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Day 4:Touchdown in Penang + A homage to hawkers + 12-hour long sleep

12:28pm, 30 degrees Celcius, Georgetown, Penang

I am back in town! It feels great to be driving down the streets and observing the hustle and bustle here in this small yet highly urbanized place. Everything is so close and the traffic is absolutely insane. This is for the Vancouverites back in Canada: the Chinese are indeed some of the best drivers around, theyre too skilled to be following the laws of the road - you just got to get from point A to point B faster, no exceptions. Not even pedestrian or road rules. Its the wild west here.

Nonetheless, its a pleasure to be back with my grandparents, spent a great deal of time talking to them upon arrival. I am glad that they're still going strong and living a simple and modest life, but yet not to the point of austerity. Sometimes, their piety inspires and nourishes my often battered mentality: I just have to slow down and alleviate my stress. So far, my trip has accomplished that but there are numerous issues that often muddle my thinking; convolute my decisions.

In any case, nothing much has changed over the years in Penang. There are signs of a rapidly modernizing populace, and often tucked away in the corners are those who are slowly left behind in an incredibly transient economy. I emphatize for those who exhibit signs of poverty, still toiling and clinging on to their respective vocations which are now rendered unproductive and obsolete.

But bless the hearts of those hawkers who work tirelessly and consistently to dish out plate after plate of some of the best grub you can find on the planet! Their composure is astonishingly uniform; their resolve to make a living evident in every morsel of food they prepare. I never take their services for granted - too much blood, sweat and tears ; too much effort put in for their children's education; too many uncomfortable hours in front of a flaming wok.

I pay homage to the many hawkers still breaking their backs to put food on our tables as well as theirs back home. I salute those who relentlessly find new, enterprising methods to maximize their economic opportunity; or to provide those chances for their offspring. Our nation was built on the backs of these individuals, but yet we run away from the house they have painstakingly constructed. We scorn their sacrifices by running away to safe havens and comfortable villas in developed countries. We spit in the face of their legacies by refusing to meet the same economic and political challenges they have met. We refuse to match their grit with our gratitude. Here, I speak for myself and other Malaysians who have migrated. I have resolved to return someday to honour those who have fought before me, by overcoming whatever may arise in the future, on the soil of my ibu pertiwi, my motherland. This land is as much my inheritance as my Malay and Indians brothers, so we must remember our ancestral beginnings and their contributions to our wellfare today.

Anyway, I digress. I was so tired yesterday that after dinner I just collapsed in bed without changing and slept for 12-hours. Today, I spent most of the morning getting a new Identification Card and I renewed my Passport. Along the way, I have continued to savour the culinary masterpieces of Penang, prepared by some of the most meticulous and skilled cooks around.

Food log: Char koay Kak, milo peng, chicken maryland, char koay teow, hai nan chicken rice, watermelon juice, 100 plus, milo ais. Thats in a span of 14 hours. The day is still young.

Dennis signing off.

Comments

  1. i dont know any of the food u said (except hai nan chicken rice) but i wanna try them all!

    ReplyDelete
  2. "theyre too skilled to be following the laws of the road "
    ....or we're too stupidly crazy.

    ReplyDelete

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