Mariner of the Seas - 6D, Day 3 - Malaysia, Penang

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At around 8am, the ship arrived at Penang and docked at Swettenham Pier.  To avoid the shore excursion crowd, we left the ship after 10am.
Mariner of the Seas and Swettenham Pier as background
From the pier, we walked along Light Street, to view some of the buildings along the street.
The Logan Memorial (built since 1873)
After about an hour walk on the streets, we hauled a taxi to go to Kek Lok Si Temple.  The taxi driver did not agree to metered fare and negotiated M$35 (S$13.77) for one-way ride.
Kek Lok Si Temple is said to be the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia.  Construction began in 1890 and it is located on a hill and facing the sea.  A great venue to have a bird's eye view on Penang.
We took the inclined lift to mid hill, to visit Main Prayer Hall and other venues.  The lift fare was M$2.50 (S$0.99) per person.  There were many shops selling souvenir and local snacks along the way towards the ground level.  When we reached the ground level, we took a taxi to Lorong Selamat, the famous Penang Char Koay Teow.  This taxi journey costed M$30 (S$11.80).
The taxi driver dropped us in front of a coffee shop called Kedai Kopi Dan Ice Kacang.  There were a few cooking carts in front of the shop, one of the carts had a man with goggles frying char koay teow.  We placed order for 4 plates of char koay teow, costed a total of M$32 (S$12.59).  And also ordered my mum's favourite ice kacang and 2 bowls of cendol, costed M$8 (S$3.15).  It was only while writing this post that I realised we did not patron the so-called original Lorong Selamat Char Koay Teow which was ran by a madam well known for both her char koay teow and bad attitude.  She used to cook at this spot but bought herself a shop down the road.

Since it would take a while to get our orders, DT and I walked to Ghee Hiang to buy tau sar pneah.  Little did we know that it was quite a distance to walk from Lorong Selamat to Jalan Macalister, luckily Ghee Hiang's delicious tau sar pneah and beh teh saw made the trip worth it.  While walking back, we saw Xiang Peng Peng Salted Chicken and bought one as well.  A whole salted chicken costed M$24 (S$9.44).  When we got back to Lorong Selamat, our plates of char koay teow were ready, really delicious.  Taxi from Lorong Selamat back to Swettenham Pier costed M$20 (S$7.87).

The security check at the gangway was very organised and we were back to the cruise ship by 3.30pm.  After return to our stateroom, while the salted chicken was still warm, we had it on our balcony.  This was a surprise catch, really delicious.  To date, my brother still missed this salted chicken.

Evening Activities
After a quick shower, I read the cruise compass to check the evening activities and shows on board.
"Ice Under the Big Top" was a must-watch show onboard Mariner of the Seas.  The show was performed at Studio B on deck 3, AFT.  This venue is a smaller multipurpose studio complex with a Center Ice Rink.  Probably due to a smaller occupancy, the show was performed 4 times, twice on Day 3 and on Day 5 respectively.  Day 3 was for guests with staterooms on Port Side (left), i.e. even number assembly stations on SeaPass card.  While Day 5 was for guests at Starboard Side, odd number assembly stations on SeaPass card.
It was not our turn for "Ice Under the Big Top", so we went to watch "Brave" at the poolside.  I've always loved cartoons!  We had dinner at Windjammer Cafe then to the Savoy Theatre for magic show.

After dinner, my brother spent time in the gym to burn off some calories, while my mum followed us to Studio B to enjoy Rock & Roll Dance Party!
Past midnight's near empty Royal Promenade
We had a "puppy"!
Good night, Day 3!

CONVERSATION

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