vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Air Itam
Nostalgic Sisters Curry Mee @ Air Itam Market
Jun 3rd
For a taste of the nostalgic and traditional Penang Curry Mee you may head to Air Itam‘s market for it. A pair of sisters have been selling curry mee for decades there and another interesting thing is that you won’t be eating at a proper stall with table and chairs. You could choose to eat via the old style, which is to sit on the stools provided right in front of the sisters, or at some coffee shops nearby.
Due to their old age they get extra help from the younger generation to do the dishes especially during public holidays. But the cooking and preparation of the noodles and all are still done by them, such is their dedication and passion.
Nasi Kandar Kampung Melayu @ Kampung Melayu, Air Hitam
Jun 5th
I have heard a lot about the famous Nasi Kandar at Kampung Melayu but never tried it before due to their operating hours from 6:30am to noon. Having Nasi Kandar early in the morning just seems kinda odd, don’t you think? Well, at least for me.
But hey everything gotta have its first time, right? Moreover it is said to be one of the best and also the hidden gem among the already well known ones like Hameediyah, Kayu, Pelita, Line Clear, Merlin and Shariff so there’s simply no reason to skip this.
A huge piece of chicken, some squids (full with eggs) and a portion of long beans cost RM8. Not too expensive considering its Nasi Kandar but not cheap as well. Reasonable at best, as I could be easily ‘chopped’ RM12-15 for the same dishes at other places.
Kek Lok Si Display of Lights Event @ Kek Lok Si Temple, Air Itam
Feb 21st
I went to Kek Lok Si last Thursday to photograph the annual Display of Lights event, where thousands of lanterns and lights are lit at night for 30 days following the Chinese New Year. I am quite surprised to know that there are Malaysians who do not know the existence of Kek Lok Si in Penang. When they saw the photos they were thinking if such a beautiful place is located in Thailand? Just wow lol.
For unknown reasons 18th Feb was the day most people went up the hill at Air Itam, even Chinese New Year’s eve did not see so many tourists. Because of that the way up the temple was so jammed up that some people were stuck for 2 hours. Luckily I went quite early around 7pm so I did not experience such a bad traffic jam.
But once I reached the temple parking was a huge problem, as drivers parked their cars on the narrow driveways! It was quite a chaos. FYI the parking cost RM2. Now for the photos, those shown in this post are smaller in size but high res nonetheless. Do click on the photos itself to view them at their biggest resolution, or visit my Flickr photoset to view all of them.
The temple was still quite empty at 7.30pm but you could see the long queue of cars waiting to enter from afar.
The lights and lanterns were lit at 8pm, signaled by loud sounds of bells from the main pagoda.
First time I managed to photograph the pagoda with a moon in the background.
