Visiting a ‘Kongsi’ in George Town... or is it Georgetown?

Sweet ride

George Town aka Georgetown, March 28 — Locals can’t agree how to spell it, so I’ll do it the Viking way. Once again, I arrived in a place I had never heard of, George Town, Malaysia, which is also spelled Georgetown. Though I did recognize the name of the island of which it is the capital: Penang, which is also spelled Pinang. Along with our subsequent stop, Phuket Island, Penang had been a popular R&R destination during the Viet Nam War. However you choose to spell it, it is the oldest city in Malaysia.

Because a cruise ship goes from port to port, we are actually following trade routes established as much as five centuries ago as Arabs, Europeans and Asians transported a wealth of goods back and forth around this side of the globe, then back to Europe and the Middle East. This port was one of the first British settlements in Southeast Asia and served as an ‘entrepot,’ a trading post where goods were imported, stored then exported again. A main stop between Madras (now called Chennai) and Canton, it is a mix of Malay, Chinese and Indian cultures with a blend of Asian and colonial architecture. The Chinese were especially powerful, as you’ll learn in a bit. Over the centuries the East has lured painters and writers, and George Town claims Rudyard Kipling Somerset Maugham and Noël Coward. There is a five-story limit on new buildings within the historic area, which is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site. This ‘Pearl of the Orient’ city is lovely, and this was one of the best shore excursions of the whole trip so far. What better way to see the town than on a three-hour tri-shaw excursion? Mine wasn’t nearly as festooned as the one at the top.

With a population of 1.8 million, the city is 42% Chinese, 40% Malay, 10% Indian, plus some from other countries including Indonesia and Thailand. Main languages are, in order, Mandarin, English and Malay. According to our guide, the Indians are laborers, Muslims are in jewelry and money changing, and Hindus in spices and textiles. Hindu spice shops often sprinkle turmeric powder and rose petals on the floor to bring good luck. Much as I like it cooked with chicken, I wouldn’t like to track turmeric powder home on my shoes, especially if I had white carpets.

The oldest Protestant cemetery in Southeast Asia is located in George Town. We passed a Wesley Methodist church — the first I’d seen since Tonga, in the South Pacific.

Like Singapore, there is a strict anti-drug policy: drug dealing carries the death penalty.

Our first stop was the Chung Keng Kooi mansion, now the Pinang Peranakan Mansion, which calls itself a ‘Baba-Nyonya museum’ (Baba is male, Nyonya is female). You’ll remember ‘Peranakan’ is a Chinese-Malay descendant. This late 19th-century building was the home and office of Kapitan Cina Chung Keng Kwee, who was the head of the Hai San secret society. Our guide labeled him a local ‘Mafia boss.’ A wealthy boss, as you can see...

Feng shui held sway in the design of this house. A central open-air courtyard allows sunlight and breezes to enter all the rooms.

Black furniture inlaid with mother of pearl was everywhere. In the fine print on its handout, the museum is looking for additional pieces, so if you have any... In the dining room, below, there are two huge mirrors facing one another on the walls — so the boss can be forewarned of anyone coming in the doors on either side.

The traditional Malay outfit for women is a wrap skirt, often of batik, and a lightweight open-front top. Instead of buttons, the top is held together by three brooches. Women often combine a patterned top with a different patterned bottom... a lovely effect.

The kitchen was filled with antique gadgets and appliances.

Note the glass-drying rack.

Back in our trusty vehicles, we were cycled through town...

Next stop, Khoo Kongsi, ‘the most elaborately adorned clan house [kongsi] built outside China.’ Back in the day, there were five major powerful Chinese families in George Town, and each had a large complex of buildings. The one we visited belonged to the Khoo family from southern China. It consists of the temple, completed in 1906, and older business buildings, a theatre for Chinese opera, and row houses. The latter are now being refurbished as a hotel. Wiki took this first photo.

The ‘clan house’ was really a whole village surrounding the temple.

Last stop, the very funky Pinaon Time Tunnel history museum. We wove around inside the building, following George Town history through the centuries in eleven themed tunnels. Avert your eyes if you don’t want to see what torture foot binding was. It began in the late 13th century and wasn’t outlawed until the early 20th.