Tourist sites are always focusing on one single attraction: it is either a beach destination or a city shopping destination. What if we say that you can have both the beach and the city shopping, all within close proximity to each other? Yes, it is possible, when you are in George Town, Penang.

As a Beach Destination

The island started off as a tourist beach destination, with stretches along the present day Tanjung Tokong right up until Balik Pulau. There are also nicely renovated areas such as Gurney Drive and Esplanade where people can have a leisure walk or even jog in the evenings.  Let us take a closer look at them.

There are hotels just right next to the beach. The moment you open the doors if you are staying on the ground floor units, you will be able to reach the sandy beach just a few steps away. Or, you may just sit at the balcony to enjoy the peaceful seaview as the evening fades away.

Some hotels offer water sports facilities such as jet skis or parachuting and also showcase websites such as watersportsmag on their public screens to keep their visitors updated with the latest water sports news.  Some have rafting and kayaking, but do ensure that you adhere to the safety rules and regulations. There are a lot of activities for couples, families and children, depending on  what you want. If you are not sporty or adventurous, the splendid cuisine prepared in these restaurants are enough to occupy your time, together with the lovely settings that is suitable either for a romantic dinner for two, or a family reunion of a whole clan.

The location of such beach hotels are not really that far away from town either. However, the structure of the roads leading to the winding paths of the beach hotels almost tear your mind away from the busy streets of the city area. Along the way to the hotel, you will be able to see stretches of beaches and sea, a good view which serves as an introduction for your vacation by the sea.

As a Shopping Haven

There are a lot of shopping options in Penang, and local Penagites have a reputation of buying the cheapest and the best. Visitors can be spoilt by choice, and town hotels are just walking distance away from the most interesting shopping malls around town.

For the ultimate city experience, you may want to take a look at the wet markets available in the morning. These wet markets are where locals shop, and usually situated in the middle of many old, local shops selling dim sum or local food stores for breakfast. There are fresh fruits and vegetables, and meat is freshly displayed. Buyers get to choose the parts of meat that they want, and the butcher will slice the parts out for them right there. Besides these fresh produce, there can be lovely local delicacies or simple t-shirts for sale at highly affordable prices.

There are also a lot of mid-range products. Supermarkets are stocked with fresh and frozen produce, packaged products and sometimes, freshly baked bread and buns. The supermarkets will also have canned products and other grocery items. You may buy some items back to the hotel for convenience, for example, instant coffee, tea or cereals. Supermarkets making such good deal offerings include Tesco and Giant.

Those looking for non-tropical items such as avocados and berries, fresh and imported overseas, may also opt to shop at Cold Storage or Jaya Jusco. These supermarkets are situated at the ground floor or lower ground floor of shopping malls, while the upper floors will have retailers selling clothes, bags, shoes, electrical products and other consumer items.

Options, options, and more options

Visitors have a lot of choices in Penang. This is especially true for foods, There are delicious local foods, sold mostly at hawker stalls where you may easily see the food items being cooked, and there are also international fine dining cuisine. The wide range and variety of foods make your experience totally distinguished, and the plus point is that you may enjoy it all within close proximity of each other in the island.  Some food items are uniquely Penang, which means that even though you may find stalls putting their names similar to that in Penang, the food produced is going to be different.

You can still get food in Penang for lesser than USD1 for each bowl. Even if the food is cheap, the taste is absolutely fabulous. Many people cannot understand why or how this can be maintained in Penang. Well, this is the way Penangites do business. If you sell expensive, you will not capture the mass market. Penangites will always find an alternative where it is cheaper and taste better too.

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The tiny island was once a favorite holiday destination with its beautiful beaches, an assembly which attracted tourists worldwide. It stayed as a favorite for a long time, until beaches began to lose the attractiveness when rubbish piled in the wake of the millenium. The Pearl of the Orient started to lose its lustre in the world map, and people were forgetting that there is an island called Penang in this world.

In 2008, a tiny spark once more started a fire which brought the island back on the world map. It was the event where Melaka and George Town was conferred the World Heritage Site status by UNESCO. Since then, the new Penang government (the state government changed due to election, in which the state fell in the hands of the opposition party) worked hard with the little resources available to make the island's reputation stronger in the international arena.

There are so many reasons to make George Town into a World Heritage Site with Melaka. The buildings at the heritage site and the people are still practicing their cultures which are unique to Penangites. There are, for example, homes of the Babas and Nyonyas with a segregated ancestral tablet hall, decorated with attractive wooden pillars and eaves that displayed the skills of excellent workmanship. These buildings have a typical structure similar to older homes in China. There are also clan associations, with buildings similar to ancient Chinese temples, complete with stone wall murals and dragon carved pillars, plus a large area with a stage for performance.

Another example is the Little India, a whole community of Indians with their spice and herbs businesses, sarees, restaurants grocery stores. One can find the traditional Indian trades in this area, and there are also Indian temples worshipping the lovely Lord Ganesha and other Hindu gods.

As a symbol of harmony, there are also Muslim temples with historical values in Georgetown. A significant sign of this harmony is evident where three different religious buildings are just walking distance from each other along the Kampong Kolam and Pitt Street area: Kapitan Keling Mosque, Sri Mariamman Temple and the Goddess of Mercy Temple. All three religious buildings have significant historical and cultural values, blessing the island for safety and prosperity.

Since there is diversity of ethnics in the island, one may also expect a lot of celebrations throughout the year. Besides the celebrations similar to other states in Malaysia, Penangites have many other special celebrations unique to the island. One may say that Penangites are a religious lot, and celebrations are usually centered around the religious believes of the ethnics. Being a state with a majority of Chinese, about 60 percent of all cultural celebrations are about the Chinese too.

Examples include the annual celebrations of Hungry Ghost Festival, a celebration during the seventh lunar month where the gates of hell are supposedly opened and hungry ghosts free to roam among us. The Ghost King statue, usually a huge, fierce statue, is erected, one at almost every district, for the locals to worship for safety and to appease the spirits of the hungry ghosts. There are Chinese opera performances and modern singers which is stylised into the local name of “ko tai” (literally meaning 'song stage'), staging performances supposedly with audience of the 'brothers' from the underworld. The Penang State Government had, in the past two years, made this into a state event specially at the large field along Datuk Keramat Road to promote this rare culture which is uniquely Penang. To add to the mix, visitors will find that each district display and practice may be different, depending on whether the religious master appointed for the area is a Buddhist or a Taoist.

While the seventh month celebrates the hungry ghosts, the ninth month is a celebration of pirates. The Chinese community once again set up tents to worship the Nine Emperor Gods, a team of great pirates reputedly in quests similar to that of Robin Hood in the West. Strangely, the celebration which lasts for nine days is usually accompanied by a lot of rain. It is said that the rain brings the arrival and departure of the Nine Emperor Gods through their route by the sea. During this period, many believers become pure vegetarians, so pure that even the eating utensils will have to be new and clean. Make shift stalls mushroom around town along the streets selling vegetarian food during this period of time, and patrons identify them with the bright, yellow cloth to be sure that they are serving pure vegetarian foods suitable for the festival.

So, there are these two, buildings and culture, that are unchanged throughout history that made UNESCO nod with agreement to confer the World Heritage Status to George Town. This is how history is utilised to create more history in the lovely Penang island.

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What is in your mind when it comes to the idea of an ideal wedding?

For some, it is all about the photography, the banquet, and the honeymoon. For others, it is all about a simple ceremony involving only family members. There are also some who believe that getting registered is equivalent to a complete marriage without any other ceremony. However, one thing we know for sure is that any wedding needs a good venue, just to make it really memorable.

If you are looking for a memorable beach wedding with the option of a lovely banquet and plenty of beautiful places for outdoor wedding photography, you should start making your preparations in Penang island. There are many themes which you may use for your wedding, and give you the variety to add uniquely creative ideas to make your wedding more fulfilling.

Heritage Theme

Get dressed in traditional Baba and Nyonya clothes, and take photographs in real heritage buildings as backgrounds and set-ups for a different experience out of the studio. There are Pinang Peranakan Mansion, Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and many other heritage buildings for you to take photographs in. If you are interested in a little adventure as a backdrop, you may make a little arrangement with the photographer to film you walking along the streets in Little India or in front of the elegant buildings along Beach Street.

Beach Theme

Many ladies agree that the beach is an ultimate romantic venue. Many girls imagine a sweet and romantic proposal by the beach with a bunch of beautiful roses and a diamond ring just the way they imagined it should be. It will be even more romantic if there are a lot of people there to be witness to this grand proposal, so a beach wedding will be ideal.

Penang beach hotels have lovely beaches offering such beach weddings, including Rasa Sayang Hotel, Golden Sands Hotel, Park Royal, Hard Rock Hotel and E&O Hotel. Arrangements can be made to have the witness of the wedding, and if the couple wants it, a priest may also be appointed to officiate the ceremony.

Garden Theme

Penang has some really beautiful gardens, such as the Botanical Garden, Youth Park and Penang Hill. Penang Hill has an additional plus point of the funicular train and a view of the whole of Penang. There are a lot of greens that will become similar to a fairy land in wedding photography sessions, as long as the photographer is skilled enough to identify the best locations with the most attractive trees and natural formations.

City Theme

A city theme is probably one that is least used in weddings, maybe because the cliché of wedding is to be away from the hustle and bustle of the city. However, Penang has an abundance of scenery, such as the pier with its ferry as background, landmarks such as KOMTAR, and plenty of other interesting buildings. The couple may also take advantage of the Gurney Drive or Esplanade for photography sessions, and it will be interesting to see the contrasting background with the sea and the city's prosperity.

Religious Themes

For those who are interested in having a religious theme for the wedding, Penang has a lot of temples, and you may get permission from the chief monk to use the temple for prayers and wedding photography, especially if you would like to ask the chief monk to bless the new couple as part of the ceremony. If temples are not of your interest, you may also seek the permission of the many churches in Penang for photography purposes.

There are a few approaches if you wish to have a wedding in Penang as a foreigner. If your spouse is local, you may be registered first at the government Registrar of Marriage with all documents ready. As a foreigner, you will need a copy of your passport and a letter from the consulate to prove that you are single at the moment of marriage. If you have been married before but divorced or if your spouse had passed away, do bring the relevant documents for support of your declaration.

Once you have got the legal documents ready, you have the option of getting help from either a wedding planner or the hotel public relations handling your banquet. Either of them will be able to help you with the type of wedding you wish to have, and may pitch in some interesting ideas which you have not thought of. Both will also be able to make preparations for your wedding including photography and the dinner function.

Have you got an idea for your marriage ceremony yet? There are a lot of ideas once you see Penang. Start making your preparations today!

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