This last week in George Town is more accurately four days, as today we're heading for Taiping. In fact, as I write, we've got as far as Butterworth station, with three bits of the short but messy journey behind us (taxi, ferry, shuttle), and two still to go (train, taxi).

The pleasures of the half-week:

1. Far and away the biggest thing for us in George Town this week has been indulging ourselves at the historic Eastern & Oriental Hotel. (And I warn you that the photos are going to spill out of this first category into several of the others...) We loved our massive apartment, in the oldest bit of the hotel. It was a pleasure to work in our very own lounge/study. We loved the fantastic buffet breakfast at Sarkies. We loved the happy hour at Farquhar's Bar (and if the tide is high, and the currents and wind are pushing in opposite directions, you get a spectacular view of the waves pounding the sea wall and sending packets of water over into the garden). We enjoyed visiting the Gallery to learn about the history of the hotel (founded in 1885). We enjoyed the various lunchtime offerings (quality and quantity both good). And we loved our big bath. Our budget doesn't permit us to do this kind of thing for long, but while it lasted, it was very, very nice...















2. As always, eating and drinking... Discovering that the Sin Seh Kai Artisan Bakery, previously known to us as a purveyor of nice bread and cakes, also does good local coffee and quite excellent croissants; finally getting to try white nutmeg juice, which is a Penang speciality; sampling Penang chor hor fun from a little kopi tiam; returning to Goh Swee Kee for some more Teochew food (prawns and crunchy water chestnuts in tofu skin; oyster omelette; and the truly delicious orh nee, which is yam paste with sesame, gingko nuts, and orange zest); and taking time out to appreciate the E&O's excellent chardonnay.



3. Being by the seaside, where there's always something picturesque going on.









4. Visiting Heaven and Earth, an art exhibition by Simon Tan. Anyone who's inspired by mountains gets my vote.



5. Checking out the little gallery at China House, which is interesting not only for its quirky collection but also for the glimpse it provides of the anatomy of the old house.







So, farewell to George Town once again. It's been good.

I have just two gripes. One is the traffic... This is problematic in many of Malaysia's lovely towns, as I've been saying for a while.

The second is the tendency to block off many of the five-foot ways. These wonderful inventions sheltered pedestrians from the sun and the rain, and made walking much more pleasant. Now many are blocked -- cumbered by motorbikes or tables or goods, or deliberately sealed off by property owners. Moves are afoot to reclaim this public space, but progress seems to be very, very slow... The result is that the pedestrian is regularly ejected into the road. And because the vast majority of roads are lined with parked cars, s/he is ejected into the middle of the road, there to dice with streams of traffic, double-parked vehicles, and all the rest.

This two-fold lack of consideration for the pedestrian is a pity, I think. George Town is wonderful. But improved strollability would bring advantages on so many levels.

I don't want to end on a negative, though. I am grateful to this wonderful city, which has welcomed so many communities over the year. It's been a privilege to be briefly part of its cosmopolitan world.