George Town Introduction Walking Tour (Self Guided), George Town

Some felt in Malaya that the city of George Town should be renamed Tanjung Penaga ("Cape Penaga"). That was the name of the area where George Town now stands. But the Chinese, British, Muslim, Malay and Indian movers and shakers of the town wisely declined. It might be bad for business.

Captain Francis Light, R. N., came to Tanjung Penaga in 1786. He wanted to set up an entrepôt for the British East India Company, and by George, he did. Yes, George! The name of the town would be "George", for George III. Next, he built a palm log fort; Fort Cornwallis. Malaysia would get what America tossed.

Light conceived of George Town as a free port; no taxes or duties on trade. The plan was to entice business away from the Dutch ports in the region. The plan worked. By 1802 the number of ships arriving had increased by more than twenty fold.

With so many ethnicities and cultures, George Town is an eclectic masala of styles, cuisines, philosophies and businesses. It is the banking nexus of northern Malaya. Standard chartered, HSBC, Citibank, Bank of China, Bank Negara Malaysia and more maintain their Penang headquarters on Beach Street.

George Town's heritage landmarks include: Fort Cornwallis, City Hall, Town Hall, St George's Church, the Kapitan Keling Mosque, Kong Hock Keong Temple, Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and the Pinang Peranakans Mansion. Clan townhouses like the Sun Yat-sen Museum dot the cityscape. Little India is a feast and a festival of the Mahamariamman Temple.

The second Central Business District is home to Penang's tallest skyscrapers, not far from the old Chinese clan jetties with houses on stilts. The Colorful Chingay Processions are held in December. Bangsawan is Malay theatre with Indian, Western, Islamic, Chinese and Indonesian accents. Street art blossoms everywhere.

Hemmingway called Paris a "moveable feast." The West, Southeast Asia, China, India and Indonesia have created a feast on the magical island of Penang. Feed the hunger. Come and dine.