Georgetown | travel.extravAGAnza

St Georges Church, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Where else other than Malaysia you can find a mosque, chinese temple, christian church and a hindu temple all on one street? And only within 350m from each other? Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keiling is one such a street in old Georgetown, located in Penang – an island just off the north-west Malaysian coast.

Four places of worship: Masjid Kapitan Keling, Goddess of Mercy Temple, St Georges Church and Sri Mahamariamman Temple co-exist here for almost 200 years now. Penang’s complicated history has seen an influxes of immigrants not only from India and China, but also from many other countries including Indonesia, Ceylon, southern Thailand, Japan and also Middle East. As you walk along the streets of Georgetown you can see all those influences in the architectural styles or street names.

Masjid Kapitan Keling, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Goddess of Mercy Temple, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Chinese merchants thrived here for centuries hence their eclectic, flamboyant houses like the Pinang Peranakan Mansion or Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion. Migrants came from Burma – hence Burmese temple on the outskirts of town. Famous Sarkies brothers from Armenia meant business when they established legendary Eastern and Oriental
Hotel almost 130 years, thanks to whom one of the streets is called… Armenian!

Georgetown with its historic lanes, multicultural feel and gorgeous mixture of architecture certainly deserves its title of a World Heritage Site.

Set for smoking opium – Smoking opium was a popular free time activity and a lucrative trade run by Chinese secret societies

Pinang Peranakan Mansion, Georgetown, Malaysia

Buckingham Street in Georgetown, Malaysia

Graffiti can be seen as art but also as vandalism. Leaving the judgment aside, here are few examples of rather remarkable pieces I have seen so far in Malaysia. Below includes street art from Kuala Lumpur, Georgetown and Melaka.

Little children on a bicycle, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Graffiti in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Georgetown’s murals and wrought-iron caricatures with anecdotal descriptions are spread across town, so with a little help from the map called ‘Street art’ you can find them all. The murals have been created by Lithuanian born Ernest Zacharevic, while the iron caricatures are part of a larger project aiming to describe – with humor – the history of early town settlers.

Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

Above one titled ‘One kicks all’ was located on a quiet street of Georgetown on Penang Island, and along with many others it tells the town’s colorful story. It represents Cantonese domestic servants from Guandong who used work in houses of wealthy Chinese merchants spread across the city. These servants were responsible for all kinds of household duties and referred to themselves with wry humor as ‘Yat Keok Tet’ – One kicks all.