Penang in Spotlight

Meeting Anthony Bourdain in Penang

Greetings from Penang!

It’s been a month since I came back to Penang. Needless to say, I have been having too much fun, eating too much good food, and not blogging much at all. The first month of my vacation had been filled with festivities and much celebrations: Chinese New Year, short trips to KL and Singapore, visiting friends and family members, running (driving) around, including meeting Anthony Bourdain and the No Reservations crew, who were shooting in Penang!

Lanterns along a street in George Town, Penang

One month later, I am finally settled into a more relaxed pace and I hope to share more Penang/travel-related photos and posts here with you.

First of all, Penang is definitely in spotlight now; it’s fast gaining international attention as a much-happening place and a must-visit island in Southeast Asia. As a result, Rasa Malaysia and the Penang Culinary Tour business my brother and I co-founded had been written up in two travel magazines recently—a very popular Filipino travel magazine Leisure + Adventure Travel as well as a Singapore’s NEXT Magazine (please click on the links to view the articles). Previously, we were featured on Budget Travel USA and SilkAir’s inflight magazine.

The highlight of Chinese New Year was the chap goh meh (15th day of Chinese New Year) and my elder brother CK Low got us some durian that were out-of-the-world delicious, creamy, aromatic, and finger-licking good. We made durian rice, served with salted coconut cream, and also bubur cha cha, our family rituals on chap goh meh.

Durian and Sticky Rice with Salted Coconut Cream

Whenever I am in Penang, I love going to the local wet markets, the fresh fish/seafood/produce and the hustle and bustle mesmerize me.

A typical morning wet market in Penang

I could never get fish as fresh as this in the United States, not mention about the species.

Fresh fish at a wet market in Penang, Malaysia

One of my favorite breakfast snacks: fried Chinese “hum chim peng” and “hua chee.” These are fresh-off-the-frying-wok and so delicious. I usually buy a few of these and eat them as I wander around the wet market.

Fried hua chee at the morning wet market

While I don’t blog about everything I do or see here on Rasa Malaysia, I do share interesting pictures, food, and what I eat here via Twitter. If you are interested to follow my journey and adventure, please join me at Twitter @rasamalaysia.

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