Penang

It was a 6-7 hour train journey and then a trip across on the ferry to get to the island.  Penang was in fact the first settlement of Britain in South East Asia and was a major trade route for the East India Company.  The main city on Penang is George town, which is an old colonial town, and it has retained the character and atmosphere.  I cant exactly put my finger on why but I really enjoyed my time here, the people, the food the chilled out vibe it has been one of my favorite places!



There is not a huge amount to do except wander around and soak up the atmosphere in small little outdoor coffee shops while enjoying a local iced coffee (local coffee, made with evaporated and condensed milk my favorite way to start the day :), listning to the local Malaysians gossiping away over there morning coffees. 

After having a good look round little India (A UNESCO heritage site) street after street of stalls selling everything from clothing, to deep fried insects to 100s of varieties of spices!  I set of to Penang hill, a local attraction that you can either take the train to the top or you can do a 7-9 hour trek... Considering the blistering heat I opted for the train :-) As you can see the views are incredible!!

 

Also on the way to the top on the train I met a German Timo Hurtig who worked for the German branch of Groupon and two Danish girls Stein and Kristine, one was on her way to medical school and the other not to sure.  We all got on well and where pretty much staying in guest houses next to each other, so we all met for dinner that evening.  It also gave me a handy opportunity to practice my Danish... Who would have thought all the way to SEA to practice Danish ;-)

Me and Timo the next day headed to a small national park on the west coast of the Island.  It was a nice day but the walk was pretty tame with concrete walk way the whole way... I did get to see my first beach and have my first dip in the clear blue Sea

As much as I could happily have stayed another few days I thought it was time to move on so I booked a ticket for Hat Yai, a city just over the boarder in Thailand, and then head to Koh Lipi the next day.