Pulau Pinang: the Isle of Enigma (cont'd)

Other than Ayer Itam, another neighbourhood I lived in was Gelugor. When I started working again at the Universiti Sains Malaysia in 1982, it just made sense (to me anyway) to live next door to the work place. The traffic jam from Ayer Itam to the University was getting quite bad already. So we moved from the family house to a rented terrace - in the almost new residential area of Taman Pekaka.

PP ferries against the backdrop of
KOMTAR on the island (PC)

Pulau Pinang in the 1980s and 1990s went through quite a bit of transformation - it got more crowded, both with people and high-rise buildings. The Penang Bridge was ready and open to the public in September 1985, while the Kompleks Tun Abdul Razak or KOMTAR, the tallest building in Malaysia then, was completed fully in 1988. And who can forget the ferry terminal disaster of this same year when 32 were killed and more than 1500 injured.

The electronics industry which started in the 70s just took off with hundreds of companies placing themselves on this frog-shaped island. The factories employed many locals (mainly from the kampungs, which put paid to our ever having local maids anymore), and later even more foreign hands.

I found Gelugor being slowly crowded in by more and more housing estates and shops, and even a Tesco hypermart moved in. But some things remain the same, thank goodness! Like the good old unpretentious Minah Restaurant, where many delicious meals were shared with family, friends and work colleagues. (Our wedding kenduri in 1976 was catered by this very same restaurant, reputedly serving the best Malay food in Pulau Pinang). But another newer Julisan Restaurant nearby closed after a few years.

Chingay in Georgetown 1987

Many events and places draw people to Pulau Pinang. The annual Pesta Pulau Pinang found a permanent site in nearby Sungai Nibong, but for us, after some years of frequenting it each December, found that more and more it was turning into a huge pasar malam (night market). And there were enough neighbourhood pasar malams on the island!

But the Flower Festival in the Botanical Gardens is always worth visiting. Even sans festival, the more than 100 year-old Gardens have always been a natural attraction. Bukit Bendera/Penang Hill was our weekend sanctuary many times from the madness below. Both the hill railway and the hill underwent changes. In fact in 2010 the old funicular railway was replaced, so gone is the romantic experience of a slow train ride up a hill station. (I understand that you now zoom up the hill in no time at all). Not forgetting also that the new Bridge changed forever the traffic to and fro this island. The beautiful old fashioned way of crossing by ferry has become more of a tourist feature.

Gurney Drive 1983

But the old familiar haunts of Batu Ferringhi, Balik Pulau, Fort Cornwallis, Gurney Drive, and the Esplanade always beckon although competing more and more with resorts/hotels, malls, and more malls.

But the Persatuan Warisan Pulau Pinang/Penang Heritage Trust (PHT) formed in 1986 did well in their efforts to preserve the history and culture of PP, but ensuring the preservation and conservation of old buildings have not been easy. Although George Town, PP became a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2008, 'unapproved renovation/demolition works are still rampant ...' (PHT).

Some beautifully 'conserved/preserved but living' colonial buildings include the very romantic E & O, the 1926 Heritage Hotel, and many more but only a handful of historical homes of Penang Malays are left standing. Two are the Syed Alatas Mansion on Armenian Street and the Segara Ninda.

After half a life time in PP, I left for a different pasture after retirement. But PP, although an enigma, and fast changing every so often, will always be my kampung halaman/hometown. So excuse me if I do more navel gazing here. After all, 'Pi mai pi mai tang tu jugak!

Pulau Pinang 1982-2007