Monday 29 July 2013

Cuteki whale clock widget | Cute Kawaii Widget

Cuteki whale clock widget | Cute Kawaii Widget

Cuteki whale clock widget | Cute Kawaii Widget

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Sunday 28 July 2013

Introduction

INTRODUCTION 

Assalamualaikum and hello everyone. Welcome to this blog. This blog is all about Pulau Pinang and this is the first time I'm creating a new blog for my assignment: BC101 Computer Application. My name is Dayang Shahira Binti Awang Saudi and I hope you will enjoy viewing my first blog. ^____^

All About Penang!!


Let me tell you all about Penang! As you probably already know, Penang is an island off the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It is located at a Latitude of 5°22'8.37"N and Longitude of 100°15'40.00"E (key in the location on Google Earth to find it).

Penang Island is one of the components of Penang State. Although is the second smallest state in Malaysia, it is also the most densely populated. Penang state comprises Penang Island (293 sq km) and Penang Mainland, or Province Wellesley (760 sq km, nowadays called Seberang Perai in Malay), which is on the mainland of Peninsular Malaysia. Although Seberang Perai is two-and-a-half times bigger than Penang Island in size, its population (54%) is only slightly more than that of the island.

                     

The sea, consisting of the North Channel and the South Channel, separates Penang Island from Seberang Perai. These two halves of Penang are connected by the 8-mile (13.4km) long Penang Bridge, the longest bridge in Malaysia and one of the longest in Asia. Since its completion over twenty years ago, the Penang Bridge has seen traffic volume exceeding capacity, resulting in regular jams and necessitating the planning for the Second Penang Bridge, even longer than the present one. This second bridge will one day connect Batu Maung on the island and Batu Kawan on the mainland.

The name "Penang" itself comes from the colonial (we were under the British until 1957) pronunciation of the original Malay name of the island, Pulau Pinang. Today the locals still call it Penang when speaking in English, though you may find that outside the English-speaking world, the island is often known and appear on maps as "Pinang", (among the Thais, for example) not even "Pulau Pinang". In a similar sense, the island is known in Hokkien as Pi3Nang3 Su3.




The capital of Penang is Georgetown (location: 5°25'8.59"N, 100°20'36.54"E). That's the correct way of writing it, even though the locals often misspell it as Georgetown.

                                    



History Of Penang: Malay Race


Malay race consists of many ethnic group. The Malay are the one of the three main ethnic groups in Penang. According to the Malaysia constitution, the Malays are the native people who are Muslims. Therefore, non-Malay who embraced Islam, or Muallaf are known as someone who converted to Malay (masuk melayu).

The Malay conduct their daily lives following the set of rules, rituals and customs. They eat the staple food of rice, together with spicy dishes, cooked with plenty of herbs and also coconut milk. Malay traditional food uses a lot of natural ingredients and elaborate ways of cooking. 


Anthropologists determined that the origin of the Malay race started from people who migrated from South China thousands of years ago settled in Malay Peninsula. 


Over the mellinnia, their features and skin color changed to suit the local climate. Those who lived by the sea become expert sailors and fishermans. Those who lived inland, cultivated the land to harvest staple foods. 


Before the influence of Islam, the religions practiced were mainly Hinduism and animism. The old beliefs of customs were deeply ingratiated into their daily lives. When Islam took hold of the region, during the heyday of the Malaccan empire, a lot of this customs were abolished as they were against the Islamic teaching. 


In Penang, it was recorded there were Malay settlements scattered throughout the Island before Francis Light took over in the late 18th century. These places were notably at Batu Uban and Dato' Keramat. There is now a very village left at Batu Uban (literally means 'Stone of Grey Hair".)


The only building that is still standing from the old days is mosque, which have been repaired many many times over the years. Dato' Keramat have also become part of Georgetown and therefore is losing its identity as a Malaysia settlement. By the way, Dato' Keramat literally means "Mystical Grandfather". 


Later, in the late of 19th century, a lot of Malays from Acheh royal families, together with their entourage immigrated from Indonesia fleeing from the warth of government who especially wanted to terminate them. Their made their homes in Penang. P.Ramlee who was the famous actors from Penang, was a descendant from this community. 


Another group of people who make up the Malay race in Penang are the Indian Muslims. They came from Southern India, thus they speak Tamil and Malay. 

There are sometimes called Jawi Peranakan. Those who live in the city were called Jawi Pekan. Normally it is a mixed marriage with native Malay with Indian immigrant.


                                

Chinese New Year Cultural & Heritage Celebration


Chinese New Year is the longest and most important celebration in the Chinese Calendar, The Chinese year 4711 begins on Feb. 10, 2013.
Chinese months are reckoned by the lunar calendar, with each month beginning on the darkest day. New Year festivities traditionally start on the first day of the month and continue until the fifteenth, when the moon is brightest. In China, people may take weeks of holiday from work to prepare for and celebrate the New Year.

A Charming New Year

Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve came, and Buddha named a year after each one. He announced that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. Those born in snake years are wise, charming, gregarious, introverted, generous, and smart.

Fireworks and Family Feasts
At Chinese New Year celebrations people wear red clothes, decorate with poems on red paper, and give children "lucky money" in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck. The fireworks that shower the festivities are rooted in a similar ancient custom. Long ago, people in China lit bamboo stalks, believing that the crackling flames would frighten evil spirits.


The Lantern Festival

In China, the New Year is a time of family reunion. Family members gather at each other's homes for visits and shared meals, most significantly a feast on New Year's Eve. In the United States, however, many early Chinese immigrants arrived without their families, and found a sense of community through neighborhood associations instead. Today, many Chinese-American neighborhood associations host banquets and other New Year events.
The lantern festival is held on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Some of the lanterns may be works of art, painted with birds, animals, flowers, zodiac signs, and scenes from legend and history. People hang glowing lanterns in temples, and carry lanterns to an evening parade under the light of the full moon.
In many areas the highlight of the lantern festival is the dragon dance. The dragon—which might stretch a hundred feet long—is typically made of silk, paper, and bamboo. Traditionally the dragon is held aloft by young men who dance as they guide the colorful beast through the streets. In the United States, where the New Year is celebrated with a shortened schedule, the dragon dance always takes place on a weekend. In addition, many Chinese-American communities have added American parade elements such as marching bands and floats.


Penang Best Food




Asam Laksa

Originating from the Peranakan (Straits-Chinese) culture, assam laksa is a dish of thick rice noodles served in spicy and sour fish broth. Penang assam laksa is made using mackerel flakes and tamarind, which gives the broth a sourish flavour. Other ingredients used in the making of this national dish are lemongrass, chillies, galangal, thinly-sliced onions, prawn paste and finely-shredded torch ginger flower. 
While assam laksa can be found at just about anywhere in Penang, it has been said Ayer Itam Pasar serves the best assam laksa in Penang!

Opening Hours: Daily, 11am - 5pm 
Location: Opposite to Wet Market Ayer Itam 

Click here if you want to view Asam Laksa's recipes: http://www.myresipi.com/top/detail/19637



Char Kuey Teow

Penang char kuay teow is known the world over, and is the most popular variety of char kuay teow out of many in Malaysia. It’s a hawker dish of flat rice noodles stir-fried in a large wok over open fire together with lard, soy sauce, chillies, prawns, cockles, eggs, bean sprouts and chives. The ones in Penang are often garnished with crab meat on top for extra flavour. Rich in taste (and fat), Penang char kuay teow is a popular hawker dish much sought-after by ardent foodies to this island. Hawker centres are the best places to find this dish, particularly in Georgetown and along Gurney Drive.

Opening Hours: The stalls are generally open from 19:00 to 02:00
Location: Hawker areas along Jalan Tun Syed Sheh Barakbah (The Esplanade), Lebuh Chulia, Lebuh Kimberley, Lebuh Cintra, Lorong Selamat (off Jalan Burmah), Jalan Macalister, New Lane (off Jalan Macalister), Jalan Pantai, Lebuh Pantai, Lebuh Presgrave and along Gurney Drive.