George Town Street View: Carnarvon Street

Morning walk along Carnarvon Street in George Town. This is the other end side of Carnarvon Street which links to Chulia Street.

Street Art Stickers @ George Town

One of the many sticker arts found in George Town’s alleys.

Balik Pulau Town Center Revisited

It was found that the old agricultural town of Balik Pulau was established in the 1790s by the British East India Company. Located at the southwest of Penang Island, Balik Pulau is a Malay name which refers to ‘the back of the island’ in Malay. The town was so named due to its location situated at the western side of the Penang Island, separated from George Town by the island’s central hills. The British East India Company at that time established the first clove and nutmeg plantations in the area, hoping to turn Penang island as the center for spice production in Southeast Asia and competing against the Dutch monopoly of the spice trade during that period.

A Balik Pulau Town Street View

Campbell Street Facades

Campbell Street is one of the popular streets in George Town and is accessible from Penang Road and a number of other smaller streets. The street was found to be named after the Penang Inspector General Sir George William Robert Campbell, who was also the acting Lieutenant-Governor of Penang between 1872 and 1873. Also called “Sin Kay” in Hokkien by the locals, this street now becomes a shopping street for the locals and tourists to shop for various items such as food produces, clothing, bags, watches and shoes. Several cafes have also opened for business along this street. This is evident by the number of signboards leaning out from the shophouses along the street.

Toh Aka Lane and its Street Art

Toh Aka Lane is a small alley within the inner city of George Town. A number of the old heritage townhouses here are owned by the Cheah clan members as they have been living here since the 1800s.

George Town Street View: Love Lane Shophouse Facade

Heritage pre-war shophouses found at Love Lane, George Town.

George Town Street View: A Walk along Love Lane

There are several stories about how Love Lane got its name. The more common one was in the old days, wealthy Chinese businessmen who lived at the nearby Muntri Street had apparently kept their mistresses at the townhouses along Love Lane.

Now, the street is usually popular with tourists from various parts of the world due to many budget (and boutique) hotels and pubs nearby.

Buckingham Street View

An old house at the corner of Buckingham Street, George Town.