A Family Holiday in Penang...

"There is something truly magical about the holiday season that brings out the child in all of us..."

(The grandchildren at the beach)

(Bank Negara resort at Batu Ferringhi)

(All in the family in Penang)

(A short holiday with the kids and grandkids)

(The two of us at the beach)

Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan in Penang…

“The most profound joy has more of gravity than of gaiety in it...”

(Craving for Nasi Lemak)

I am an advocate for solitude despite my too-busy schedule. Often out of the blue I would be wondering aloud what my day would look like if I had nothing to do.

As the week ahead was quite free, we decided to drive north and stayed in BNM Resort in Ferringhi for a few nights and as usual, indulged in Penang’s good food.

 

(BNM Bungalow Unit)

1. Warung Bawal Goreng Pokok Cheri

This stall located at Jalan Mahkamah, Bayan Lepas is famous for their crispy fried ikan bawal. The fried ikan bawal are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The Fried ikan bawal is best eaten with steaming white rice and sweet spicy soy sauce.

(A warung specialised in Ikan Bawal Goreng)

(A very hot sweating afternoon)

(The bawal goreng set)

2. Roti Bakar Kacang Phool Nazzeera's

One of the three outlets in Penang is located in the food court in Kompleks Desiran Tanjung. The café is opened for breakfast and brunch and closes at 1.30 pm. There are a variety of combo from the menu. The taste was superb and food presentation is good.

(Located in a food court)

(A complete menu)

(An A+ for presentation)

3. Mee Sotong Hameed Pata

The stall is located in the food court Padang Kota. It starts operating at 12 noon until 6 pm every day except Sunday. The taste of Mee Sotong includes all the spicy, sweet and sour flavours of spicy. Over the years, the taste remains the same and delicious.

(ABC to complement the spicy Mee goreng)

(Not so crowded today)

(More orders of Mee Sotong)

4. Hussein Pasembor

This stall is located in Padang Kota Lama, and is also known as pasembur Padang Kota. You may be a little surprised at the price which may be a little pricey than expected.

(A long queue at the stall)

(A plate for two)

(The sauce will make the difference)

5. Nasi Lemak Ali Daun Pisang

It is a stall selling only nasi lemak in front of the Sri Weld Food Court along Beach Street. There was always a long line at this stall. There were five types of nasi lemak sold there. They were anchovies with hard-boiled egg, squid, prawn, fish and salted fish with hard-boiled egg.

(Located in front of the food court)

(Nasi lemak with a glass of Ais kopi)

(Spacious and clean food court)

6. Food Garage Café, Ferringhi

This place has a great mixture of western, Thai and Malay food. It is a short walking distance from our BNM Resort. The food was good and the prices were reasonable!

 

(A walk in the garden)

(Western dishes for dinner)

(Nice ambience and family friendly)

7. Taman Tun Sardon Food Court

This place serves varieties of authentic Malay, Chinese and Indian food. Among others are lontong, Nasi Lamuni, Serabai, Apom Lenggang Manis, Chapati and Char Kuey Teow.

(A busy area next to the Pasar Awam)

(Varieties of breakfast dishes)

(Nasi Lamuni and Lontong)

A visit to Rumah P. Ramlee...

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it...”

(P. Ramlee was born here)

This morning, after a heavy breakfast of toasted garlic bread and Kacang Phool, we drove towards Penang town and decided to visit Rumah P. Ramlee

Rumah P. Ramlee is a museum located on Jalan P. Ramlee, formerly known as Caunterhall Road. This building is a wooden house of the famous P. Ramlee, a country artist, singer, actor, composer and also director. P. Ramlee or real name Teuku Zakaria Bin Teuku Nyak Puteh was born on 22 March 1929 in Penang.

Originally built in 1926 by his father and uncle Rejab Bin Husin, this house was renovated several times before being completely taken over by the National Archives as a continuation of the P. Ramlee Memorial project in Kuala Lumpur. The items on display there include diaries, personal memories related to his life in Penang, and also items belonging to his family.

(Scenes around the historical house)

(A typical kampung house)

(The side and front entrances)

(A large poster on the wall)

(The  bedroom and the kitchen)

(History and descriptions on the wall)

(A brief history of the house and signages)

(Cooling off on a very hot day)

(A beautiful clean compound)

(P. Ramlee was born here)

Masjid Al-Qahhar, Permatang Damar Laut, Pulau Pinang (1821)

“Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles...” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

(A beautiful historical mosque)

During our stay in Penang, we managed to visit a few attractions. One of them was Masjid Al-Qahhar. Masjid Al-Qahhar is also known as Masjid Permatang Damar Laut. During our last visit to Penang, we saw the minaret but did not manage to locate this historical mosque.

Masjid Permatang Damar Laut was founded by Haji Abdullah from Pulau Langkawi. He left for Penang after the Siamese conquered Kedah in 1821. There was a possibility that Masjid Permatang Damar Laut was built just after the war started. During a visit to the mosque in the 1960s, Tunku Abdul Rahman gave an allocation for its renovation. In 1975, the original mosque had to be demolished to make way for the construction of the Bayan Lepas Airport. The mosque was relocated to the present location.

In June 2017, the then DPM announced the allocation of RM4 million for the upgrade of the Al-Qahhar Mosque in Permatang Damar Laut. The allocation will be channelled through two phases to enable the old mosque to be rebuilt for the comfort of the congregation.

After much delay and onset of the pandemic, on 30 September 2022 a Ceremony was held to hand over the new mosque and the declaration of the First Friday Prayer of Masjid Al-Qahhar, Permatang Damar Laut.

To date, a total of RM5.58 million has been spent to rebuild this historical beautiful mosque.

(A newly renovated mosque)

(Ample parking area around the mosque)

(Air conditioned prayer hall)

(The view from the street)

(Signages at the mosque)

Masjid Al-Arab, Penang - 1898

“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously, that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case you fail by default...”

(Masjid Al-Arab,Penang)

GPS: 5.414704, 100.322588
05°24′52.93″N 100°19′21.32″E

Masjid Al-Arab Mosque Jalan Seang Tek is believed to have been built at the end of the 19th century. This is based on the Deed of Conveyance dated January 1898. The founding of the Arab Mosque began when a merchant named Sultansah bin Adamsah who lived in Lebuh Chulia donated a piece of land to build a mosque for the Muslim community living in Kampung Limow Manis, between Jalan Melaka and Jalan Seang Tek). 

(The frontal view of Masjid Al-Arab)

(A two-storey building)

(The signage of the mosque)

(Gated and locked)

The construction year of this mosque is not known clearly but it is believed that the mosque existed at the end of the 19th century because when the Deed of Conveyance 1898 was made, the construction process of the mosque had already started.

This mosque has also been a gathering place for people of Arab descent in Penang since the 1930s and this practice still remains today, especially on Hari Raya.

(Parking our car by the road side)

(The minaret attached to the building)

(The stairs leading to the main entrance)

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