Federation of Malaysia
Penang Island
Tune Hotel +60379625888 enquiry@tunehotels.com
Clean and adequate standard double room for only MYR 20.- or US$ 5.50 per night - a steal! Young and enthusiastic staff.
Click below for an interactive road map of the Tune Hotel in George Town, which we would recommend, and for directions:Click below for today’s special deals at
Matt: Taking the Rapid KL local bus no. U 81 from the Klang bus station at Pasar Seni (Kuala Lumpur) to Subang, about 25 km WSW of Kuala Lumpur, and flying with Firefly (“Your Community Airline”) in a turboprop ATR 72 from Kuala Lumpur (Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport at Subang) to Penang’s Bayan Lepas International Airport for all inclusive MYR 35.- or US$ 10.-, one way.
Matt: Watching the colourful and brightly lit float (some bearing the statute of Buddha) and candlelight procession in Georgetown, the bustling state capital of Penang (affectionately known as the “Pearl of the Orient”) and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on Vesak Day (promisingly pronounced "we-suck day") when the Buddhist devotees, a potpourri of diverse cultures, celebrated Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death by carrying candles in the shape of a lotus, Wesak flags, lanterns, flowers and joss sticks, and chanting prayers.
Matt: Visiting the Kek Lok Si temple in Air Itam, the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, and climbing the seven-tier, 30-m high tower of its Ban Po Thar aka Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda which consists of Burmese designs on top, Chinese at the bottom and Thai in between.
Matt: Exploring the many ornate kongsi (Chinese clan houses, mostly Hokkien) and recovering in-between each visit in one of the excellent-value eateries in the Chinatown of Georgetown, hailed as the food capital of Malaysia, and tracking down Penang’s Malay, Chinese and Indian heritage in its unique cuisine (from yong tau fu [bean curd and veggies stuffed with fish paste] via asam laksa [fish soup spiked with tamarind paste and a mint garnish, served with thick, white rice noodles] to chee cheong fun [broad, paper-thin rice noodles that are steamed and rolled around a filling of prawns, served with a chilli dip sauce]) which is additionally spiced up by the cooking of a multitude of immigrants to Penang (e.g. Europeans, Armenians, Jews, Arabs, Japanese, Ceylonese, Javanese, Burmese, Siamese, Achinese, Buginese), and eventually trying to structure his overwhelming impression of bustling Penang from the 60th-floor observation deck (entry: MYR 15.- or US$ 4.-) of the 232-m tall Komtar building in downtown George Town.
Matt: Flying with Firefly (“Your Community Airline”) in a turboprop ATR 72 from Penang’s Bayan Lepas International Airport back to Kuala Lumpur (Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport at Subang) for all inclusive MYR 35.- or US$ 10.-, one way, and catching the KL Metrobus no. 9 from the airport at Subang back to Kuala Lumpur Sentral.
Click below for a summary of this year's travels
2009 Map Konni & Matt
Click below and see more Konni & Matt Pictures
2009 Map Konni & Matt
Click below and see more Konni & Matt Pictures
Photos 2009-09 Penang Island
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