We are in the middle of a run where we are trying to see every temple we possibly can before we leave Penang. We have the words of Daughter #3 exhorting us, encouraging us, driving us onward - "See every freaking temple you possibly can until you drop!" So we dedicate this temple marathon to her and her inspiring encouragement.
(Wife just told me that I might have misinterpreted what #3 was saying. Perhaps, just perhaps, she was being sarcastic about our tendency to over do things? Nah, that couldn't be possible. Could it?)
Kek Luk Si is far and away the largest temple on Penang. It is Chinese and features a 220 foot tall statue of the Goddess of Mercy and a seven-tier pagoda. It's big. We can see it from our apartment which is some 5-6 miles away. It is built on the side of hill. It requires a major climb or going up via two funiculars and one electric cart ride between the funiculars. It took 20 years to build and was an expression of appreciation of their good fortune by the Malay Chinese community at the turn of the last century.
This Goddess of Mercy is BIG
I mean BIG
You know what I mean. Like NOT SMALL
Even her accompanying demons are BIG
And tough looking. Mercy may be kind but its attendants...
Even dragons come to the Goddess for Mercy
The Goddess' Elephants are tough looking too!
Don't mess with Mercy
I am not nearly as up to speed on my Chinese deities as I should be but there are one helluva a lot of statues of them and/or their devoted acolytes in a temple of this size.
Looking down back toward George Town
Around the Temple grounds
A Temple of this magnitude requires a lot of donations to keep it going.
So Please Give
Please?
We're serious. GIVE!
Photography
Shadows/Silhouette
Reflection
Candids
Leading Lines
Flower
On to Lunch
We have become totally comfortable going to whatever local Kopitiam we can find. These are usually fairly unassuming places run by Malay Chinese. There host location is the coffee shop itself. It will be open air. You will sit down and place your drink order, paying for it when it arrives. All around the coffee shop area are small booths preparing and selling various foods, the majority based on rice or noodles
On the right hand corner is the no frills kopitiam
Today I am having duck meat noodle soup
We are wiped out and take our Grab back to the apartment catching one more shot of street art
