PENANG AS A THEME PARK

Saturday - 21 March 2015 - Penang, Malaysia

Penang was one of my favorite ports during my cruises in the 1990s . The island is connected to the mainland by a bridge and a funky ferry. Unlike Muslim mainland Malaysia, Penang has a predominate Chinese culture. Twenty years ago the old section was a lively authentic Chinatown with animal parts hanging on hooks outside of butcher shops and spectacular markets with elderly Chinese women fighting each other for the best produce. Old men sat at folding tables on the sidewalks playing what seemed to be a particularly loud and violent form of mahjong. I was really looking forward to showing Barbara this most interesting place.

Parade of officials arriving to "clear the ship" in Penang

Old British colonial tower near the port in downtown Georgetown, Penang

Silver Wind was not scheduled to dock at the old British Colonial area in Penang until 10:30 am. So we were able to enjoy the approach and watch the characteristic Asian parade of officials coming aboard to "clear the ship". After hundreds of days on these ships, I still don't know what the officials do. We waited patiently until the announcement we could go ashore to start our independent exploration. We made a beeline to the old historic Chinatown.

An immaculate food court has replaced street food

Only a handful of the historic Chinese temples seemed to be authentic

Chinese temple in Penang familiar from my earlier visits

Charmless modernized Chinatown street in Penang 

The old men and women were no more. Except for a somewhat sanitized hawker stand/food court full of tourists and some most impressive Chinese temples, Penang's Chinatown has been changed to yet another theme park. As in Singapore the old buildings had been rebuilt to modern building code. They had only a slight resemblance to the old architecture. What Chinese are there do not actually reside in Chinatown. They staff the now entertainment and restaurant tourist zone for the amusement of mostly Indian tourists. You can't make this up. We were told later that the Malaysian government had abolished the rent controls that had allowed the mostly elderly Chinese population to continue to live in the historic area. The retired and immigrant population could no longer afford to live in Chinatown. With them gone, the area could then be developed as a tourist attraction by outside investors. Oddly enough the Chinese government most likely was behind this redevelopment, a curious kind of "ethnic cleansing" it appeared. Maybe yesterday's politically incorrect tour guide's comments weren't so off-base after all.

The veranda behind the Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Penang

Needless to say we were disappointed in 2015 Penang Chinatown. So I suggested we check out the other historically interesting location in Penang, the iconic Eastern and Oriental Hotel. This Raffles property was the go-to place for the rich and famous since it was built in 1884. I remember visiting the E & O Hotel in the 1990s on each of my visits. Despite the hotel's dowdy non-a/c splendor in those days, it was the place to enjoy a beer or two on the waterfront veranda behind the beautifully archaic Farquhar Bar. The hotel as we approached was definitely reminiscent of the old days, but the lobby was air conditioned to unpleasantly cool despite the 95 degree heat outside. The wooden veranda with its outdoor ceiling fans had been replaced with metal, and the old building was now called, "the heritage wing". A high rise modern hotel was now across the street. At least the Farquhar bar off the lobby was exactly as I remembered. No hotel guests were visible anywhere in the old "main" building.

Weekenders enjoying the Penang waterfront

We finished our exploration of sanitized Penang with a stroll along the waterfront north of the Eastern and Oriental. The locals were enjoying their Saturday, the last day of the weekend in Muslim Malaysia. No one appeared to be Chinese.