First week in Penang

Previously, I wrote about feeling like I had almost officially settled into Singapore, complete with lots of exclamation points of excitement!  Welp - I think the honeymoon is over.  Don't get me wrong - I still absolutely love Singapore!  But this week I've experienced some logistical/administrative challenges that have made me realize that I'm not actually on vacation.  This is real life.   

That sounds pretty dramatic haha!  Things are still going well.. I just am dealing with some typical blah tasks, like figuring out which home internet plan is not as bad of a rip-off as the rest, and I'm dealing with some atypical relocation tasks, like still trying to figure out my options for dealing with the fact that my shipment is going to be 3 weeks late.  Oh, and on top of that, work :) 

Speaking of work, I've spent the week in Penang, and I've enjoyed it so far!  In some ways, Penang is very similar to Singapore, but in some ways its very different.  We are also on the island part of Penang (there is also a part of the mainland that is still Penang.. I'm not really sure how that works), so there is beautiful blue water all around us, but from the looks of it, Penang is much less modern and "big-city" esque than Singapore.

View from the hotel

Just like Singapore, everyone speaks English, but I've noticed here that because there are more Malays here, Mandarin is spoken less frequently, and when it is, someone will usually translate to English right away.  Penang and Singapore share a lot of similar foods, but the grocery prices seem to be a lot cheaper in Penang!  I got two boxes of granola bars (a Quaker Chewy and a Nature Valley) for about $7 USD here the other night.  In Singapore, that would've cost me about $17 USD haha.  In fact, almost everything is much, much cheaper here in Malaysia.  The hotel I'm staying in is right next to a mall and a grocery store, so it looks like I will be stocking up on things during my trips over here :) 

A combo pack of buckwheat and millet for about 3 USD!

Clearly I am ready for the beach with my "Capri-Sonne"

I'm heading to Hong Kong for the weekend, and I'm so excited about it!  My Kindle is stocked for the plane ride!