Christmas in Penang, Malaysia

[Ewen]

Hi all, I'm currently spending the festive period in Malaysia on the island of Penang where I was born. I have a few images of plants I spotted dotted throughout Georgetown on a wee walk yesterday, the 27th. The first image is from the balcony of my hotel room at the Golden Sands in Batu Ferringhi.

Beach View from Golden Sands Hotel

Opuntia in a pot - Georgetown

Opuntia in a pot on a bridge

Aloe vera in a pot - Georgetown

Cereus in a pot - Georgetown

[Ewen]

Some more images from my wee walk

Chinese shop house, corner of Beach st.

Pereskia in a pot - Georgetown

Pereskia close up

Where my grandfather had his office - Beach st - Georgetown

I'll be posting more photos of the Botanic gardens and Singapore soon

[georged]

Very nice. Looks a bit grey out of my window at the moment.

[Ross M]

Very nice Ewen. Intresting to see a RBS branch so far away from home, particularly since they closed so many local branches in Scotland a few years back!

[Ewen]

My grandfather and my father would love to see it now as a far flung branch of the RBS. When we visited in 2006 the building was an art gallery. My dad took us to the 2nd floor where he pointed out where the safe was and a couple of staff revealed it was still there after 35 years since my father left the island to go home to Scotland.

On the way to the Botanic gardens today. Will go to a shop in Georgetown to buy a couple of cacti to pot up for my grandparents graves. A little something of me to be left here. Normally pots, vases etc would disappear shortly after being left but I wonder if there will be any interest in cacti We shall see

Ewen

[Ewen]

When I or any member of the family visit the island of Penang, we visit and tend the graves of my grandparents, located in Western Road cemetery. Over the years, the cemetery has become overcrowded and the graves and headstones always need both cleaned and weeded. On previous visits we have left left flowers but these don't last long in the tropical heat, so this time I decided on something a wee bit different and personal. I bought two terracotta pots from a local shop which cost approximately £1 each at 5.50 ringgit. I also purchased some compost and a number of plants suitable for the graves. Two of the 3 plants I'm sure you'll recognise. Kalanchoe tomentosa cost less than £1 and a Melocactus, species unverified, cost just over £3 at 17.50 ringgit. Here are the results once the graves had been weeded and the plants had been repotted onsite. Unfortunately to complete the process properly, I would have repainted the lettering on the headstones but without tools, paint and a longer length of stay, this will be a job for another time. I don't believe the pots containing the plants will remain untouched for long but it will be interesting to see if they survive until the next visit. I do have a plan on how to complete the job properly if I'm able to stay for longer but one step at a time

What you can't experience from the photographs is the heat, approximately 29/30C. Working out in the middle of a cemetery in this heat when you're not used to it, is quite something but it was worth every second to see the end result

Ewen

Western Road Cemetery

Edith Donaldson Brown 1884 - 1962

Kalanchoe tomentosa

Western_cemetery_3.jpg (89.68 KiB) Viewed 3455 times

John Gordon Brown 1887 - 1970

Melocactus sp.

[sue46]

Wasn't Penang badly affected by the Boxing Day Tsunami? Lovely photos.

[Ewen]

Hi Sue, yes the Tsunami hit Penang. Some of the footage shown came from the E&O Hotel in Georgetown where the waves came over the sea wall. An area was destroyed and approximately 50 people lost their lives. Thanfully the island is protected by its location and didn't take the full force of the giant waves.

Leaving Penang tomorrow morning and heading for Singapore to celebrate the New Year. I have photos of Singapore Botanic Gardens but they might take a while to edit.

Ewen

[sue46]

I remember that hotel on the news. All seems well now, if that sounds right Glad you have had a good holiday and look forward to seeing more photos.