&#;I want bao!&#; a voice exclaimed excitedly from behind me as I exited Ming Xiang Tai Confectioneries along Armenian Street in Georgetown, Penang. Bao is the Chinese word for a bun or bread-like dumpling.
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"I Want Bao" by W K Setor.
[GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
Startled, I spun around and saw a boy, no more than eight, attempting to reach for a dim sum basket at the back of a bicycle, his arm outstretched through the bars of a window. A young girl stood behind him and was doing the same. I lifted the lid off the basket, half-expecting to inhale warm, fragrant steam from a cluster of baos, but it was empty.
&#;There isn&#;t any bao in the basket,&#; I told the children. They stared at me for a second before continuing to flail their arms at the bicycle in vain. I don&#;t think they believed me.
Bemused, I left the bun-loving kids and stepped out onto the bustling streets of Georgetown, the capital city of the Malaysian state of Penang and the second-largest city in the country. Walking down Armenian Street, I chanced upon a grey cat eyeing a rat that dangled from a metal roofing.
"Love Me Like Your Fortune Cat" by Artists for Stray Animals (ASA). [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
How lucky, I thought, referring to the fortunate cat. Unlike the children from earlier, who were reaching for buns that didn&#;t exist, at least there definitely is a rat for the cat.
But things weren&#;t as rosy further up the road, I learned, especially not for Skippy. With his fluffy, ginger hair, Skippy was usually charming but would turn rather catty when hungry. As I approached, he was in a snappy mood, grumbling about a giant rat he was chasing earlier but had let slip. I shook my head, unable to recall seeing such a big rat, but told Skippy not to worry &#; good things are usually just around the corner.
"Skippy Comes To Penang" by Artists for Stray Animals (ASA). [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
Continuing along Armenian Street, I admired the old shophouses that lined on both sides, bearing the Straits-Chinese architectural style with its characteristic red terracotta roofs. Around me, vendors hawked their wares and people bustled along the busy streets and narrow lanes, a typical weekend for the locals.
I was so busy taking in my surroundings that I did not see a brother and sister pair cycling fast towards me until I heard the frenetic ring of their bicycle bell.
"Kids On Bicycle" by Ernest Zacharevic. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
The younger brother tightened his grip around his sister&#;s waist, squeezing his eyes shut as he braced himself for a crash. The elder sister laughed heartily, a twinkle in her eye as her thumb pushed the lever of the bell repeatedly. I jumped out of their way in the nick of time and watched as they pedalled down the street.
Kids, I thought, and chuckled to myself.
It was mid-day and the sweltering, Penang sun was bearing down on me uncomfortably. I needed a drink, perhaps a refreshing cup of susu soya, or soy milk in Malay which is the official language of the city as in the rest of Malaysia. But where to find one? I spotted three girls in front of a purple building and decided to ask them.
"Wo Ai Nee Chinese Malay Indian" by Wall Art Team. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
Dressed in traditional garb, the girls &#; a Chinese, a Malay, and an Indian, the three largest ethnic groups in Georgetown, Penang &#; were engaged in chatter and laughter, and their comfortable friendship reminded me of the multicultural society that defined the city.
The girls waved me down the road, saying there is an old lady with a pushcart who sold one of the purest and freshest susu soya in town. Thanking them, I headed down the street and turned right onto an unnamed alley where a traditional Chinese rickshaw vendor was trying to convince an Indian man to buy something.
Street mural of a Chinese traditional rickshaw vendor. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
But the Indian man didn&#;t look at all convinced. Plastic bags of goods hung from the blue rickshaw with the blue umbrella, and it occurred to me that maybe, just maybe, I might find some susu soya in there. I glanced at the Chinese man. Not quite an old lady, I mused, but walked closer anyway to find out what he was selling.
As I poked around the bags hanging from his rickshaw, the vendor eyed me suspiciously and I hurriedly moved away, colliding with a Peranakan girl who had stepped outside to offer incense at the altar.
Street mural of a Peranakan woman offering joss sticks. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
&#;Kus semangat! Goodness me!&#; the girl shrieked. Dressed in nyonya kebaya, a traditional blouse-dress clothing worn by Peranakans who are generally descendants of mixed Chinese and Malay heritage, the girl stumbled and tried not to drop the joss sticks in her hand.
&#;Oh God, I&#;m sorry!&#; I cried out and held her arm to steady her.
&#;Tidak mengapa! It&#;s OK!&#; she replied assuringly with a smile before placing the joss sticks in the altar&#;s censer.
I quickly retraced my steps back onto Armenian Street and turned left at Lebuh Cannon this time. Feeling a little lost, I stopped to ask a little boy for directions. He was tiptoeing precariously on a chair, trying to reach for a hole in the wall.
"Boy on Chair" by Ernest Zacharevic. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
&#;Excuse me, where can I find the old lady that sells susu soya?&#; The boy ignored my question, his right cheek pressed against the wall while his fingers fell slightly short of a cup that was, oddly, in the wall.
&#;Can I help you get the cup?&#; I offered. &#;It&#;s dangerous to climb on chairs.&#; I narrowed my eyes at the weathered wooden furniture. Especially chairs that look like that.
&#;Yes, please,&#; the boy relented after a pause, and I reached up. &#;Susu soya auntie not here lah, you must go to Lebuh Chulia&#;.
As if that road name rang a bell, a fluffy, ginger cat popped up suddenly in a window across the road, its big round eyes staring at us unflinchingly.
Street mural of a cat in a blue window. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
Is that Skippy? The orange cat stared at us for a second before it yawned in boredom and hobbled away. I wondered if he caught a rat in the end, but he was gone before I could ask. Turning back to the boy, I handed the cup to him and thanked him for his advice.
Making my way over to Lebuh Chulia, I strolled past the historic house where the Sun Yat-Sen Museum Penang was in, the same building where the late revolutionary devised plans to overthrow the last imperial dynasty of China, the Qing dynasty. And as if mirroring Sun&#;s ambitions for his homeland, I saw a young girl holding on to a bundle of floating bottles like a balloon, her feet lifting off the ground and ready to fly high into the sky &#; just as Sun&#;s dreams once did.
"Girl With Bottles Balloon" by Anna Bronza. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
I decided to pass through Lebuh Ah Quee to get to Lebuh Chulia, and along the way, I came across a drawing on the wall depicting the minion Carl from Despicable Me 2 &#; you know, the one wearing flashing lights on his head, and has a megaphone that he repeats bee-do-bee-do in?
Now, I&#;ve heard a lot about Penang&#;s street art and the subtle humour that comes with it, but walking around Georgetown I was surprised that I hadn&#;t yet seen any of these famed murals. So imagine my delight when I saw fire siren Carl painted next to a real fire hydrant.
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Street mural of a minion, from the "Despicable Me" franchise, with a megaphone. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
I frowned. Where are all the street art Penang is famous for, anyway?
The sputtering sounds of a motorbike being kick-started to life interrupted my thoughts. A boy whizzed past me on an old motorcycle, the exhaust fumes leaving a trail behind him as he throttled away from the sharp, pointy teeth of what can only be described as a monstrous monster. Or was it a dinosaur? It was hard to tell.
(Left to right): "Little Boy with Pet Dinosaur" by Ernest Zacharevic, and "Old Motorcycle" by Ernest Zacharevic [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
I broke into a sprint, running away from the dinosaur too and soon found myself on Lebuh Chulia. In fact, I ran so fast I had almost reached the end of the road. Turning around to make sure the dinosaur wasn&#;t on my tail, I stopped to catch my breath, panting furiously in the hot afternoon sun. In between beads of sweat, I glanced down a back alley and let out a huge sigh of relief.
A rickety pushcart stood against the peeling wall and had a sign with big, bold letters hanging down the front. &#;Susu Soya Asli & Segar&#; it read, which translated to &#;pure and fresh soy milk&#;. Behind the pushcart, an elderly lady was scooping soy milk into a bowl for a young customer with a friendly smile on her face.
"Susu Soya Asli & Segar" by St. Xavier's Institution, Homesoy, and Vilmedia. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
&#;It&#;s susu soya auntie!&#; I shouted with joy and ran over to her cart. I could definitely use a drink right now.
Contented after guzzling two bowls of soy milk, I walked over to a nearby swing set and sat down on one of its wooden seats. Holding on to the metal chains with both hands, I set the swing in motion, using both feet to push against the ground mindlessly. I didn&#;t even notice two children running up to the swing set.
"Brother And Sister On Swing" by Louis Gan. [GPS coordinates: 5., 100.]
&#;I want swing!&#; a little girl in a frilly, pink dress exclaimed excitedly. A boy clambered onto the empty swing seat beside me before extending a hand to help the little girl up. &#;Ya OK, we swing together!&#;
When they were both standing upright on the seat, the girl looked at me and giggled. She waved at me, while the boy tried to get the swing moving. I laughed and waved back at her.
Then the three of us rode on our swings into the sweltering, Penang sun.
5.
100.
The most common souvenir to bring home after a Penang trip is typically the well-known tau sar piah (&#;&#;&#;, a type of Hokkien-style pastry/ biscuit filled with red bean or mung bean paste). However, this time we didn&#;t buy that, as we found something else that we really like &#; the Cantonese-style pastries from Ming Xiang Tai Pastry Shop (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;)!
Call us &#;suaku&#; (a Hokkien slang for a generally uncool, unworldly person who is ignorant about some topic or another), but we have never heard of this brand that has been established since . &#; As we felt lazy to travel all the way to Ghee Hiang at 216 Jalan Macalister (a corner of Georgetown) just to buy its famous tau sar piah, we decided to buy the recommended pastries at Ming Xiang Tai to try first. The outlet is conveniently located at 26, Armenian Street Ghaut, Georgetown, Penang (: +604-261-), where you will find the famous Brother and Sister street art outside this shop.
The most popular item at Ming Xiang Tai has to be the Signature Trishaw Egg Tart (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;MYR2/ S$0.70). It may look just like the average egg tart you see everywhere, but after biting into 1, you will understand why it&#;s the bestseller. The crust was crispy but not overly flaky & the egg portion was fluffy & fragrant. Really very good! &#; Too bad we couldn&#;t buy some back home as it needs to be kept fresh in the fridge but we had already checked out of the hotel & wouldn&#;t be getting to some place cool till our flight home in the late evening&#;. &#;
As for the Durian Pie (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;MYR3/ S$1) which is relatively new on the menu, if you are a fan of durians, you will definitely love it because it&#;s generously filled with real aromatic durian paste. My friend instantly fell in love with it & bought 6 boxes home! &#; The Pandan Salted Egg Pastry (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;MYR1.90/ S$0.65) is also one of the signature items in the shop & it&#;s not bad too, stuffed with generous pandan paste & a full egg yolk in it. What we like about their pastries is the pastry skin is crispy but doesn&#;t feel greasy & stuffed with generous fillings.
In the end, I also bought 1 box of Pineapple Mango Pie (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;8 pcs MYR24/ S$8.10), 1 box of Signature Salted Egg Pastry + Pandan Salted Egg Pastry (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;8 pcs each MYR24.80/ S$8.40) & 1 box of mixed Chicken Floss with Lotus Paste Pie + Glutinous Rice with Shredded Coconut Pie + Salted Egg Pastry + Pandan Salted Egg Pastry (&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;3 pcs each MYR24.80/ S$8.40) as souvenirs back in Singapore. Glad that those who have eaten like them too! Here&#;s a picture of the box of pineapple pastry to end my post. &#;
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