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Plagued by Penangitis

Over A Cuppa: By HOO BAN KEE

From TheStar online

THERE is a strange disease called Penangitis, which afflicts many Malaysians, especially Penang natives who live away from the charming island city. The good news is that the condition is not contagious; the bad news is there is no known medical cure for the affliction.

Sufferers can be found almost anywhere, from distant cities like New York, London, Sydney and Beijing, to closer ones like Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

They are mostly Malaysian emigrants who have left in search of greener pastures or for better educational opportunities abroad.

However, the affliction is not confined only to Penangites but also people who have spent time in the state due to work or other circumstances.

The symptoms are quite obvious. The afflicted involuntarily display a certain fanaticism for anything related to Penang. They’ll salivate at the mere mention of hawker delicacies from the state and immediately list their favorites and argue over which place served up the best version.

If you don’t speak Hokkien, the lingua franca of Penang, listen carefully and have paper and a pen handy.

First, almost all the names of the favourite foods are likely to be in Hokkien or Malay. And second, most of their favourite haunts have Hokkien names.

Penangites, besides being passionate about their food, are also helplessly nostalgic for the good old Penang.

They may moan about Penang losing its lustre as the Pearl of the Orient, or how bad the traffic congestion is, but they’ll insist that Penang is still the best place in the country .

Of course, such open declaration is usually accompanied by a touch of homesickness especially from those who have been away for a long time.

Even those who have had brief sojourns in Penang can remain under its spell long after they’ve left and adopt it as their second hometown.

I, for one, am not a Penangite but after having worked and lived there for a number of years, I still feel very much at home whenever I visit the island.

There is a sense of exhilaration every time I cross the bridge or ride the ferry and see the beautiful skyline of George Town glittering against Penang Hill in the distance. Many Penangites even confess that as they approach the city, they will feel a lump in the throat.

This is another clear symptom of Penangitis. A quick visit to the nearest hawker centre for a bowl of Penang assam laksa or a plate of char kway teow may provide temporary relief.

However, I’d doubt that anyone who has been captivated by the charm of Penang would ever want to be “cured” of it.