While George Town should be the centre of your attention when visiting the state of Penang, the state as a whole is well worth exploring for a day or more. Apparently there are many beach resorts, and the traps the tourists office highly promotes which aren’t unique or do anything to show off the beautiful of this state. Instead, we skipped the must see checklist and went exploring by bike.
The taxi dropped us in the south western corner and we spent the day riding our bikes through fishing villages, along rivers lined with trees filled with playful monkeys. We passed shrimp farms and rice paddies, through palm oil plantations where we were told to watch out for pythons.
As the temperature rose, we decided it was time for a stop. The cafe was simple. The focus on kopi or team, always hot, better to cool you down. But the kids would have nothing of that. Instead, they were introduced to Milo ice (not iced Milo, specifically Milo ice, which is what the locals call it). This is simply a tall glass of Milo dissolved in water and topped with Milo powder. While the patrons will tell you Milo is a Malaysian treat, it is in many ways as it is extensively enjoyed and consumed here, it is actually Australian. But the Malaysian version seems sweeter, like their kopi and teh, and while the kids will hardly touch Milo in Australia, here they couldn’t’ get enough of it.
We saw a few cacao trees in backyards along the way, single trees in home gardens suprrounded by other fruit trees. None had pods. I wonder if the monkeys here have caught on to how tasty they are.
Verdict: We visited as part of a cycling tour with Madahari Tours. Gee Meng Kiang Coffee Shop, somewhere in the countryside of south western Penang. Based on the locals (including apparently the town major) sleeping in the back patio, I’m assuming it is open all the time, a bit of a second home.
