I just thought of sharing this pix that I took while in Penang, Malaysia last August... had a nice time there... and it just my first time to around the Malaysian forums so I thought I'd post it here too... by December I'm planning to go see the Petronas....:D

Kuala Lumpur International Airport
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p5e3051569b01036829e36dcb7c66b0fa/f70817c8.jpg

Penang, Malaysia
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/pb416d47911e3edac75683e06282999de/f7081a0b.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/pcbbcf49809888b532fb2840acd4a236d/f708191a.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p18a6a189057d26b811f90e11d3a42319/f7081837.jpg

Komtar, the highest tower in Penang, Malaysia
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/pf58d495b1b8256f4a20f07a2417b96fe/f70818a0.jpg

Sheraton Penang, we stayed here while in Malaysia
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid139/p49b08c1580fb61904db8da009b30b014/f708188c.jpg

Penang is a huge manufacturing location, isn't it? It's also an island? Is the main city Georgetown, the one you took pictures of?

yup... we stayed in Georgetown... and the manufacturing area is in the southern part of this island state, Bayan Lepas.... and the manufacturing area is indeed huge... and the Georgetown resembles a bit of HongKong or Singapore with its high-rise buildings everywhere...

Penang is a huge manufacturing location, isn't it? It's also an island? Is the main city Georgetown, the one you took pictures of?


Apart from the southern part of the island (Bayan Lepas Industrial Zone) that Pau had mentioned, there is also a huge one at Seberang Perai (Butterworth).......at the main land right around the exit/entrance of the Penang Bridge. ;)

I just thought of sharing this pix that I took while in Penang, Malaysia last August... had a nice time there... and it just my first time to around the Malaysian forums so I thought I'd post it here too... by December I'm planning to go see the Petronas....:D




Thanks for sharing your pictures Pau! :okay:

It would be nice if you could resize your beautiful pictures a bit bigger for better viewing ;) .......I would love to see more of your work :)

thanks...

and yup in Butterworth is where we went during our stay in Penang... we went to Penang for a meeting with our client, Dell Computers... so we stayed on Georgetown and daily we drive to Butterworth to the Dell facility in Butterworth...:D

it was recommended to us to look for a hotel on Penang island because the island have better hotels than on the mainland....

Thanks for sharing your pictures Pau! :okay:

It would be nice if you could resize your beautiful pictures a bit bigger for better viewing ;) .......I would love to see more of your work :)

I'm trying to resize the pictures but it doesn't work... how can I resize the pictures here?... i was trying the width and height.. but it seems it doesn't work here...

thanks...

and yup in Butterworth is where we went during our stay in Penang... we went to Penang for a meeting with our client, Dell Computers... so we stayed on Georgetown and daily we drive to Butterworth to the Dell facility in Butterworth...:D

it was recommended to us to look for a hotel on Penang island because the island have better hotels than on the mainland....

yea......the hotels on the island is so so so much better than in Butterworth. And did you do a transit at KLIA? Isn't there a direct flight to Penang International Airport? :?

yea......Quite a lot of companies have big presence in Penang like Dell, Seagate, Intel, Microsoft etc...etc... etc.... ;)

yeah.. I noticed that too... Malaysia did get a lot of investments from these multinational companies...

yup, we transitted to KLIA... from Manila, the only flight to Penang is thru KL then a domestic flight to Penang via Malaysian Air...

I think the only city in the Malaysia aside from KL that has direct flights from the Philippines is Kota Kinabalu...

I'm trying to resize the pictures but it doesn't work... how can I resize the pictures here?... i was trying the width and height.. but it seems it doesn't work here...

hmmm.....I usually resized the pictures prior uploading it to the net. I dun think HTML tags works here ;)

yeah.. I noticed that too... Malaysia did get a lot of investments from these multinational companies...

yup, we transitted to KLIA... from Manila, the only flight to Penang is thru KL then a domestic flight to Penang via Malaysian Air...

I think the only city in the Malaysia aside from KL that has direct flights from the Philippines is Kota Kinabalu...


yea......apart from Penang, Shah Alam and PJ (both in the Klang Valley / greater KL) got lotsa industrial invesments from these multinationals too. BTW....the Intel in Penang is the second largest worldwide ........smaller than the one in US. All Pentium 4 chips are made there (not too sure bout now but a few years ago - yes) ;)

Oh I din know only KK and KL had direct flights to the Philippines....hmmm.......kinda weird......maybe Penang doesn't generate enuf traffic :)

well... I think the reason is.. Penang is not a famous city to people here... Kota is the nearest Malaysian city to us and there are Muslim Filipinos who has relatives in Sabah...

Penang is famous to people in the air cargo business. I know that a lot of air cargo freighters pick up and drop off freight at the airport.

http://sg.yimg.com/i/sg/providers/reuters.gif
Wednesday March 14, 7:25 PM
Singapore tops list of best cities for Asian expats-survey

SINGAPORE, March 14 (Reuters) - Singapore's low crime rate, clean air and solid infrastructure helped the city-state top a list as the best city in the world for Asian expats to live in for the fifth year in a row, a survey showed on Wednesday.

Three Australian cities -- Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra -- took up spots in the top five while Kobe, Osaka and Tokyo in Japan made it into the top ten, according to ECA International, a human resource consultancy for multinationals.

But Singapore -- well known for its squeaky clean, safe streets -- claimed the spot as best place in the world for Asian expatriates for the fifth year running. "Singapore is consolidating its position at No 1 -- it's continuing to improve," said Lee Quane, ECA's Hong Kong-based general manager.

"I can't find another city that matches it in terms of personal security and safety. Singapore is pretty much the safest place in the world."

With more Asian expatriates being sent overseas for work, the ECA's survey can help determine suitable compensation packages and hardship allowances for expat employees.

The ECA report is based on expat surveys and country data for 254 locations globally on areas such as climate, air quality, healthcare, infrastructure and political locations. Language and proximity to home are also among the top concerns among expatriates around the world.

"Asia is improving at a far greater rate than anywhere else," Quane said, adding that cities in China and India had rapidly climbed up the rankings.

Within Asia, the gap between Singapore and Hong Kong has widened over the last five years.

"We have seen more and more companies and expatriates say they would prefer to relocate to Singapore because of the better facilities," Quane said. That's despite the fact that Singapore ranks lower than Hong Kong in terms of press freedom and recreation, he said.

The Hong Kong-Singapore rivalry is heating up as the Chinese territory's air pollution worsens, pushing it down on the global ranking list from five years ago.

The Southeast Asian city-state is working to improve its image as a place for fun and entertainment, with new restaurants and bars springing up and two multi-billion dollar casinos on the way.

Quane added that one of the most interesting findings in the survey was Macau which, thanks to heavy investments by casino resorts and a fast-growing tourism industry, had climbed to 56 in the global ranking for Asians, up from 80 just five years ago. Top 10 best locations in the world for Asian expats (previous ranking)

1 Singapore, Singapore (1)

2 Australia, Sydney (2)

3 Australia, Melbourne (3)

4 Japan, Kobe (5)

5 Australia, Canberra (4)

6 Canada, Vancouver (7)

6 Denmark, Copenhagen (6)

8 New Zealand, Wellington (8)

9 Netherlands, Amsterdam (23)

10 Japan, Osaka (10)

10 Japan, Tokyo (11)

10 Belgium, Brussels (14)

10 Germany, Bonn (14)

10 Ireland, Dublin (14)

10 Switzerland, Basel (9)

10 Switzerland, Geneva (22)

Top 10 best locations in Asia for Asian expats:

1 Singapore, Singapore

2 Japan, Kobe

3 Japan, Tokyo

3 Japan, Osaka

5 Hong Kong, Hong Kong

6 Macau, Macau

7 Taiwan, Taipei

8 Thailand, Bangkok

9 Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur

10 Malaysia, Georgetown

Copyright © 2007 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

found this in Singapore forum

Penang is not just a Malaysia's silicon valley, but it is also a hot tourist spot in the country and a favourite choice of foreigners who intend to retire in Malaysia under "Malaysia - My 2nd Home" programme. This little island is also fondly known as Pearl of the Orient and offers a wide variety of attractions ranging from culture and heritage, beaches, national park, hills to its infamous food. I would say that Penang is not resemble to neither Hong Kong nor Singapore as its capital, Georgetown still retains its old world charm with thousands of pre-war houses and colonial edifices being preserved until nowadays.

There are few links on photos and what people say about Penang :
www.penangtalk.com
www.penangtravelforum.com
www.penangnewspaper.com
www.alloexpat.com

well-said chris....there is no point comparing our Penang with other places....it is known that Penang has uniqueness which no other place in the world has..Penang is always Penang..of course i agree there are other unique places in the world but for me Penang's uniqueness is the best uniqueness i ever seen..why...because many places are unique in certain way but Penang is unique in many ways which u can't find it in other places.....Like Penang's slogan "Penang has it all"..it's definitely true...Having so much of beauty of all kind in such a small state...Penang forever....

well-said chris....there is no point comparing our Penang with other places....it is known that Penang has uniqueness which no other place in the world has..Penang is always Penang..of course i agree there are other unique places in the world but for me Penang's uniqueness is the best uniqueness i ever seen..why...because many places are unique in certain way but Penang is unique in many ways which u can't find it in other places.....Like Penang's slogan "Penang has it all"..it's definitely true...Having so much of beauty of all kind in such a small state...Penang forever....

:applause:

^^^ Yea...i'm a proud Penangite - Penang really has it all!

I'm quite surprised quite a number of people in Wales, U.K knows Penang!

Of course. Last time their grand parents or their great grand parents have been to Penang.

Miss Penang so much!! ~><~:nuts:

You from Penang?

count me in!! miss Penang so much!!

Of course have to count you in. You are the best Penang Skyscrapers Hunter ma.

O you poor darlings are all so homesick for Penang! :pet:

^^ they r not alone! that day will come when SEED will return... ... and plant some plants! :lol: but wat seed should i sow to reap a great harvest.. hmm.. interesting..

You should plant those trees that along jalan Scotland.
Those trees really provide a best shade for the people especially those stuck in Traffic jammed.

PENANG MONORAIL??????!



http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/7756/f01m315531f.jpg

Penang Monorail???
Great!!!

Penang Monorail???
Great!!!
ntahlah.......mungkin projek nie dibatalkan kot.......mungkin la.........

PENANG MONORAIL??????!



http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/7756/f01m315531f.jpg

this monorail...looks like federal already cheated penangites
:ohno:

the penang monorail project was delayed due to many reasons and factors.

Ikea sells Shah Alam warehouse for RM90m
By Vasantha Ganesan
vasantha@nstp.com.my
2009/09/10

The 560,000-sq-ft warehouse was sold to a Malaysian property fund as part of the Swedish company's plan to relocate its distribution network to China.
Swedish home furnishing giant Ikea has sold its warehouse in Shah Alam, Selangor, to a Malaysian property fund for about RM90 million.

The 560,000-sq-ft warehouse, which is located on a piece of land measuring 8.51ha, was sold as part of the furnishing company's plan to relocate its distribution network to China.

China is now the hub for Asia Pacific. Ikea moved out of Shah Alam about two months ago.

The sale of the warehouse, owned by Ikea Handel Sdn Bhd, in Section 26 Shah Alam, was handled by Jones Lang Wootton (JLW).

Sources told Business Times that the buyer is Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera Bhd (PHBB). JLW, however, declined to confirm this.

Ikea started operations at the premises in 1997. About five years ago, when business picked up it added an extension to the original building.

On advice from JLW, its exclusive marketing agent, the building was leased and only then sold, as this would make the property attractive to buyers. Executive director Rohan Padmanathan and vice-president Danial Gan of JLW were instrumental in sealing this deal.

The property was leased to IDS Logistics Servicer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd for seven years with options to renew.

IDS Logistics is a member of the Integrated Distribution Services Group Ltd. The IDS group is in turn a member of the Li & Fung Group.

While Ikea's warehouse may have moved to China, Ikea's retail arm is expected to continue its investments in Malaysia.

In an interview with Business Times in April this year, Ikea Malaysia said it was scouting for suitable land in the densely populated Cheras and Ampang in Kuala Lumpur for a new store.

Ikea is keen to to have a 6ha site next to a highway, to provide both ample car park space and easy access. This is to have room for future expansion.



Industry experts estimate that a piece of land that size in that area, could cost Ikea as much as RM100 million.

Ikea has also confirmed the opening in Desa Tebrau Johor where it bought a piece of land for RM64 million.

The retailer first opened at the 1Utama shopping mall, but moved to its own site in Mutiara Damansara in 2003. It was reported that it had invested RM180 million in the store and land.

An additional RM120 million was pumped into the adjoining building of 45,000 sq ft where the Ikano Power Centre is set up.

Ikea is also keen on a store in Penang, after Johor and a second one in the Klang Valley.