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Historic Penang: Delving into Malaysian Street Art

Georgetown Penang, is a historic World Heritage Site. The buildings are maintained in the traditional old Chinese style architecture and there are small Buddhist, Hindu, And Muslim Mosque and Temples at every corner. Within this section of Penang is a small China Town, Little India, historic teak building, and LOTS of amazing food. The result is a charming cultural hub of friendly, relaxed people and backpackers.

Hidden amongst the old painted buildings is an array of public art. On each corner are iron worked comics with a small fact about that block and its name. However, the most famous of the public art are the many murals painted by Ernest Zacharevic. Ernest is from Lithuanian and moved to Malaysia as a mural artists. He originally started painting on traditional wooden clogs but now makes his mark through modern street art.

Together a few friends and I created a self walking tour of Penang to search for his hidden mural treasures. Most of the pieces were located close to our hostel though some we had to peak around a corner or two. The art depicts images of local people, mainly children, playing around the city. He used props like bikes cut in half or windows of buildings to act in conjunction with the art. Some alternative pieces made statements about the failures of Malaysia to protect its natural resources though non were blatantly political. Overall the art was quaint and beautifully done. It added historical character to the already lovely city that I so enjoyed spending four days in.

Cambodia: One Fruit One Nut

My parents came to visit me! We spent close to three weeks traveling through Cambodia, Southern Vietnam, and ending in Bangkok. Overall it was an excellent trip with many "Oh Vietnam" moments. Though the trip was slow at times we still got to see Angkor Wat, Phenom Phen, The Killing Fields, Saigon, Hoi An, and many many sites in Bangkok.

We started the trip in Siem Riep to visit the many magnificent temples of Angkor. I can't even begin to describe how awe struck they made us feel. they ruins are huge and cover miles of space. Many countries are helping Cambodia rebuild the fallen temples and preserve this recently recognized World Heritage Site. We spent two days admiring their awesomeness in the blistering sun and humidity and by the end we were templed out (especially my Dad).

Next we joined a group and boarded a small river cruise on a boat down the Mekong named the Jahan. I unfortunately cannot say we enjoyed this part of our journey so much. It was not that it was bad but that it was painstakingly slow. we visited boring rural village after another and watched ignorant people shove candy in children (an sometimes adults faces).

What we did enjoy on the boat was our tour guide in Cambodia. He was a survivor of the Pol Pot Khmer Rouge Cambodian Genocide. His experience gave him extensive knowledge on the war which was fascinating. This as especially interesting for my dad who is very interested in the history of the region. In Phenom Phen he guided us through both the S1 Prison and the Killing Fields. All his stories were so full of heart that they educated while keeping me captivated. This really helped keep us interested in the river cruise.

After the Boat we quickly hit Saigon and Cu Chi Tunnels for a day before going to lovely Hoi An. I think Hoi An is the ONLY part of Vietnam I can say I like. We had a great time getting tailor made clothes made and staying at a lovely resort by the beach. We also spent a day taking a cooking class. The class so great in fact that our last night we all agreed the best meal we had all week was the one we cooked together at the cooking school.

We ended our trip in Bangkok. There we explored the Grand Palace, took a ride through the canals, shopped till we dropped at the weekend market, and explored the ridiculously large shopping malls! My favorite Bangkok moment was our photo shoot in a Japanese photo booth where we picked our backgrounds and added clip art (hopefully photos to come soon!)

All in all it was a great trip. I am so thankful my parents came and experienced part of my travels with me. I am lucky to have them support me in my adventures and silently worry at home . I am also really enjoying my friendship grow with my mom and the fun we have together.
Now I am back on the road again and heading south for the summer into Koh Phi Phi Thailand and then towards Indonesia.