Penang Hill funicular train service temporarily stopped

(Picture borrowed from Keny Neo Penang Travel Page)

If you plan to go up to Penang Hill for some cool respite, think again because the funicular train service has stopped taking tourists up in the past few weeks.

There was some problems or faults with the cables and despite numerous repair works over the past months, similar problems kept cropping up, thus causing frequent service interruptions. So, in the most recent problem, they decided to just shut the whole thing and stop taking tourists up that way rather than leaving tourists stranded for hours.

However, residents still get to take the train up midway if they do not stay higher up. Those living further up would need to take a jeep up all the way. It seems that the state government is really at a loss over what to do to solve this problem.

The federal government had promised RM40mil to upgrade the whole funicular train service and guess what? Yep, the project has been 'deferred'. Apparently, this project is also not people-centric enough.

I guess cutting off tourists from one the major tourist sites in Penang will not affect Penangites that much. I mean, after all, Penang Hill is only one of Penang's major landmark. It is nothing. Tourists do not need to go up. And the funicular trains. Those are also another of Penang's landmark. Nothing great. Not important at all. Tourists do not even bother going there anymore. (sarcasm, people, sarcasm...)

Is it me or do I feel that the federal government has already started 'marginalising' Penang just because it is now under an Opposition government?

First they 'postponed' the Penang Outer Ring Road and Monorail projects and then this upgrading project too. Okay, so, I fully agree that PORR should be scrapped. But we do need an integrated public transportation system that THEY, BARISAN NASIONAL, HAD BLARDY PROMISED before the general elections.

This goes to show that the BN government NEVER EVER keep their promises, huh?

Anyway, blame and finger pointing aside, what is the state government doing about this? Well, it seems that they are still stuck in their Opposition party mindset. They are pointing fingers at the federal government for canceling, errr postponing, the projects.

Yeah, sure. We ALL know what the federal government did but what ARE you going to do? What is the DAP-PKR state government going to do about it?

I mean other than pointing fingers and blaming the federal government and urging the federal government to fulfill their promises. Heck, we ALL know the federal government couldn't care less about what the Opposition state government has to say or urge, right?

I think it is REALLY time that the DAP-PKR state government start thinking about solutions and solving problems like putting in place an integrated public transportation system and a way to replace the cables or upgrade the funicular train service FAST.

After all, George Town is now one of Unesco's World Heritage Sites. Soon, we will be having droves of tourists and it won't do that they find that they could not go up to one of the main landmarks in Penang that is, Penang Hill. Also, how are they going to get around the heritage city of George Town if the public transportation system is in a shamble?

It is just so wrong. So, to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, I think it is time that you stop pointing fingers and start working on solutions. Preferably NOW. And please, DON'T place any bets on help from the federal government because NONE is forthcoming.

Penang Matta Fair this weekend

If you are looking for special travel deals and 'cheap' travel packages, the Penang Matta fair is here this weekend. The details:

What: Penang Matta Travel Fair

Where: Pisa

When: July 4, 5 & 6

Time: July 4 (5pm - 8pm), July 5 & 6 (10am - 8pm)

A note of warning, not all the deals are really great bargains because I have booked a few packages before and later realised that the rates aren't all that cheap compared to other times. AND they offer really crappy deals too. AND they tend to change the dates of travel or even cancel it if they don't get enough people to go on a certain trip.

Better to go to different tour agencies to check their special promotional rates on times when they are having 'sale' or discounts.

Take the Blue Whale Cruise to see UFOs

If you want to take a closer look at the murky, rubbish filled sea waters surrounding Penang island, you will have to spend at least RM175 to do so on a recently introduced Blue Whale Cruise.

Ok, so the sea water surrounding Penang aren't exactly rubbish-filled but you sure as hell will find loads of UFOs (unidentified floating objects) if you look down from the boat. Anyways, if you don't mind spending good money to cruise around Penang island, here are some details about the cruise:

Blue Whale Cruises:
- Run by British skipper and wife, Stephen & Eileen Burton with a local partner, Steven Tan.
- The boat is a 47ft Chriss Craft Boat with 2 diesel engines, fully air conditioned with toilet and galley.
- Can fit up to 20 people but only insured for 16 people on board, also have safety rafts, safety rings, life jacket, first aid box, etc.

Daily Tours:
1. Sunday - Around the island - inclusive of a BBQ lunch - 10am - 6pm
2. Monday - Turtle Beach - inclusive of a BBQ lunch - 10am - 3pm
3. Tuesday - Sunset Cruise - inclusive of set dinner - 6pm - 9.30pm
4. Wednesday - open for private bookings
5. Thursday - Turtle Beach - inclusive of a BBQ lunch - 10am - 3pm
6. Friday - Sunset Cruise - finger food (coffee, tea or my fingers anyone?) - 6pm - 9.30pm
7. Saturday - open for private bookings

While onboard, you will get free flow of soft drinks and water too.

The boat will depart from Tanjung City Marina and is best only for couples or people with children who does not want to tag along.

Seems like they couldn't get the insurance to cover children below 13 so no children allowed. If you want to bring your sullen, angst-filled teenager, you can but I doubt that by this age, your teenager would even want to be seen in public with their parents. Just saying.

The damage to your pocket will be extensive though. It is RM175 nett per person but for the set dinner sunset cruise it is RM250 per person. The All Day round the island cruise is RM300 per person!!

I don't know, maybe it's only meant for foreign tourists who earn in USDs and Pounds because I sure as heck will not spend RM175 to RM300 to cruise around Penang! And no, although the boat is named Blue Whale, there are no whales for you to watch here and nope, you won't get to see dolphins too since most of these have left for better seas.

Penangites will know that they could get to Muka Head by paying a fisherman to bring them in his motorboat at RM70 for a return trip. Yep, and it is not even per person! You can even bring your own food, home cooked or store bought, whatever you choose and have a great picnic at the beach.

Oh well, if you really want to spend that kind of money on the cruises, you can check it out at www.bluewhatecruises.com.

The stupid minister opens her mouth again and syok sendiri

So, the minister Azalina Othman was in town and gave some really strange, if not stupid, announcements....

Looks like she has appointed the person who screwed up tourism in the state in the past to be the chairman of Penang Tourism Action Council. Now, I am sure, all of you know Mdm Kee Phaik Cheen?

That woman is known to make long, long trips overseas in the pretext of promoting Penang and come back with expensive, designer items for herself. Ahhh...we all know who benefited the most from her trips, it was definitely NOT Penang!

So, now she is back. I guess, PTAC is in very good hands and will be organising more trips overseas huh?

Then the new tourism minister started babbling about getting rid of syok sendiri programmes in the country.

Wah, minister, we know you always do things syok sendiri but why lah you start potong stim for others who want to syok sendiri?

She seemed to think that certain tourism events are merely 'syok sendiri' so the ministry will no longer support nor organise such events.

"We are only interested in major events which bring in foreign tourists and benefit the whole industry." she reportedly said.

Ah, so. And who is the expert to know which programme bring in tourists and which does not?
Don't tell it's the minister who blew millions on a facility to 'train' Malaysian footballers in UK?

Oh right. That incident was a mistake and this time she has supposedly wised up by:

1.Cutting off the tourism action councils of five states from the state government

2. Announce new chairmen, who may or may not be good, for the councils

3. Announce no support for any tourism events except those sanctioned by her...err..the ministry with a 'syok sendiri' rating as the judging factor.

So, how do you see the tourism industry in Penang in future? Well, looks like the state's soon to be formed Penang Tourism Council will have to work doubly hard to promote tourism events, syok sendiri or otherwise, and raise their own funds. The dyke has spoken in no uncertain terms that there will not be any support from the federal.

Meanwhile, PTAC will probably become what it used to do before Teng Chang Yeow took over in 2004 and turned it around a bit. It will now serve as nothing but a front for Kee to travel worldwide to shop...err...promote Penang. As for funding channeled through PTAC, the state can probably say goodbye to all that and they are better off raising their own funds.

The fat lady has sung and she ain't parting with her money till 'she is certain that it is spent properly' - meaning masuk someone's pockets lar....

Hmmm....is it me or do I sense a foreboding looming in the horizon especially for the tourism industry in Penang? Sigh, poor tourism exco Danny Law, he has some interesting times ahead of him.

Yummy local treats!

We took a trip to Nibong Tebal recently and of course stopped by to get one of my favourite local treats at one of the famous local..err...'manufacturers'.



The shop isn't easy to find as it is located along a narrow lorong off the sleepy town of Jawi and about 5 mins drive from the well-known Cheang Kee Restaurant of crab porridge fame. We did stop by at Cheang Kee for lunch, though and needless to say the food were still just as good and still affordable!

The crab porridge still lived up to its reputation and the other dishes we ordered, such as mantis prawn fried with dried chilli, boiled octopus, tang hoon char poey leng (vegetable with glass noodle), prawns and steamed fish were all very good. Sorry lar no pictures, we were so eager to dig in that by the time I remembered, it was too late.

Anyway back to the local treats I was talking about...it is Teochew snacks, Ak Am and Kacang Tumbuk and an array of local 'cookies' including Tau Sar Pneah, Tambun Pneah, Beh Teh Soh and Heong Pneah.

I have always loved Ak Am but not the generic, lousy kind found in supermarkets. I like it fresh, crunchy and importantly fragrant. And this shop makes one of the best Ak Am I have ever tasted! Ak Am is actually just loads of sugar, sesame and grounded peanuts but hey, aren't all sweet treats? I love the texture of Ak Am as it is both soft and crunchy due to the layer of caramel-like sugar outside and the crunchy kacang tumbuk in its core.

We did not buy the Tau Sar Pneah or Tambun Pneah but the Beh Teh Soh and Heong Pneah are absolutely heavenly! The Beh Teh Soh are biscuits with white sugar inside and theirs are so good because the skin is crunchy and the sugar inside, soft and non-sticky. Heong Pneah are almost the same except that brown sugar was used.

Now, I normally don't eat Heong Pneah due to its tendency to stick to your teeth and gums...but theirs are really good because it isn't in the least sticky at all!

Rows of Ak Am before it was packed

The first step of the whole process: family members sorting out peanuts

A packet of Ak Am is only RM8.50

So, the next time you happen to go to Nibong Tebal for whatever reason, I will strongly recommend dropping by at this shop to get their yummy treats. I am sure their Tau Sar Pneah and Tambun Pneah are just as good!

Here are the information on the shop:

Chop Cheng Guan
80 & 81 Jalan Pengkalan Rawa
04-5931391

Tourism industry being sabotaged?

Well, it seems like the new state government's one month anniversary is celebrated by an apparent sabotage by those we often identified as sore losers.

First the tourism minister decided to cancel all the MoUs with the five Opposition states and then cut all ties between tourism action councils and the states which I wrote about here.

Then recently, seems like the Penang Tourism Action Council or PTAC is following 'silent' orders to clearly sabotage the state government. Never mind that it affects the tourism industry and ultimately the people. What's important to them, it seems, is to put the state government in a bad light.

How did they do this?

Simple.

By not cooperating with the state exco.

By not providing the correct information to the state exco.

By not even bothering to inform the state exco anything about upcoming tourism events in the state.

Sure, they don't have to report to the state exco now, but hey, the events are being held in Penang so isn't it common courtesy to at least inform the state government?

Also, it seems that they have not received any black and white directive from the tourism ministry to stop reporting to the state governments. Technically, they still need to report to the state government until they get the formal directive. But then of course, we knowla how great our Malaysian system is. Spoken directives, some more through the media, is sometimes sufficient. Then when something go wrong, they blame the media for misquoting them!

So, recently, through the mysterious workings of certain parties, there was quite a stir over a minor issue which escalated to a huge word war. It was damn ugly and not in the least good for the one-month-old state administration. Not a very good mua guik / moon yut (Hokkien /Cantonese for full-moon) present hey?

It is quite an interesting story. First, they (PTAC) send out a press invitation to all the media for some tourism event to be held at 7am to welcome about 3,000 tourists arriving on a luxury cruise liner which is berthing in Penang for the first time.

Naturally, all the media assumed the tourism exco or even a representative will be present, as is the norm.

Ah, then this is where it gets interesting. The invite never got out to the tourism exco (Danny Law) or his representative. There was a separate invite from the cruise liner to Danny for another event onboard the ship at 10am so he had already asked a representative (Jagdeep) to go on his behalf as he was outstation at that time.

Now, some of the media who went to the 7am function were puzzled as to why no representatives from the state government were there. They waited and waited and still, no sign of anyone except for the tourists.

So, they became pissed, thinking 'what an arrogant lousy state government, didn't even bother to send a representative to welcome these tourists when they are the ones who organise this welcome ceremony'

Well, most of them waited to attend the 10am function and since Jagdeep was there, they quickly forgot about the 7am function. BUT two other papers and no, strangely, it is not The Star or Utusan, didn't wait for the 10am function and had straightaway assumed the worst.

The two Chinese vernacular papers wrote scathing articles about the whole thing. One article even have the headline 'Are they sleeping?'. It was not good for the new state government. So, Danny called them up and clarified that he was not invited to the 7am function but the 10am function in which Jagdeep went.

Now, the issue would have been settled there and then but sad to say, due to human error and probably his lawyerly streak, Jagdeep called a press conference to give the two papers a piece of his mind and demanded for a correction. Needless to say, it all ended badly with the reporters shouting at him and him (stupidly) using the 'I do not want to resort to the courts for this issue'.

To cut a long story short, the Chinese papers reporters became even more pissed with that statement and wrote even more scathing articles about how the new state government does not support freedom of speech.

Poor Danny was scrambling around apologising and trying to put things right again but we all know, reporters aren't easily appeased. You see, this whole debacle may seem like some petty fights between an assemblyman and some reporters but if you look closely and think, what is the cause of it?

Yep, the main cause was the media being invited for an event while the assemblymen wasn't and the media was misled into thinking at least one assemblyman would be present at the event. This showed an obvious sabotage attempt using the media who readily play up to the expectations of the saboteur. The end result with bad blood between some reporters and the assemblyman must have been a bonus !

My guess is this is only the first step. More will probably come. Just think. The Penang World Music Festival is coming up in a month but the state government wasn't privy to anything about the event because PTAC decided not to share it. If the event flops, they will readily blame it on the government administration.

Yep, methinks there is some ongoing sabotage and I can only hope LGE or Danny wise up to it and think of something to combat this!

Another idiotic minister opens her mouth

The lesbian minister aka Azalina has decided to withdraw tourism support for five states by canceling tourism MoUs with the tourism action councils in the states which include Penang.

Then she said the councils will be under the ministry and not the state governments to 'organise tourism events' in the states but all the tourism events planned will be revised and reviewed.

After that she contradicted herself by saying that there is no boycott of tourism in these states.

Well, my dearest clueless former sports minister now turned tourism minister, canceling the MoUs is not boycott kah? And by the way, what is the point of this exercise except to tell the people that 'you go vote for the Opposition la, now we won't help you anymore' in an obvious sore-loser kind of way?

Doesn't it even cross your tiny corrupted mind that this will only affect the tourism industries in these states, more so the people in the industry, than anything else? What, you think the state governments are making money from tourism ke? Don't tell me the small tiny li'l white mass in your head can't make it clear for you that tourism benefits the people and the economy as a whole and not just the state governments?

Or you are worried that the funding channeled to the action councils will no longer be distributed amongst fellow Umnoidiotputras anymore if the councils are under the state governments? So, you have to remove the councils from the state government to ensure the funding channeled to them are safe and sound and will continue to feed the Swiss bank accounts of many other sore-loser idiots in the same bed as you? Hmm...one does wonder.

Fortunately, the Penang state government is not so perturbed by it due to tremendous support by private sponsors and corporations in state tourism events. The exco in charge, Danny Law has said that they will just have to find a way around it and get support from elsewhere such as the private sector although they still need federal funding for major projects.

"After all, the private sector is very supportive of this new state government because any proposed good projects now will not be hijacked and given to Umno as it used to happen previously," he reportedly said.

Hmmm...methinks Danny, who is incidentally my long-time acquaintance, is improving and that is a good sign. He is finally settling down to the big task given to him and we can expect good things coming up in the tourism sector soon. After all, he had promised many 'good news' in the near future.

I shall await his good news.

The Great Wall of Penang

Is it me or are the illustrious, hardworking, creative and ever so pro-development developers here building a wall around Penang island?

This is not a literal wall per se.

But a wall of skyscrapers and high rises along the coasts of Penang island stretching from Batu Ferringhi down to Tanjung Bungah down to Tanjung Tokong down to Gurney Drive. Then there is another wall being built along the other coast stretching from the reclaimed land of Macallum Street to Jelutong to the Bayan Lepas coastal highway.

Luckily, there are no more land in inner George Town (e.g. Weld Quay, Esplanade and the heritage enclave of Jetties) for them to build anymore buildings or else the wall would be complete!

Don't believe me? Easy. Just take a slow drive from Batu Ferringhi down to Tanjung Bungah down to Tanjung Tokong and down to Gurney Drive. How many high rises / skyscrapers did you count along the way? AHAH! You've lost count didn't you?

Which brings me to the matter of super luxurious condominiums or super condos. I am not against development or anything but this is too much! I mean how many super condos do we need in Penang? Or for that matter, how many Penangites can actually afford super condos? A unit costs around RM2mil and above so how many multi-millionaires are there here who could afford these eyesores?

Sure, sure, they always say it is for the MM2H (Malaysia My 2nd Home) scheme but hello...how many mat sallehs do they think will buy these super condos? Also at what expense? Is cutting down hills, chopping down trees, impacting the environment worth all this? Is adding to global warming worth this? What about sustainable development?

Do we really need more high rises here? Do we need more super luxurious condos when there are still poverty stricken people who could barely afford to rent a room? What about affordable housing for the Penang people first and foremost?

So, to the new state government, please do ensure that all development projects are scrutinised before it is approved.

Penang do not need more high rise buildings for the super rich.

Penang do not need developments which are detrimental to the environment and ultimately the living conditions of the people.

Penang do not need a literal wall (made of high rises) surrounding its coasts!

An Ocean Park / Aquarium in Penang?

Again, I do not understand this obsession with parks of the human-made kind. Can't we just settle with natural parks with loads of greenery?

It seemed our new tourism exco is thinking of setting up an Ocean Park of sorts or at the very least, a large aquarium just 'because Penang is an island surrounded by the sea'. Err...reality check, YB. How clean are our beaches? Penang isn't actually known for its myriad species of fishes and marine animals.

Even the few dying species of dolphins which used to swim off the shores of Penang are seldom seen and the only redeeming quality we have is the turtle sanctuary in our tiny li'l National Park in Teluk Bahang. Isn't that good enough? An eco-tourism product where tourists get to enjoy nature and even get to see the turtle hatchery while there.

So, YB, where do you propose to set up the park / aquarium? Cut down more trees to build it? Wait a minute, thanks to the previous government's administration, we do not have much trees left to cut...but it still remains to be seen where our new YB thinks is the suitable place for such a grand scheme.

However, if his idea is to improve and upgrade the existing aquarium we already have (yes, we already have an aquarium) in Batu Maung, the idea is more than welcome.

The place is in total shambles and left much to be desired. Sure, they have an education centre on turtles and a koi fish pond and some aquariums but that's it. Even a trip to the Chew Thean Yeang commercial aquarium along Burmah Road is more educational and fun than a trip to the crummy aquarium in Batu Maung (which I think is managed by the Fisheries Department).

I think the new toursim exco should just concentrate on improving the existing tourism products here before he thinks of setting up or getting corporations to build new ones. After all, what's the point of having many tourism products when the old ones are not even properly maintained?

Do we really need a theme park?

As a born-and-bred-and-work-and-live here Penangite, my answer is a definite and resounding NO!

What's the idea anyway? I've heard some people asking the new tourism exco member to think of getting some company or other to build a theme park on the island. I think it is a horribly bad idea! My reasons:

1. Traffic jams - the Penang bridge is already jammed most of the time and especially so during long weekends and holidays. We do not need more reasons for more cars to make a beeline to the island, thank you very much.

2. Environmental impact - it is already crammed on the island as it is and there is absolutely no more wide open spaces to build a theme park. The only way is to either reclaim more land or cut into hills, both of which are extremely bad for the environment.

3. Unesco world heritage site - we are promoting heritage, for goodness' sake! A garish, new fangled theme park will only serve to spoil it all.

4. It will never work anyway - yep, as with anything new in Penang, it will probably last for a year or two before the novelty wears off and suddenly, it is losing business and before long, the employees will be the only ones inside it.

5. Poor maintenance and lack of cleanliness - we all know about the relatively lack of civic mindedness amongst Penangites and Malaysians so the theme park will only end up dirty, smelly and stick out like a sore thumb, especially if it is poorly maintained.

6. It will drive away foreign tourists - let's face it. Ang Mohs from Europe, US, Australia or even fellow Asians from Japan and Hong Kong have better theme parks in the likes of Disneyland where they came from. How do you think you could compete with that? The only reason they came here is to relax, enjoy the sun, do some shopping of so-called pirated local products and hopefully not get robbed blind by taxi drivers and traders while here. So, theme parks will not draw in foreign tourists at all.

I can think of a myriad of other reasons but it is best that I keep it to myself for now. So, do we really need a theme park? Yeah, sure, like I need a poke in my eye with a red-hot fork.