Penang '15

Last week saw me travelling to Penang, an island very slightly off Malaysia. My grandmother was born and raised in Penang, but after getting married to my granddad at the tender age of 18, moved to Singapore with him. I grew up knowing my relatives and family in Penang. We don't visit as often as we would like, but we definitely stop by once every 2-3 years when possible :) Even so, I would still think I'm relatively close to my direct family there because when we do visit we don't do anything touristy since we spend all our time with family. 

I love Penang, and I especially love visiting. Perhaps its because I'm only able to meet up with my family once every few years, but each time I do there's always that sense of excitement that leads up to the trip. This is then followed by that same sense of sadness and forlornness after returning home. Whilst we usually only visit for up to 4/5 days each time, for some reason the trip this year felt shorter than normal. 

Toilet selfie

We usually travel by plane from Singapore to Penang. My dad has long since given up driving into Malaysia because it really takes a toll on his health. I remember taking long car rides back when I was little. We'd depart as early as 5am to travel to Johor Bahru up to KL before making a pitstop for one night and then resuming our trip to Penang. I think it usually takes us 2 or 3 days to get to Penang itself by driving. That's a huge comparison to the 1 hour plane ride to Penang haha! I usually fall asleep once I get on the plane and by the time I'm up we've already landed. 

We stayed at G Hotel Kelawai this year. The last time we came we stayed at G Hotel Gurney but this new establishment at Kelawai just recently opened and my dad wanted to give it a go. The two hotels are a stone's throw away from each other, with both being ridiculously close to Gurney Plaza. It's convenient for us especially if we need to do some last minute shopping / eat after returning from our relative's place. Also the hotel provides a buggy / shuttle service from one hotel to the other. I was originally really keen to be sitting on the buggy, but realised its so much faster to walk there than take the buggy! The buggy takes a longer route since it has to travel on a proper pavement whereas if you were to walk you're able to take the shortcut and its a lot nearer. 

I'm not picky with the hotels I stay at, as long as I'm able to feel safe and have proper rest whilst I'm there I'm good. If I were to compare between the one along Gurney and Kelawai though, I'd have to say I prefer the one along Gurney. G Hotel Gurney to a large extent feels a lot more polished and spacious as compared to G Hotel Kelawai. It was unanimously agreed to be so, but Kelawai is still decent and good for a hotel too :) p.s. their minibar was pretty much free so I was a happy goober. 

Complimentary Taro Ice Cream

Upon arriving at the hotel we were served with complimentary taro ice-cream. I was especially excited for this because the last time we visited they served us ice cream too! Call it a cheap thrill of mine, but I love it when hotels tend for their guests in small ways like these! It prompts me for the room and service that I'm about to be given for the rest of my stay :) Which to be honest, was very good service in my opinion. I have no complaints about their service at all.

Cute toiletries!

Okay, I have a confession to make. I actually took home all four bottles you see at the back there. I am so embarrassed to admit it but just look at that packaging!! How cute is it?! It's from a brand called Appelles, I think they're a company from New South Wales in Australia. I'd never seen it before even though I've lived in Australia the past four years now. I used their products whilst I was there and for someone like me with eczema and dry everything, they worked like magic! *hearts in eyes* My mom also confessed that she brought home the bottles too haha! Like mother like daughter. 

View from our hotel room :)

There were two view options we could have gotten. The first being the sea view and the second what you see above. My parents and grandparents got the sea view whereas my brother and I got the city (?) view. I think I actually preferred our view because it really felt like I was in Penang. Penang's really so so beautiful. They're surrounded by gorgeous hills and nature yet still has the hustle and bustle of a city. It's a more traditional Kuala Lumpur to me.

The pool was located on the topmost floor, and although its nothing big enough worth boasting about, the view definitely was. If we had time I'd have loved to lounge up there just soaking in the view. Must be a nice treat :)

Anyway, we didn't really spend much time in the hotel. We were only in Penang for four days in total and spent only the first day in the hotel rooms because our relatives visited us there then. The next consecutive days saw us outside in the city. 

One of my highlights from the trip has to be this. Parasailing. When the trend for travelling was visiting Penang, I never knew what tourists liked to do there because I guess I was never really a tourist whenever I visited. I did know that most of my friends went there to do water activities. It just so happened that on the weekend we visited, my granduncle hosted a get-together for the family at an apartment he rented along Batu Ferringhi, and so after having lunch we headed to the beach to chill! If you've never been to SouthEast Asia and would like to experience what a beach in these countries are like, I'd recommend Batu Ferringhi. There were a multitude of activities going on from horse-riding, to water sports, the list goes on! Business there is quite lup-sup though, you just have to take their word for it when it comes to the prices to partake in the activities. I'm pretty sure they jack up the price accordingly depending on the type of people they approach.

Anyway if you were wondering, yes that's me! in the picture. I did the activity with my aunt and it was so much fun. It was such a last minute decision too and I was wearing jeans to boot! Love spending time with the fam :) 

Overall, I had an enjoyable and fantastic time in Penang and am counting down to the next time we / they visit :) Blood is thicker than water, and I hope that this continues to be seen in the generations to come. Have a lovely week ahead, and happy holidays to all! 

Love, xx.