Didn't expect that I'll be on a plane and off for another vacation so soon... so here we go!
Dee and I met in High School back in Australia about 7 years ago. We then went on to complete our undergraduate studies at University of New South Wales (UNSW) and after we graduated, we coincidentally and without discussing with each other, we both decided to move back to Singapore together.
Well, usually we do not get much time to catch-up as Dee was an auditor and her work required her to heavily work over time. However she quit her job a month ago and since she will be starting her new job very soon, we decided to make use of her gap between now till her next job to quickly do a relaxing trip together. We did not aim to get a lot done in Penang, but the main idea was for it to be a recuperating trip for us both.
Personally I was quite inspired to visit Penang after watching Outbound Love (单恋双城）, and for those who do not know, it is a recent Hong Kong drama production of TVB.
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| The drama that inspired me to visit Penang! | | |
Holiday BEGINS!!! A rather unconventional way of visiting Penang I believe...
We flew into Penang via Tigerair, catching the earliest flight out of Singapore to Penang. The return flight tickets cost us each about SGD$146 (with 15kg luggage for one person). We checked in at the counter around 6.10am, two hours ahead of our departure time 8.10am. And since we had time between check in and boarding, we decided to enjoy a nice meal of breakfast before boarding, or rather just me as Dee already had breakfast prior to coming to the airport.
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| Pancakes for breakfast! |
As a working adult, having the luxury of sitting at MacDonalds' on a weekday morning enjoying a plate of pancakes was rare... So when else better than these to grab hold of one? Maybe because I haven't had MacDonald's in a while, it seems like their formula for hash browns have changed.
While walking to the gates, Dee brought my attention to the posters on the walls.
"Starstruck" at the airport... Yes, this is Kim Soo Hyun, the male lead of the latest and hottest Korean drama
My Lover from Another Star!
Off we went... we boarded through gate F55. And this was the first time we have had to go down the stairs to await for boarding...
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| Going down the flight of stairs |
And what waited for us at the gates was not the plane but a bus which drove us to the plane which was parked about a 5 mins drive away. This was the first time both Dee and I had to hop onto a bus at the boarding gates. It was a nice experience but because of the transfer, we had to wait patiently for the rest of the passengers to board.
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| Captured this nice photo with the rising sun behind the plane just right before entering in |
After about an hour flight, we arrived at Penang International Airport.
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| Penang International Airport!!! |
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| Spotted a Korean Air plane the minute we landed into Penang :) |
Our pre-booked driver Max was there waiting for us. We initially booked for Max just as an airport transfer to our hotel, but since the check-in time wouldn't be till later, Max suggested giving us a quick drive around Penang before dropping us off at the hotel for check-in.
First stop: Air Itam Penang Laksa
Many people say you haven't been to Penang unless you have tried the Penang Laksa. It is totally not spicy at all, more of sour than anything. And it suits Dee since she was not a big fan of the local Laksa due to the coconut milk in it.
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| Famous Air Itam Pasar LAKSA |
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| Asam Laksa, RM4 (about SGD$1.50) |
Second stop: Penang Hill
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| The entrance of Penang Hill |
Since we were around the corner, we might as well visit the Penang Hill too. We took a bullet train ride (~about 10 mins ride) up the hill. The train tickets cost RM30 (SGD$11.70~) each.
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| Our train tickets |
And when you reach the top, there is a sign which says, "You've never been to Penang unless you have been to Penang Hill".
We took a quick stroll around the hill, the haze kind of blocked the scenic view of the Penang from the top. The hill sat at 712m above sea level and it was the highest point in Penang.
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| Photo captured from the top of the hill |
Oh and there was a fence for lovers to lock their "love padlocks" on it too! Seems like this is a popular idea across the globe!
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| "LOVE" |
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| Many lovers' lock on the fence |
Third stop: Tean Ean Local Products
Well I had intially wanted to visit Him Heang for their famous
Tambun Biscuits but according to Max, their chef has changed and the Tambun Biscuits does not taste the same anymore. So under Max's recommendation, we went to Tean Ean Local Products. They sold a large variety of local products including the Tambun Biscuits, and even Bak Kuh Teh. My personal favourite was the Pandan Tambun Biscuits, though they also had several different other flavours.
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| Tean Ean Local Products |
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| Cute "ah ma" and "ah gong" outside the shop |
Fourth stop: Toy Museum
I'm sure everyone was once a kid and there must have been some toys that always brings back memories of your childhood. This was a place where many people can re-live some childhood memories.
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| Entrance |
Entrance fee is RM30 (SGD$11.70~).
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| Pretty dolls |
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| Such a cute "LALA" from Teletubbies! |
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| Doraemon! |
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| Old Master Q and Big Potato （老夫子和大番薯） |
There was a super wide collection of toys in the museum but just uploading a few of my personal favourite ones.
That ended our tour with Max and he drove us to our hotel.
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| Max's car |
Feel free to contact Max at +60164828695 or email him at maxtan88sx@yahoo.com though I would highly recommend you call him directly as that would be the fastest way to get through to him.
Then we checked into our Hotel. We had booked Flamingo Hotel by the Beach for the first night as Dee had wanted a beach type of holiday and this was as far as what we'll get in Penang.
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| Flamingo Hotel by the Beach |
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| Panoramic View of our Hotel Room |
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| Just had to add this photo of RAINBOW resting on our beds... |
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| The sea view from our room |
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| The pool view from our room |
We quickly changed into our swimming costumes and got ready for a splash in the pool. It was around 3pm (a time I would definitely not go for a swim due to the hot sun) but still we went as according to Dee the waters would not be that cold since the sun was out. Apparently she was wrong, the waters were still cold, but as I frequently swim at night, the waters were just nice for me and it was a relaxing and refreshing swim!
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| Beach Bar by the Pool |
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| The pool |
The beach was just a few steps down from the side of the pool.
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| To the beach |
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| The BEACH |
After all that fun, we showered and our stomachs informed us that they were empty so off we went for dinner.
We had two options, either we were going to have a luxurious Korean meal or we can cross opposite to catch a bus to the Batu Ferringhi Night Market. We decided to be less adventurous and choose the former.
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| Local bus |
We took the Rapid Penang bus 101 from the bus-stop in front of our hotel to our dinner destination Daorae Korean Restaurant which was about 10 mins drive away and cost us only RM2.80 (SGD1.10~) in total.
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| Bus-stop in front of the hotel |
But do NOTE that the buses do not provide any change so it may be a good idea to prepare exact.
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| Bus tickets |
About a few stops later, we alighted at the bus-stop which was right by the side of the restaurant.
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| Daorae Korean BBQ Restaurant |
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| Generous Side Dishes |
We decided to do away with the BBQ as we were both showered clean and we did not want to smell like BBQ.
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| Kimchi Jeon-Gal (Kimchi Army Stew) |
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| Japchae |
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| Pajeon - Korean Pancake |
We enjoyed our dinner under the nice environment and it was quiet enough that we were able to have a good chat over the meal. The meal was a bit more costly compared to the average Penang price for food, we paid RM132 (SGD$51~) for what we ordered.
They surprised us with two lollipops when we left the restaurant. Overall it was a pleasant dining experience.
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| Hello Kitty lollipops! |
We knew in advance that we may not have much to do as night and that it could be a little dangerous so we decided to bring along MASKS and pamper our skins for the night.
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| Our face and foot mask for the night! |
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| Dee first time doing foot mask! |
And that pretty much sums up our first day in Penang!
To read more on our second day in Penang, access
here.
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