I have been on the Penang Heritage Trail twice. This is one
of the special tours put together by the Penang Heritage
Trust. On both occasions I went on the trishaw that winds
through the heart of Georgetown, with both riders and
passengers subject to the heat or rain and curious stares
of the local people. But this time, the hotel's marketing
communications manager told me it would be a different kind
of tour. This trail is arranged by the hotel as part of its
CEI (Convention, Exhibition and Incentive) programme for
its guests. It's different in that one, it is in an
air-conditioned coach and, two, the route in-cludes a city
trail. The tour lasts three and a half hours, including
lunch. On the list of the sites are the Reclining Buddha,
Burmese Temple, Fort Cornwallis, Little India, Khoo Kong Si
and the Penang Museum. A SLICE OF THAILAND We start at 11am
with the first stop at the Wat Chaiya Mangkalaram at Lorong
Burma. This Buddhist temple of Thai architecture houses a
33-m gold-plated Reclining Buddha, believed to be one of
the longest in the world. Then it's a quick hop to the
Burmese temple across the road. Onward to Fort Cornwallis
or Lebuh Light, so called because it was built on the site
of Francis Light's historic landing in 1786. Originally a
wooden stockade, it has been replaced by a concrete
structure. Here you will see the famous Dutch cannon.
There's a belief that if a woman wishes to get pregnant all
she has to do is to touch the cannon. I can't vouch for the
authencity of this, but there is certainly no lack of women
touching the cannon. Next stop: Little India. Here is the
famous Mahamariamman Temple. Built in 1833, it is the
oldest Hindu temple in Penang. It is decorated with
intricately crafted dragons and stone lions which are said
to be the temple's guardians. But the "jewel in the crown'
is the jewel-encrusted statue of Lord Subramaniam. We then
move on to the famed Khoo Kongsi in Cannon Square. This is
the finest example of a miniature clan village from the
19th Century with its association building, traditional
theatre, rowhouses to accommodate clan members and a
magnificent clan temple built in 1902. But I was
disappointed as the temple was under renovation - pity as
you cannot appreciate the beauty of the Khoo Kongsi by
looking at it from the courtyard. HISTORY ON DISPLAY Then
it's on to the final stop, the Penang State Museum. Here,
you can see history through the interesting displays. Like
the Nyonya and Baba wedding ceremony, a Chinese kopitam
(coffeeshop) complete with its ancient bread-toaster and
coffee-making equipment, and a "mobile" noodle hawker who
pedals from door to door. Although not part of the tour,
two of must-sees are the Syed Alatas mansion, "a 19th
century Straits eclectic Malay house" and the Cheong Fatt
Sze mansion or the Blue mansion. The house was built in the
1880s by Cheong, who was known as China's last mandarin and
first capitalist and the Rockefeller of the East. INNER
CITY TRAILS OF GEORGE TOWN The Penang Heritage Trust also
organises three special walking tours called the "Inner
City Trails of George Town". • Little India, Spice Trail:
Start from PHT office and walk past the Kuan Yin Temple
(Goddess of Mercy Temple), visit Sri Mahamariamman Temple,
walk through Little India. • Heritage Trail 2 & Cheong
Fatt Tze: Start from PHT office and walk on to Kuan Yin
Temple, St George's Church and the Museum. Walk through
town to the Hainan temple, Hong Kong shoe shop and end up
at Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion. Tour of the mansion starts at
11am. Tour ends here at 12.30pm. • Street of Harmony &
Historical Enclave: Walk from PHT office to Kuan Yin Temple
and onto Kapitan Kling Mosque, Yap Kongsi Area (Armenian
Street area where Anna & the King was shot). Then to
Khoo Kongsi, the Acheen Street Mosque, Syed Alatas Mansion
and end at the Dr Sun Yat Sen's Penang base.