
merchant.
Have a look here for the
video on temple action. |
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Temple
of the Goddess of Mercy Kuan Yin Temple Penang
Penang very small Chinese Temple
A very popular Taoist temple -picture
above-, the Temple of
the Goddess of Mercy (Kuan Yin
Temple) Penang's oldest temple, was built
about 1800 by early Chinese settlers. The
temple serves two Chinese goddesses, Kuan
Yin Teng -goddess of mercy- and Ma Chor Poh
-patron saint of sea travelers-. |
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Another Buddhist temple structure
is the 30-metre high bronze Goddess
of Mercy (Kuan Yin), situated on
the first tier of the hill.
Between this temple and the
second one is a turtle pond
representing `longevity'. The
second
temple contains statues of
the Four Heavenly Kings, while the
third level contains large statues
of the Buddha. The Kek Lok Si
temple, which is also known as the
`Temple of Supreme Bliss', attracts
more than a million visitors
annually. It offers a grand sight of
Air Itam and Georgetown. |
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By visiting this
great Penang temples
and have look around
it seems that most
of this religious
roots gave way to
the mammon.
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Nobody is really
after the Buddha
anymore its
only...pls. make me
money, make me win
in the lottery, etc.
Not much of the real
faith is left the
materialistic
fighting took it all
over.
As the
Penang tourist does his way up along the
steps are plenty stalls offering
mementos and the best of Penang’s
homemade snacks.
Two glass lifts are there,
connecting the Pagoda to the Kuan
Yin temple. It covers a distance
of 120m in about two minutes. During
Chinese New Year this Penang Buddhist
temple is adorned by thousands of
brightly lit lanterns and colored
lights.
The birth of the New Lunar
Year goes on for weeks and the
visitors are treated to celebrations
of dragon and lion dances plus
Chinese opera shows. In addition
there is the Moon Cake Festival and
the birthday celebration of the
Goddess of Mercy (Kuan Yin). |

Penang |
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One of the most
famous temple is the Snake Temple,
at the altar
side many poisonous and non
poisonous snakes daze
around and have a quiet life, they are somehow knocked out be the ever
burning incense.
Snake
in the snake temple Penang

Snake from the snake temple Penang

Snake at the snake temple Penang |
Legend tells that a hermit gave refuge
to poisonous
snakes. After he
died, a spiritual cloud took possession, on certain
days the temple is overcrowded by snakes.
Snakes are in the snake temple
now all the time, the bigger are
Burma or Myanmar python, the
smaller, I dont know.

Snake
Temple Nun
The
little problem is with at many
places on this planet
development cuts away the jungle.
Until
a few years ago at the back of
the snake temple was still lush
tropical jungle and the snakes moved
into the snake temple from the back,
out of the jungle.
Now
this jungle is gone and the
snakes wont come in from that side
anymore, they bring them in now.
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Snake Temple Penang

Snake Temple Penang 1 |
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-Penang botanical garden,
butterfly garden, spice garden and the monkey spot
near the Penang botanical garden are places everyone should
visit. You want some fun with
the monkeys, no problem you can have it, they play
with you, buy be careful, they are much faster than
you...monkey fast... Don't carry anything around
like glasses, bags or anything which can be taken
away quickly, the Penang or Pulau Pinang
monkey will take it
and run, they are like the small kids, monkey want
to play and have some toys.
Also keep in mind
monkeys have parasites on their body, so its
better not to touch them, this little jumper insects
will
easily jump over to you and give you a scratchy
time. It's difficult to get rid of it.
 
Penang Monkey Spot near Botanical Garden
Penang Tropical Spice Garden |
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Penang busy little India
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Penang Shopping in little India |
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Indian Restaurant at Penang
Georgetown |
-There
are great restaurants at
Penang Georgetown
with a
incredible beautiful decoration,
such as this Indian Restaurant pictured left.Its
just in the center of Georgetown
where all the big hotels are,
the food is good but as in most
Indian restaurants the portions are
to small, by this trick they try to
encourage to buy more food.
This
is not very wise since if I have to
order 5 main dishes to get somehow
enough to eat its better to go
to the open air Chinese food court
nearby and also get great food, 3
times the size.Unfortunately all Indian restaurants
try it this way to leave you hungry
when you only take about 2 dishes.
They don't know, this is not a hit
and run business. |
-Penang shopping,
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you will find plenty of exotic
items, like handicraft, colorful dresses for the
ladies, exotic items from China and India,
interesting books. One of the best shopping places
is "little India", actually a visit of Penang
or Pulau Pinang without a stroll through "little India" means you
haven't been in
Penang.
Since Penang
has a long history as a cosmopolitan
island it’s the right place for exotic
shopping, antiques from all over Asia and
more are on sales in small dark shops. There are
Buddha statues
in different style from China, Thailand,
Korea, Japan, Myanmar and elsewhere, gold
plated, pure brass, bronze, carved wood and
porcelain.
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Shopping is a the great past time in a
city such as
Penang Georgetown,
hunting for a great bargain a real exotic
purchase. The best shopping destinations at
Penang is Georgetown |
Chinatown with
great antiques hiding behind the window.There is a great variety of other
shopping malls in Penang, shopping
centers and hundreds of shops at Georgetown,
in addition enjoy exotic dining also around
in the area. There are
Chinese,
Indian, Malaysian,
Thailand
and other restaurants around plus several
food courts.Penang
shopping is really exciting, the real
exotic stuff is not at the Penang shopping
centre and Penang shopping mall, it gets
real exotic and exciting in the backstreets
of Georgetown. That finally is real shopping
in Penang. |

Penang Shopping Antiques

Penang shopping mall at Georgetown |
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-Or try some delicious Penang Food like
this great Penang Laksa,
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Laksa with Chicken and Prawn
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Laksa is made from Chicken Prawn
Cucumber Soya Noodles Sambal
Fishcake Onion dried Anchovy |

Laksa base is Soya |

Pour Laksa Soup over |

Spice up the Laksa |
Laksa
comes from Sanskrit and means 1000
add on. since no one has 1000
add on's everyone uses the
ingredients available and creates
his own laksa.
Laksa
is a typical Malaysian dish, has
usually a low price and can be
seen everywhere in Malaysia, almost
every greater region has its own
laksa variety, like Penang Laksa,
Laksa Kedah, Johor Laksa,
Melaka
Nonya Laksa, Curry Laksa and so on.
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Street food Food in Georgetown
Penang |
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All
about
Penang,
Penang,
The
island of
betel nuts, Pulau Pinang,
Penang
Bridge,
Thailand,
Malaysia,
Penang
island,
steep hills,
British
Colonial
Times,
China,
Chinese
girls,
Malaysia,
China, bar,
accommodation
Penang,
hotel
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