Penang

We got an overnight bus from Johor Bahru to Butterworth, then the ferry to Penang. Penang is a small island a short distance away from mainland Malaysia which is known for its culture, history and great food. We stayed in Georgetown which is the capital of Penang. When we arrived we were all very tired so spent the day just relaxing and having a walk around. On the second day we caught the local bus to Air Itam to visit the Kek Lok Si Temple, the largest Buddist temple in Southeast Asia. It sits on the side of a mountain and it is a steep walk up to it. It was a very beautiful place and we took our time looking around and climbing up the different parts of it where possible. We got a cable car further up the mountain where there was a 30 meter tall bronze statue of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, amongst other things. On our last day in Penang we did our own little walking tour. We walked past old British Colonial buildings, past mosques and temples and Catholic churches, through China Town and Little India and then to the harbour front where we climbed a big lighthouse. We finished up at Fort Cornwallis, the oldest standing fort in Malaysia. We climbed on cannons, explored the old buildings and read about the history of the fort. In some of the building were sacks of spices and things, like fennel seeds and star anise, which we tried then had to guess what foods we thought we had tasted with them in.
We have been eating local food in all the places we have visited, but because Penang is known as having the best food in Malaysia, Mum insisted I got more daring with what I ate. On this trip I have discovered that I like lots of foods that I refused to try back in England, I even like spicy foods now.