iNPENANG

Over centuries, foreign merchants and travellers from as far as China, India, Indonesia, Portugal, Holland and Britain have made their way to Southeast Asia via the ‘spice route’, often creating pockets of community within cities. While many foreigners have returned to their homeland, some have stayed on, married local women and started families of their own, creating a cross-cultural and eclectic community found only in Southeast Asia: the Peranakan, which means “locally born”. In Penang, the Peranakan were predominantly Hokkiens from the Fujian Province of southern China. Along with their religious practices, artistic tastes and culinary skills, the Chinese migrants, over time, started merging their heritage with the local Malay influences, developing a unique hybrid culture. This cross-cultural marriage created fusion of language, fashion and lifestyle unique only to Southeast Asia. The Babas and Nyonyas are names given to the men and women in this community. The recipes, famou...

The North Banquet 2016 – The Hosts & The VIPs is the first Red Carpet Gala Dinner in Butterworth organised by CHTNetwork in collaboration with Ichi Media for the first time, established to identify the influential personalities as hosts and provide them a platform to invite their VIPs to this momentous Red Carpet  Event in Butterworth. The Hosts & The VIPs 13 Influential Captains from different industries were honoured as The Hosts of the Night. It was an evening of extensive networking for them to develop new customer prospects, reward their key clients and friends with a VIP experience and connect with the most influential personalities. Over 300 invited guests from various industries dressed to impress at the event with a touch of gold. The event was held on 30th July at Sunway Carnival Convention Centre with great support from fellow sponsors :- Rado, Shiseido Professional, Lamborghini Kuala Lumpur, Sunway Hotel, Royals Blue and Airmas Group. Other suppo...

Welcome to the streets of George Town. Every issue, we bring you on a vicarious tour of the heritage trails of Penang highlighting their history, attractions and more! Sandwiched between the greater downtown area and Chew Jetty, Armenian Street is now the hub for a burgeoning art scene, boutique cafés and restaurants, museums and pop up galleries. Armenian Street, previously known as Malay Lane due to the Malay brazier making copper and brass products, and later dominated by Hokkien traders and religious charity, has now been revived from what used to be a quiet and precarious part of town to a bustling district of charm and discovery. Armenians came to Penang in the early days when it served as an important trading port connecting the East and the West. Arratoon Anthony and the Sarkies brothers were among the few Armenians who played an integral role in establishing the economic, social and civic life in Penang. After the death of the Acheen Street Mosque’s founder – Tengku S...

Golden Sands Resort, Penang by Shangri-La stands out as one of Penang’s best family-oriented hotels, having recently revamped some of its facilities to give young ones a splashing good time. Kids are sure to love the new splash pad complete with tipping water buckets, butterfly sprays, turtle water sprays, rainbow spray, floor water jets, tipping cones and water cannons. The new children’s pool with two water slides is sure to facilitate endless hours of fun. Parents can feel at ease, as everything is designed with safety in mind. In addition, the outdoor Jacuzzi, surrounded by a rock waterfall and cripples plants, has been redesigned to create more space in the lush gardens. The new facilities complement the resort’s family-fun concept, with existing facilities like the Adventure Zone featuring 10,300 sq feet of comprehensive indoor facilities.    It includes Hyperglide Astra Slides, Double Slides and the Demon Drop Slide, which is a 24-foot vertical drop for older chi...

In our previous issue iNPenang Vol.61, we have highlighted one of  Penang’s natural gems – Penang Hill – a natural sanctuary and a cooler alternative to the humid tropical weather in the region. In this edition, let us continue to introduce some the newest eco  projects of Penang Hill. The lush green forest and natural habitat surrounding the area is definitely more than meets the eye. Topping at 2,743ft above sea level, Penang Hill provides a retreat for visitors from the tropical heat and has been some of the local residents’ most favourite weekend pastimes. While Penang Hill continues to be home to some of the local bird and plant species, it has continued to see transformation; balancing the fact that it is a tourist destination and also a secret hideaway from the hustle and bustle of island life. Dated as the oldest British hill station in Southeast Asia, the furnicular train stretches at 1.99km and takes only minutes to arrive at its furthest point of desti...