Wednesday, May 19, 2010

First Malaysian Boutique Homestay - The Clove Hall

A few days after reporting for duty in Penang, I got a courtesy call from China Airlines representative. We discussed on a lot of topics... well, to be honest the whole conversation was mostly me asking her opinion on Penang tourism industry and Taiwanese tourists. BTW, for those who are confuse why I asked about Taiwanese tourists ... sama-samalah kita S****I. You are not the only one who are not aware that China Airlines actually belongs to Taiwan (Republic of China).


The Clove Hall

Okay back to our discussion ... we both agreed that Penang actually need new tourism products , rebranding of our current tourist products and new attractions. Many of our favourite hawker food are over commercialise - just look at Gurney Drive hawker area. We no longer grow nutmegs - of course giving way to development. Our beaches are not clean as before ... KOMTAR, one of the 10 icons of Penang is basically deserted. And yet many parties said ... Government didn't do enough to promote Penang. What is there to promote? Even consumer products like MILO or COLGATE has been around for years and the formula is still the same. But the packaging change with time! Hehehe ... I sounded like a Penangite pulak.

The Clove Plant

Never in my wildest imagination that the opportunity came so soon. Honestly I love some old buildings in Penang. Even the house that I lived in Burma Road (but the price was so high). It has certain character, blend of Western and Oriental designs. Too bad they were scattered. Else we could recreate Penang in the Colonial days. Would be a great tourist attraction! So when my KSU was still unsure of the "term" Boutique Homestay on a site visit a month ago ... I told him straightaway ... "If you ask me Dato', Penang need a new tourism product and a good reason to conserve many of our heritage buildings!"

The spacious living area.

Despite some tecnical issues that need to be sorted out, I am glad that my bosses agreed to introduce this new concept called Boutique Homestay, which in the case of Penang as World Heritage Site, our colonial homes. The photos featured in this entry were taken during site visit to the Clove Hall last month before the official presentation of the first Boutique Homestay in Malaysia (and Penang) last Monday. Not going to say much as I am not going to do free promotion to the owner. Just showcase some unique features of the place that caught my eyes. More information you may visit the website at www.clovehall.com.

I love this very Stone Age bath tub hehehe


For newlywed couple, I recommended this room. Look closely at the bedframe. It is made of stone so dijamin takde creaking sound hehehe

I love the swimming pool, especially the water features at the pool side.

Can you see me?

The best way to enjoy the fresh air while doing business hehehehe


I am not a fan of this type of bed. However it reminds me of some Hindi movies when the groom met the bride for the first time on their wedding night.

8 comments:

Si Yoyop Bah... said...

Aku nak sentuh sikit psl jamban tu. So ideal for ventilation of air...Maklumlah, bila membuang slps minum nescafe/ mkn telur rebus atau yg sewaktu dgnnya...dapat kurang kan sikit 'aroma' semerbak tu...Hehe

Psl newlywed room tu...Haha. Masih aku tkenang kita kat Winner Hotel. Org sblh batuk pun kita dgr dan kita mula memasang telinga utk mendgr 'bunyi2 mengerang kesadapan'. Hahahahahahahahahahaha

norzah said...

Sedikit-sedikit crite kenakalan u org masa dulu keluar ye? Yy dan J, mungkin boleh jadi bahan sebuah novel. Cuma i takut kena censored berasaskan komen-komen yg dapat dibaca ra,ai, hehehe. Sebaliknya buku cam tu lah yg laku sekarang ni.
Mengenai redesigning Penang Tourism industry, soal penting ialah: Apakah yg special bagi Penang sekarang? Kesan-kesan sejarah kolonial sekeliling Sir Francis Light? Foreigners' Nudist colony somewhere on the island? Keretapi Bukit? (Mesti lebih mengancam).Floating restoren bawah jembatan dgn nightclub?
I believe J, setakat katil tak creaking, open air jamban, dan kolam renang batu, tak boleh menarik minat foreign tourists lagi. Mereka mau adventure, freedom, cabaran, So think wild, babe. Kalau ada Nudist colony, org datang nak ngintip boleh penuhkan hotel. Yoyop pun mungkin datang, hehehe and me too (syyyy,,)

Si Yoyop Bah... said...

Oh ya J...Ko tau ke dmana Toy Museum tu?. Ko dah pnah pg ke?. Kalau ko belum g, mcm aku bfikir2 nak g dan visit ko skali. Skarang tgh plan mcm mana nak kill my 1 week there. Hehe

rambomadonna said...

Yoyop: setiap kali aku teringatkan kisah hotel winner aku memang berabis ketawa. Ya lah aku memang dah tanya ko a week b4 ok kah hotel tu . Ko kata OK OK. Sekali sampai dr luar memang ok, masuk bilik .... Org batuk pun kita boleh dgr. Tu belum kalau ada buat "projek", ada yg "terbengkalai" sbb bunyi boleh dgr. Aku rasa satu hotel bah boleh dgr kita bercerita hahahaha

Mana jugak tu toy market? Never been there. Boleh find out. Aku rasa boleh lah kot lepas 11 Jun.

rambomadonna said...

Norzah: well of course, buat masa nie our colonial homes seems to attract them here but I am still learning more about penang. For now at least we could protect them from developers that cause penang town planning loose their characters.so hopefully my second mth bring something more fruitful.

Si Yoyop Bah... said...

Hahahaha. Sbnrnya aku pun tak tau keadaan htl tu. Dpt dr pamplet MAS- list penginapan kat KK. So, bila dah disenaraikan oleh MAS, aku assume mesti ok la. ndak sangka pulak begitu keadannya. Cari yg lain semua penuh. Suna ke yg membuka pintu sbb disangkanya ada org ketuk pintu kita. Rupanya org sblh. Hahaha. Lps tu kita ketawa bukan control2 lagi.

Toy museum tu dkt dgn Copthorne Htl.

rambomadonna said...

Yoyop: Kenapa aku tak boleh recall that part??? I am sure it was suna .... dia ni kan very "simple minded" at times. Teringat aku dengan kisah dia mengekor Mejar Ramli and bila mejar Ramli toleh dia terus salute sebab terkejut.

Best kan that time. We met for the first time in 4-5 years after graduate kan?

Abet said...

Zen, if you ask the europeans where Penang is located, i'm sure >80% would know the right answer compare to their knowledge on where Sarawak is. I think, like Paris, France, Penang can be devided into two which is Old and New Penang. THink about it because most of the poeple love antiques, historical monuments and traditional life style while people like me loves modern living with semi-wild kind of live.. Add the two of this it will blend together in a manifique ways :) cheeers

p/s
i loike the open toilet.. but scary at night time...

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