Gurney Drive, Penang, Malaysia

Penang's place to be

Ah... Penang. When I hear this name, I get sentimental. Penang is the famous Pearl of the Orient, but it's also a city where I connect many fond memories. It's my own personal pearl. The name derives from the famous betel nut [檳榔 or bīn láng].

I've been to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong... but no place in Asia has the same charm as Penang. This city is different. On the one hand it's totally Malaysian: dense traffic, noise and extremely hot. But it's also a bit different, not only because it's located on an island, but because of its people. It's one of the few Malaysian cities, that has more Chinese than Malays (only Ipoh is more Chinese dominated). But you'll find all kinds of people there. It has a rich history and it's famous all over Malaysia, no, all over Asia for being a food paradise. You have a lot of tourists in Penang that come from everywhwere: Westerners, Japanese, Thais, Singaporeans and many more. I have a special personal bond with Penang, because my 3 months, that I spent there in 2007 were the best time of my life. I really miss those days. And most of the time I was in Gurney Drive. It's a vibrant part of Penang stretched along the northern coast, where you have a lot of hawkers, shopping malls, hotels, condos and a very long promenade along the shore. Let me show you some photos of Gurney.

Gurney is the part of Penang, where many rich people live.

There's a long promenade with benches stretched along the coast.

Gurney Plaza is the biggest shopping mall in the area. I have loved to go shopping here.

The front part of Gurney Plaza mall, where cars are allowed to pass. Usually guys would pick up girls after work here. Malays and Indian usually on scooters, Chinese usually in cars.

Here's a little plaza with cafés and restaurants. I loved to hang out here. It was always a good mix of locals and tourists, because of the hotel and the condo in the area.

Right is Gurney Plaza, on the left is a condo. This was in 2007.

The Sunrise Tower in Gurney. I used to live here. It was an amazing time.

Close to the Sunrise Tower.

A local night market was in the area. I always ate local delicacies here. It was divided in two parts, the biggest and the crowded one was with Chinese food, the smaller was with Malay and Indian food. That's because Muslims are not allowed to eat non-Muslim (non halal) food.

Cars parked along the main road in Gurney.

Gurney Drive was definitely one of my favorite parts of Penang. Of course the locals will say it's very touristy and that the food there is not the best, but the night market was usually bursting with people, especially on Friday and Saturday evenings. It was the place where I used to live, where I used to go every day and I started to like it. And sometimes I miss it. Back in 2007 the Gurney Plaza shopping mall wasn't extended yet, it was much smaller, but still good enough for a daily visit to the food court or to buy some small things. Living in Gourney is very convenient. If you ever choose to settle in Penang, I think that's the place to be.

Check also: My post about Gurney Plaza Shopping Mall>>

[My MALAYSIA page][My PENANG page][All photos by MKL, 2007]