Old Quarter, Georgetown, Penang

October 16, 2013

Decaying brick work, narrow lanes and modern vehicles - it can be an exotic mix but the old Quarter of Georgetown needs more funding and continued urban renewal with purpose, commerce and viability.

Plates used for fine dining at a Straits Chinese restaurant hark back to the past - the design could be probably an English perception of old China rather than what was produced in Imperial China itself.

Talk the walking trail around Georgetown, stop for a variety of cuisines and drink plenty of water - paying attention to detail is mostly rewarding. The mural above, Little Children on a Bicycle, located along Armenian Street is illustrative of the work of Ernest Zacharevic from Lithuania, who has his creative skills displayed around the old quarter.

The brotherhood between the cities of Georgetown and Adelaide continue to manifest and evolve,
ever since father Francis Light and son William founded their respective cities and made a mark in the history of two nations.

Cover of box containing baked yellow bean paste biscuits originating from the Fujian community of Penang - the tau snear pnieh.

Part of a mural labelled Boy and the Dinosaur, also from Ernest Zacharevic and found along Ah Quee Street. A challenge of such street art in a place with equatorial weather is to cope with the elements but defacing of such art has also been due to vandalism.

Pencilled drawings can be more simple but also create the atmosphere of an era gone by.

The side of the iconic Goddess of Mercy Temple in Georgetown exemplifies various architectural styles - from Victorian England (top foreground); from southern China (side right); and from southern India (foreground).

Boy on a Bike, also along Ah Quee Street, blurs the distinction between dimensions and suggests a memorable time in adolescence.

A trigger to remind of days in the early 20th century for Penang - the popular form of public transport for families and terraces on a street. I saw this in front of the Noordin Mews.