These are the Clan Jetties of George Town.
Like fingers that jut into the sea, the Clan Jetties line the water front of George Town and here we find a tight-knit community that has existed for over a hundred years, witnessed and contributed to the growth of the Penang port and fought hard to preserve a traditional lifestyle adrift in the urban setting.
Start your day at the edge of Georgetown with a stroll along Chew Jetty. If you're hungry you can have breakfast at a roadside coffee shop along Pengkalan Weld near the Clan Jetty.
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| Chew Jetty Café (海墘茶室), as the name implies, is located at the entrance of Chew Jetty (姓周桥). A wide selection of food stalls with varieties representative of Penang street food under one roof. |
Chew Jetty is worth a visit to gain an appreciation of the history of the early Chinese settlers since it’s within walking distance from Armenian Street. Many of the houses are still inhabited and as you walk through the short jetty, you get to get a glimpse of their lifestyles. Go on a weekday early morning to beat the crowd and avoid the mid-morning to afternoon Sun so that you can maximize your experience.
The Clan Jetties are now included in the Core Area of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of George Town, and are revered and conserved as a part of George Town’s cultural heritage legacy.
There were originally seven “clan jetties” at the waterfront but the Ong Jetty was dismantled when the ferry terminal was built.
The six originals which remain are the Lim, Chew, Tan, Lee, Yeoh and the “mixed clan”
The jetty with the largest community was Chew Jetty(姓周桥) , near the Armenian Street Ghaut. It contains the most stilt-houses along with the longest walkway and also a temple.
The highlight of the procession was a dragon boat float carrying the Jade Emperor’s statue which started at the jetty, passed through the Xuan Mu Temple at Weld Quay, Malay Street Ghaut, Beach Street, Chulia Street Ghaut, Temple of the Goddess of Mercy at Pitt Street, China Street, before it headed back to the jetty.
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| Front of a temple at the entrance to the Chew jetty. Bai Tian Gong- Devotees will pack the jetty area during the celebration of Heavenly God’s birthday during the ninth day of Lunar Chinese New Year. |
The Jade Emperor’s statue was later placed on an ornate wooden structure set up at the entrance of the jetty for the night’s prayers.
The ceremony is also to pay homage to the Jade Emperor who provided the Hokkiens protection from the attacks of the Japanese army who were out to massacres them.
According to legend, the Hokkiens survived persecution in ancient China by hiding in a sugarcane plantation during Chinese New Year for nine days.
On the ninth day which coincided with the Jade Emperor’s birthday, they emerged from their hideouts to discover their enemies gone. They had been saved by the protective cover of the raw sugarcane stalks.
From that moment on, the Hokkiens have regarded this date as symbolic to their survival.
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| The welcoming signboard of Chew Jetty at the entry |
The Chews originated from the south-eastern coast of China - from Tung Aun District, Xin Lin She Village, Quan Zhou Prefecture of Fujian Provice. They were maritime clan communities in China.
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| Although a popular tourist spot, Chew Jetty still houses generations of Chew clan residents who might not appreciate guests too early in the morning, so try not to disrupt them too much before 9 AM in the morning. Those visiting need to know how to behave and show some respect to the residents living here. |
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| "Grandma and Ah Soon" sharing a light moment- mural by Simon Tan at Chew Jetty. This looks a bit like my Mom and Me. |
I feel that street art mural should rightfully reflect the life of its surrounding communities. Residents of the Chew Jetty, mostly do not live in fear of their neighbors, and their doors are always open.The people that live in these communities still have strong community spirit. These close knit people look out for each other and will do anything to help another neighborhood, whether they are family members or not. A rarity in this modern day and age. We hardly have time to know ourselves, let alone our neighbors. How Sad That Is.
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| The Chew Jetty is somewhat commercial. Numerous house shops along the path in peddling anything from food, drinks, souveniers and small knick-knacks. |
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| Most of the customers who came here were surprised to see the large bowl, weighing 6.4 kilogrammes |
Ramen is a Japanese dish, consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles served in a meat- or fish-based broth, often flavored with soy sauce or miso, and uses toppings such as sliced pork, dried seaweed, menma, and green onions.
Sadly, i didn't manage to try this. While walking down the heritage trail I was welcome with extremely pungent odor, it spoiled my appetite for this place.
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| Let's not forget to get some souvenirs at shops in the Chew Jetty. |
Basically it became a trademark of Georgetown. The 'Little Children On A Bicycle' is the most popular of all the mural art.
Tourists are buying T-shirts, magnets and other merchandise with this picture like crazy. I am guilty myself, but I bought just one little memento T- shirt for my wonderful trip to Penang.To witness the actual mural art of 'Little Children on a Bicycle' on the wall of a shophouse on Armenian Street which is just 5 minutes walking distance from here.
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| Hean Boo Thean Temple, as seen from Chew Jetty. Also known as the Kuan Yin floating temple in George Town, is a relatively newly renovated Chinese temple located at the edge of Yeoh Jetty, in Lebuhraya Merdeka, off Weld Quay. |
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| Initially a wooden floating Chinese temple dedicated to God of Mercy in year 1972, the temple was completely rebuilt with concrete structure in November 2012. I'm adding this place to my travel bucket lists for next trip to Penang. |
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| Try visiting at dusk when the temple’s twinkling lights are reflected in the North Channel. |
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| At the background there was once a famous mural painting on the side wall of this jetty house. It's a shame it would only last a year before faded. Sad to see all his effort has gone to waste. |
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| What a beautiful mural art painting it was once.Living near the coast, exterior paint can fade, peel and chip as a result of constant exposure to salt water. |
Children in a Boat is a mural painted on the wall of the stilt-house painted by London-trained Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic in conjunction with the 2012 George Town Festival. The mural portray two children, a boy and a girl, playing on a berthed sampan by the shore, with a pet cat.
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| Posing by the dragon masthead of a dragon rowboat which residents of Chew Jetty had once used to win a dragon boat race in Penang. The Malayan Railway building with clock tower in the background. |
The old Malayan Railway still stands to this day as the most imposing colonial building along Weld Quay. Built in the 1900s to allow train passengers from Penang Island to purchase their tickets before boarding one of the cross-strait ferries to Butterworth, where the train station is located. It was often called “the only railway station without a rail” and, as such, operated more as an administrative center. Now the home of Malaysian Customs in Penang, the building is known as Wisma Kastam.
ORIGIN OF DRAGON BOAT
Dragon boat racing is a team-focused sport which promotes discipline, harmony, physical fitness and mental toughness.Penangites it is an honoured sport that inculcates racial harmony and mental toughness
Dragon boat racing has a sad history of ancient ceremonial and ritualistic traditions, which emerge in southern central China more than 2500 years ago. The legend begin with the story of Qu Yuan, who was a versatile minister in one of the Warring State governments, Chu. A slander campaign against him by jealous government officials had resulted his banishment by Emperor.
Unable to overcome disappointment in the Chu monarch, he drowned himself into the Miluo river. Many of the common people rushed to the water and tried to recover his body. In commemoration of Qu Yuan, people hold dragon boat races annually on the anniversary of his death according to the legend. They also scattered rice into the water to feed the fish, so that the fish would not eat his body.
An interesting legend of Zongzi has been passed down through generations from ancient China.
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| Durian is affectionately called the King of Fruit throughout Southeast Asia. This is just a replica. |
Durian: You either love it or you hate it . The durian is the only fruit banned from airline cabins, hotels and public transportation. It 'smelling like Hell but tasting like Heaven.'.
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| My sister asked me to follow her lead, this is best spot. I declined. Even though the narrow jetty looks solid but I'm a little apprehensive it might give way . Looking down on the sea water below will make me feel dizzy. |
I had been quite fear of the ocean. Thalassophobia phobia can include fear of being in large bodies of water, fear of the vast emptiness of the sea, and fear of distance from land.
Silly me, overreacted.
What is it about dangerous places that so attracts some travelers? Where's your sense of adventure ?
The golden rule is to use common sense. Being constantly alert to your surroundings and actively engaging in safe travelling will reduce the risk of an accident.
Prevention is better than cure is a proverb which teaches us it is better to stop something bad from happening than it is to deal with it after it has happened.
A group of boys were visiting this Chew Jetty spot. I heard the commotion of elderly woman who scolded one of those boys who try to pull the rope attached to the bow of the boat.
She was so angry with him that she just lashed out at him... Bouncing waves will pull the bow of the boat and probably also throw the boy overboard. Imagine this scenario like a Tug of War. To win the game, all your team has to do is to prove stronger than the other team by pulling the rope over.
Foolish boy indeed. Instead of feeling humiliated, ignored and ashamed, he kept laughing. It really pisses me off.
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| At the end of the jetty you are able to capture a panoramic view of the port and the activities between the mainland and the island with also magnificent glimpse of Penang bridge as you gaze to the horizon of the Straits of Malacca. |
This place definitely is the best place for every photographer to view their sunset and sunrise.
If you don't know the timezone of Penang sunrise and sunset, try to find it out by clicking this link:
https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/malaysia/penang
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| The bridge is the second-longest bridge in Malaysia and the fifth-longest in Southeast Asia by total length, with a length over water of 8.4 kilometres (5.2 miles). |
Before the bridge was built, people depended upon ferry services to cross the Penang Straits.
A ferry tale..
Accident can happen suddenly, even when least expected. I remember well an accident case on-board of Penang ferry carrying vehicles many years ago. As I recalled..a ferry attendant awoke a car fare paying passenger who drives the vehicle in the front row. He was sleeping in his car and was asked to get ready as the ferry was about to reach the Ferry terminal soon.
Unexpectedly the driver who maybe still feeling drowsy was thinking the ferry has docked and in the disembarking process. The unfortunate driver hit the accelerator pedal, plunged into the sea.
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| Local boatmen are shifting towards tourist boat travel and island hopping because it is more lucrative than fishing. |
Many of these cargo boats are no longer in use today because the Chews have become obsolete as stevedores.
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| Chew Jetty is just a few hundred meter away from Penang ferry terminal( Raja Tun Uda Ferry Terminal) |
Penang Ferry began its operations in 1920, making it the oldest ferry service in Malaysia. These iconic ferries ply between the Seberang Perai mainland and Penang island, ferrying both passengers and vehicles to and from the island.
The 15 minute ferry ride allows visitors to enjoy the spectacular view of Penang island and serves as a reliable mode of transportation to and from the island.
As a child, I enjoy the short ferry ride to and from Butterworth , a fun way to cross the Selatan Strait while enjoying the fresh sea breeze. If you're lucky you might even see dolphins. It has its charm and it's flaws for sure.
You often need to queue to board the ferry. Neither is it as fast as the bridges but the smell of the salt water, the wind in the hair, the sound of horn blowing and the sight of Penang slowly emerging in the horizon. Make you worthwhile, you're from another era. Best of all, it cost very little to enjoy the classic charm of starting your holiday in Penang.
You often need to queue to board the ferry. Neither is it as fast as the bridges but the smell of the salt water, the wind in the hair, the sound of horn blowing and the sight of Penang slowly emerging in the horizon. Make you worthwhile, you're from another era. Best of all, it cost very little to enjoy the classic charm of starting your holiday in Penang.
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| Will the icon of Penang scrapped one day? If problem of low patronage further worsen and its regular motorists opt to use the bridge instead of the ferry. |
The vehicular ferry, a state icon, should not be scrapped even after the additional Penang 2nd Bridge.
A Brief History of Clan Jetties
Many of the local Hokkiens, who only know Weld Quay as Sin Hai Kee or New Waterfront Street.
Weld Quay, or Pengkalan Weld, as it is now known, is a coastal road on the eastern shoreline of the city of George Town.
It is named after Sir Frederick Aloysius Weld, the Governor of the Straits Settlements from 1880 to 1887. He was instrumental for the land reclamation and port expansion on the waterfront.Prior to the land reclamation, the sea had reached right up to Beach Street.
During his tenure as the Governor, a large-scale land reclamation project was carried out in George Town in order to extend the city's eastern shoreline and create more land for the Port of Penang.
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| This photo shows a electric tram running on tracks along old Weld Quay during that time. Once upon a time, a part of Penang’s lively waterfront scene, tongkangs have faded into obscurity. |
Weld Quay is the main road running along the Penang Harbour, the busy port where lighters or tongkangs used to dock. In their early heydays, this quay was extremely busy and perpetually chaotic with sampans, tongkangs and small boats that load and unload their cargo. As a proof of Penang's status as a thriving harbour and port.
Stretching from Swettenham Pier to Pengkalan Weld, bustled endlessly. Bullock carts and handcarts transported goods of all kinds to the wharf while labourers and handlers moved bags and sacks against a backdrop of large ships waiting in the sea roads for their load.
The old Church Street Pier was the embarkation and disembarkation pier for the railway ferry to Prai where one boards the train to Ipoh or Kuala Lumpur, the Penang-Butterworth Ferry Terminal which is entirely different from the railway ferry and the Clan Jetties. Those were the good old days of Weld Quay in 1900’s.
Eventually, a number of piers, as well as warehouses, were built along Weld Quay to expedite harbour trade. In the year 1918 the Chinese ancestor of Chew Jetty heard that jobs were aplenty here in Penang, Consequently, a wave of refugees came from the Fujian province of China.The upsurge in trade with Asian countries increased the demand for port labourers.
Initially worked as coolies, but as time went by many became self-employed as ferry operators, transporting people and goods between anchored ships and the harbour.
They landed with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, the cultures of their ancestors and their few meagre possessions they had managed to transport across the sea. The migrants didn’t know where to go in Penang. They have little to no money so they choose to do what they know best- Live near the sea.
Their ancestor's came from small coastal communities in Fukien province, where they were mostly fisherman and gatherers of oysters.
As the number of foreign ships that anchored at the harbour increased, so did the number of stilts. Initially wooden planks were placed on the stilts to provide passengers embarking or disembarking without getting wet.
It is fortunate that they had landed in a site that was once used for wood yard (char hionh), abandoned planks were plentiful. Using the wood they built their homes over the water and families with the same surnames stayed together, hence the name the Weld Quay Clan Jetties.
Like most pioneer immigrants, they had only intended to remain a few years to amass savings and then to return to China. Troubled by civil war, the Manchu rulers of China lost their grip on power. It also caused widespread poverty that are likely to be affected by famine , eventually the ensuing discussion makes them to change their minds and not to return to China.
Retained by the abundance of work in the flourishing port, most of them chose to stay back and began to arrange for the immigration of their kinsmen and their family members.
The hard work, thrift and perseverance of these migrant workers eventually paid off when they able to bring their families over from China and settled.
As typical of early Chinese immigration and settlement patterns, clansmen tended to band together. They emigrated as bachelors from same hometowns and helped one another to find employment and accommodation in the new environment. They also utilized clan ties for mutual help and protection.
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| Wooden walkways and alleys branched out from the main jetty to become a cluster of homes for the immigrant workers and their families, because they couldn't afford to live on the mainland. Water and electricity weren't installed until 1954. |
These are the people who believe that no matter what life throws their way, that they will persist and persevere — eventually attaining their goals and objectives.
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| Their intention was to work in Malaya for a specific period and then tnui4 Tng3 Snua1, meaning to return to China, to a supposed life of comfortable retirement and eventual demise but civil wars and poverty in China changed their plan. |
The British colonists led by Francis Light needed cheap labour to develop Penang, so they imported a large number of Chinese workers. "Heigh-Ho" is a song sung by the seven dwarfs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as they come home from (and go to) work.
Heigh-ho meaning, definition, what is heigh-ho: used to express the fact that you cannot change a situation so you must accept it.
I think Cantonese also have similar version of "heigh-ho" expression that is "鬼叫你穷啊顶眼上".
This is not my personal video, is just a link from the web. All credits go to the right owners.
The operation was a tedious one; tongkangs in those days did not have engines and the crew was expected to row throughout the voyage, even in choppy seas and poor weather conditions.
We all go through tough times, some worse than others, and it's never easy but don't lose hope.
What's That Smell?
I grew up in the city riding school bus before dawn and everytime the bus pass by the Weld Quay, I could smell the awful stench coming from coastal breeze. I didn't know what's that until now.
My question though is, is there a sewer system in the jetties?
Reason I'm saying this is when we were walking along the wooden planks towards the sea front, you can smells unpleasant strong odor coming under the jetty.
I hope not those poop being washed into the sea. I later search for information to confirm my suspicions. The Answer Is Nope. Thus, in the early mornings, the smell of raw sewage permeates.
Sewerage systems are very important for housing areas as they ensure that human waste is disposed of properly and directed to the treatment plant.
As a historical place interest which encourages tourist to come, witnessing human waste floating on the water surface and the foul smelling dirty water is definitely not something a tourist would want and not good for tourism publicity.
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| The residents of Clan Jetties do not pay tax for their homes since they do not live on land and no need to pay sewage bills to Indah Water Konsortium. |
When you flush the toilets on the clan jetties, the waste goes straight into the sea to be washed away by low tide. 'EW THAT'S DISGUSTING'
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| You don't want to know whats beneath the jetty. |
Littered with garbage – especially obvious during low tide. This waste is not generated solely by the clan jetties; it comes from all over the place, even from the drains at Pengkalan Weld – and it’s getting worse over time,
Let hope not that at the same time by gaining the recognition as UNESCO heritage site but by not taking care of the raw sewage flooding the sea. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.The absence of proper sewage discharge has seriously damaged the beauty and quality of water of the whole area. It became a victim of the pollution that is slowly killing our oceans.
Does world heritage status do clan jetties more harm than good?
In 2008 the clan jetties were awarded Unesco world heritage status – though not before two of the clan enclaves were razed to make way for a housing complex.
The daily intrusion has clearly taken a toll: windows are boarded, “no photo” signs are pervasive, and tenants quickly vanish at the sight of a unfamiliar face. Before becoming famous the resident used to leave their door open unattended.
This lyric of the song can relate to the resident living there.
I'm just an average man with an average life
I work from nine to five, hey, hell, I pay the price
All I want is to be left alone in my average home
But why do I always feel like I'm in the twilight zone?
And
I always feel like somebody's watching me
And I have no privacy.....
The residents will become agitated, depressed, and suspicious of others (paranoid).
However, others are not united on the area's future: some have watched the commercial transformation of the Chew Jetty with envy, others with horror.
‘Ah!’; ‘So!’; ‘I see!’ that's price of fame. Residents of the Chew Jetty, living heritage communities, have to endure daily with tourists peeking into their homes, taking pictures, early in the morning and even at night.
Just imagine, some of these tourists would even venture into the living rooms of the wooden houses built on stilts. You will probarly let out a sudden shriek. 'Arrgh!'
The gambling-ridden clan jetties of Malaysia's George Town were saved from ruin and the constant threat of eviction as the jetties continued to deteriorate. Unfortunately their new fame left locals overwhelmed by a tide of invasive tourism.
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| I believe certain resident are annoyed by tourist walking along their houses thus with the no photo sign written on most of their house gates. Maybe that's the price of fame? We should feel sorry for "celebrities" dodging paparazzi who invading a person's privacy. No photo please!!! |
“I would like to remind people that we are not monkeys, and this is not a zoo" says Lee Kah Lei, who runs a souvenir stall outside her home on the Chew Jetty.
Visitors should learn to keep the noise down, not trespass or litter.
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| No Littering signs to remind people to pick up after themselves and keep their property clean |
There should be proposal to introduce an entrance fee to help limit visitors and create a fund to maintain and renovate the jetties, making them more appealing to occupy. While commercialisation of clan jetty cannot be reversed, residents need to do more to ensure the jetties are maintained and improved for the sake of residents, not just tourists.
However, other residents felt that their “brand name” as a living heritage community had brought much good to the place, especially business opportunities.commercial interests are on the line, they “override the idealistic notion of preserving the character of a heritage site”.
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| Time seemed to have stood still here, the way it did before. |
Fishermen and porters from southern China’s Fujian province carved out an enclave above the reclaimed seafront. Each extended family – or clan – occupied their own jetty, and the makeshift settlements grew as relatives emigrated and added to the stilt homes interconnected by a wooden walkway.
Majority of the young descendants have moved out from settlements for better job prospects and opportunities who no longer depend on the sea for a living, while their elders continue to enjoy the wooden jetties’ laidback lifestyle. There's a real danger that traditional village life will die out within a generation unless we can build better living condition homes for young people and stop what is fast becoming a mass exodus.
While reorientation toward tourism can help revitalise communities, without sufficient management plans the visitation can eventually destroy a site.
Tribute to Chinese Immigrants from the late 1800s to early 1900s.
Recenly in Robert Kuok’s memoir, he paid homage to the majority of Chinese immigrants, going as far as saying that they are “the most amazing economic ants on earth”, and that they are hungry, eager and willing to ‘eat bitterness’ — a sign of the cultural strength in the “marrow of their bones”.
“The decent Chinese have helped to build up Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, and made these countries what they are today." Many of these often penniless, lower class Chinese arrivals in Penang and Malacca started with nothing, and through hard work, talent, grit, and a bit of luck, managed to rise to the very top.
I am, once more, impressed by their resilience, endurance, and tough-mindedness. They are not to be deterred. I believe that they have been conditioned by their past experiences in China, that "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." It is a matter of survival of the fittest.
