A Sense of Wet Markets in Penang, Now
3 min read
Wet markets serve the needs of their surrounding communities. Based on this premise, they should bear unique characteristics that reflect the diverse communitie...
What One Sees on Middle Bank and Pulau Gazumbo
3 min read
Photos by Liam Wong.ON 20 APRIL, Penang Institute staff, guided by Prof Zulfigar Yasin and Hanis Razalli, visited the soon-to-be Middle Bank Marine Sanctuary an...
Reinvention in progress
1 min read
ONCE AN ICONIC fishing centre and port, Penang's clan jetties are struggling to reinvent themselves. In the 19th century, coolies and boat operators fuelled Pen...
Suffolk House-keeping
6 min read
Next to the Methodist Boys School stands what is destined to be one of Penang’s most renowned restored heritage buildings, Suffolk House. So named because...
Hindu Temples of Penang
3 min read
Hindu temples are a common sight in Penang, coming in varied shapes and sizes. Not many realise, however, that the existence of each temple – from its str...
The Living Museum of George Town
The Living Museum programme is an ongoing oral history exercise taking place in George Town to document, interpret and present the city's living heritage: its l...
The Simple Life
To any islander, travelling to the mainland can almost be like travelling to another state or country. Kampung houses litter the vast, serene landscape, with la...
Devotion to the nine emperors
2 min read
Every year, during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar, devotees of the Nine Emperor Gods celebrate for nine days and nights, creating places of inten...
Papua New Guinea: where colours and cultures clash in peace
1 min read
In August and September each year, Papua New Guinea erupts in a dazzling flurry as crowds of men and women congregate in dance and music, draped in all the colo...
Just for Jazz
1 min read
Music is an avenue to express oneself, and the passionate heady sounds of jazz allow both performer and listener to become intimately enraptured.It is this in...
Glimpses of Butterworth
1 min read
In the early days of the British administration, this quiet town was developed as a transit point in the transport of tin ore. It eventually grew into a jumping...
Ways of Becoming
2 min read
The earth is dark. Gley soil mixed with alluvium, made heavy by the monsoon rains. Dusk is falling. Amid the quiet all is not quite still. A circling of birds....