Sow-Sow-La
27th March 2007, 13:30
Port Swettenham & Penang - (What a Difference 35 Years Can Make)
On the 2nd of March this year (2006), my partner and I travelled to Manchester airport. It was touch and go whether we made it, due to heavy snow showers in North Wales. From Manchester we flew with Malaysia Airlines on a 12½ hour non-stop flight to Kuala Lumpur. 12½ hours from cold snow to tropical heat. I almost needed a ‘Good Morning’ towel to tie around my head as a sweat rag. We stayed in K.L. for 5 days, during which, we made a half-day trip to Port Swettenham. The name Port Swettenham no longer exists, as it’s now called Port Klang, but for this tale I shall still call it Port Swettenham. We caught an early train from K.L. Central Station, and made the 45 min journey to Port Swettenham Station. This was the first time ever for me to get excited about visiting the place. I had only cursed my visits here in the past. The last time I was here was on the ‘M.V. Protesilaus’ in August 1970, when I was homeward bound for the last time before swallowing the anchor. The railway line has now been extended to within about half a mile from the Mission. When we walked out of the station I approached a taxi driver and tried explaining that we wanted to go to the Mission. He didn’t understand. When I mentioned ‘swimming pool’, he knew where we wanted to go. We then got into his taxi, and after a few minutes we pulled up at the ‘Royal Selangor Yacht Club’ (which has a swimming pool). I thought this place was a bit posh for ‘Sweatbox’. I spoke to the doorman who knew exactly where we were looking for. He explained to the taxi driver, who then drove us to the Mission. As we approached, I recognised the building even though it has changed a lot. It is much bigger, having been extended, and seems quite run-down compared to how I remember it. The old bar area has been converted into office space, and alcohol is no longer sold on the premises. The actual swimming pool has not changed at all. It is still kidney shaped and the warm clear water is just as inviting as ever. I only wish I’d taken my swimming costume and towel that day. The large diving board has gone, and there are no tables and chairs around the pool area. I had taken with me some old black & white photos of the pool area and football field, taken in the 60’s. I showed there to some members of staff who had gathered around, but only one person was old enough to remember those days, and he had great fun telling the others about those times and the changes. The football pitch and goals are still there, and the buildings surrounding the field appear to be unchanged. Whilst standing on that field, I thought of the times we played matches against the tally clerks and other ship teams. I also wondered, where, after doing a days work, did we found the energy to run around in the heat and humidity that I was now feeling, and I was now just standing still. We then walked from the Mission towards the port and I saw that the Kampong has gone, replaced by large concrete pillars supporting a fly-over heading to the container terminal. The Jungle Bar was nowhere to be seen. The ‘Port View Restaurant/Bar’ has gone, though you can still see the broken chunks of cemented bricks and blocks scattered on top of the muddy bank leading down to the water’s edge. The old jetty where the launch would drop us off when we went ashore, and later pick us up when we were full of Tiger or Anchor, is now in ruin and no longer in use. It’s still standing but the steel and wood skeleton is looking quite sad. I wondered what had become of Spangles, the watchman who stood watch on our gangways. There are still lots of little boats around the jetty area, and they reminded me of the times we had to use them to get back to the ship when we had missed the last launch. Some of us paid the owner for this service, whilst others (so I believe) would borrow them and leave them tied to the bottom of the gangway. If you stand on the bank by the old jetty, facing the water, and look to the left, there is now a bridge crossing that stretch of water, and there appears to be a lot of industry down that way. The only ships at anchor where we once anchored are now small service vessels. There is a new jetty alongside the old one. It was at this new jetty that we boarded a long and narrow fast ferry which took us through the creeks to Pulau Ketam (known as Crab Island). As this fast ferry left Port Swettenham we headed out towards where the Deep Water Point berths once stood. The old berths are gone, replaced by a huge container terminal, with new road and rail links. As we sped by I was able to count at least 25 large container cranes, and 6 container ships alongside. When we reached Crab Island, we left the ferry and wondered into the village which is built on stilts, and has wooden boardwalks as walkways between the buildings. In one of the little restaurants there I had some lovely tiger prawns and nasi goreng, washed down with a couple of bottles of Tiger. I was in heaven. When we arrived back at Port Swettenham jetty we walked to the railway station. As we walked along, so many memories came flooding back. The heat, smells, sounds, monsoon ditches, scurrying chit-chats, and the sound of crickets. Reading these may not sound exciting, but when you’re there, they are all so real.
From K.L. we made a 50 minute flight to Penang where we stayed for ten days. The hotel was 35 minutes from Georgetown, (a £4 taxi ride, or 80p by bus). On one trip into Georgetown I walked through the old China Town and Little India, down towards the docks. That area has hardly changed. The buildings and streets are just the same. If the traffic could have been replaced with 1960’s cars, I could easily have been back in that era, or walking along Anson Road in Singapore. There’s more traffic now with lots of scooters and motorbikes whizzing around. There are still plenty of trishaws about, used mainly by tourists these days. (Apparently, Penang and Malacca are the only places where you will now find them in Malaysia). The Odeon cinema is still in Penang Road, but now it only shows Indian ‘Bollywood’ films. When I walked to the old clock tower, I approached a couple of trishaw men and showed them some old black and white photos taken in that area, and a photo of a ‘bluey’. The elder of two recognised the ‘bluey’ and even named a few ‘blue flu’ and ‘glen’ boats. He also remembered the Ben and Maersk ships regularly calling there. I then hired him to run me around. For 45 minutes he pedalled me around old Georgetown, the dock area and along the front past the Weld where we used to catch the launch if anchored out. The Weld is now part of the Penang Sailing Club. He pointed out where the old bars used to be, such as the Railway Bar, City Lights, Liverpool Bar, and Piccadilly, all now gone. We pulled up outside the Hong Kong Bar which is the only one left, but unfortunately was closed due to a fire last year. There was a security grating across the entrance but the inner doors were wide open. Through the grating I could see all the furniture, the bar, pictures and military plaques on the walls. Apart from some smoke damage, which didn’t look too bad, the place seemed alright. A bit of cleaning and decorating would soon have it restored. The Mariners Club is now closed and awaiting redevelopment, but sadly not for seamen. After being dropped off (and I gave a good dropsy), I ventured inside the dock gates. I sweet-talked the dock police sergeant who allowed me to enter the docks to look around and take some photos. The old Godowns (sheds) are still there, also the quay and bollards which we once tied up to. The only ships docking here now are passenger liners and ferries, (all cargo ships now use the Butterworth side on the mainland). One ferry goes from here to Belawan, on a 4 hour crossing. It was from this dock we later embarked on boat excursions. One of these excursions was an evening cruise on a pleasure boat, sailing past Georgetown, Butterworth and under a new 4½ mile long bridge which now links Penang island to the mainland. Due to high tolls for crossing the bridge, the old Penang/Butterworth ferries are still doing a roaring trade. The other excursion was a 2½ hour, fast ferry trip to the island of Langkawi. The outward trip was nice, as there was a very warm breeze with a slight spray from the bow. It crossed my mind, that when I was homeward bound on my last deep sea voyage all those years ago, little did I think that in 35 years I would again be sailing up the Malacca strait, and passing the same islands. There were lots of little fishing boats and the sea was strewn with the usual flotsam, coconuts, palm leaves etc, but alas no discarded dunnage, cargo mats or gash from a passing ‘bluey’. Langkawi is a nice holiday resort island, and is duty-free. We bought 2 bottle of Gordon’s Gin at £4 a bottle. On the trip back to Georgetown I saw the sun set, which was as beautiful as I remember with the sky, sea and clouds all lit up, and far in the distance, lightening strikes over the mainland. After it had gone dark, the breeze was still very warm but clammy, and although it hadn’t rained, the humidity made everything wet to touch. As we came into Georgetown the quay was illuminated by the Godown arc-lights, and alongside was a small lighter unloading sacks of something or other under ‘cluster’ lights. I could well have been leaning over the focsle bulwark, or on the poop rail, waiting to throw a heaving line ashore from a ‘bluey’ arriving after dark.
All taxis are now air-conditioned, in fact most indoor places are. You can still find the odd high ceiling rooms with the old fashioned rotating fan hanging from the ceiling. It’s only in these types of buildings you see the chit-chat lizards scurrying along the walls, probably due to the air-conditioning being too cold for them. The air-conditioning is very good for reducing mosquito bites, but sitting outside, especially in the evening, the mosquitoes are still a problem. In fact I don’t remember ever being bitten as much as I did during this visit. My blood must have sweetened with age. I was told by one of the locals that due to global weather changes, Malaysia is hotter now than when we went there all those years ago. It has been too long between visits for me to make any comparisons. All I can say is, it’s still very hot out there. The words ‘Selamat Datang’ (welcome), are everywhere, and I had not forgotten the only bit of Malay I learnt- ‘satw, dwa, tiga, ampa, lima’ (1,2,3,4,5). There is a limit to how much we may want to relive the past. I certainly wouldn’t want to be screwing-down deep-tank lids in Port Swettenham or Singapore, rubbing Stockholm-tar onto stays, climbing under winch beds to paint the insides, soogeeing deck-heads in cold weather with the soogee running down inside my oilskin and soaking my shirt and jumper sleeves. But what I experienced on this holiday was pure nostalgia. I came home with a good bronzy, which I didn’t have to toil for, and with no white flip-flop marks on my feet.
What’s Gone
You don’t get a bottle of Tiger, Anchor or F&N in shops when shopping. Conny-onny tins with string.
All our old drinking haunts. (Today’s young seamen, what few there are, prefer modern disco clubs and night clubs. I didn’t see any Betel Nut stains anywhere. There is a strong ‘No Smoking’ policy in most places. The men now relax by sitting on chairs and seats instead of squatting on the ground, and most no longer wear sarongs, preferring trousers or jeans. Everywhere, especially cities, seems cleaner, with less litter in the streets and in the monsoon ditches.
Still There
Tiger Balm and Singapore Gin Sling. Rubber and palm plantations. Squatting toilets can still be found, but are rare. As you walk past shops, you still get “Come, look-see. You buy cheap my shop”.
There are still plenty of small Kampongs and old houses with rusty corrugated tin roofs out in the country and on the outskirts of towns and villages. ‘Straits Times’, is now the same size as our Daily Mail & Express, but without ship movement lists by Mansfield’s, Guthrie & Co, Straits Steamship Co, or any other company we remember. The monsoons are the same, with the warm and sudden heavy downpours which stop just as suddenly and everything quickly drying out.
Shopping
You still barter for Taxi’s, trishaws, at market stalls and shops (except those shops in modern shopping malls, where prices are fixed). Market stalls haven’t changed much, apart from selling more up-to-date goods. You still see the odd Indian stall selling what we remember, such as Tiger Balm, nail clippers, combs, shoe polish etc. Instead of the old primus pump-up lanterns which used to hiss, the stalls now have fluorescent strip lighting, powered by little generators. Penang now has a large Tesco supermarket.
Costs
A taxi ride costs approximately £4 for a ½ hour journey.
£3-80 will buy 2 pairs of ladies shoes. £6 will buy 1 pair of gents ‘Bata’ make quality leather shoes.
Tiger beer costs £1 to £1-50 per bottle, (depending on size), or £2 for draught.
F & N (Fraser & Neave) soft drinks cost 40p to 50p.
Cheongsams cost £18 for long ones and £12 for short ones.
A made to measure suit costs between £40 and £80, and a made to measure shirt about £10.
A 2 course meal, on average from £2 to £5. (Expect steak or lobster for £6).
A Hyundai hire car was £28 for 24 hours. The car consumed ½ a tank of petrol going around the island, and it cost £6 to re-fill.
Note of interest. I believe that the Chinese in Hong Kong still use bamboo poles as scaffolding when they erect buildings; however, instead of using vines to secure the poles together, they now use plastic cable-ties.
On the 2nd of March this year (2006), my partner and I travelled to Manchester airport. It was touch and go whether we made it, due to heavy snow showers in North Wales. From Manchester we flew with Malaysia Airlines on a 12½ hour non-stop flight to Kuala Lumpur. 12½ hours from cold snow to tropical heat. I almost needed a ‘Good Morning’ towel to tie around my head as a sweat rag. We stayed in K.L. for 5 days, during which, we made a half-day trip to Port Swettenham. The name Port Swettenham no longer exists, as it’s now called Port Klang, but for this tale I shall still call it Port Swettenham. We caught an early train from K.L. Central Station, and made the 45 min journey to Port Swettenham Station. This was the first time ever for me to get excited about visiting the place. I had only cursed my visits here in the past. The last time I was here was on the ‘M.V. Protesilaus’ in August 1970, when I was homeward bound for the last time before swallowing the anchor. The railway line has now been extended to within about half a mile from the Mission. When we walked out of the station I approached a taxi driver and tried explaining that we wanted to go to the Mission. He didn’t understand. When I mentioned ‘swimming pool’, he knew where we wanted to go. We then got into his taxi, and after a few minutes we pulled up at the ‘Royal Selangor Yacht Club’ (which has a swimming pool). I thought this place was a bit posh for ‘Sweatbox’. I spoke to the doorman who knew exactly where we were looking for. He explained to the taxi driver, who then drove us to the Mission. As we approached, I recognised the building even though it has changed a lot. It is much bigger, having been extended, and seems quite run-down compared to how I remember it. The old bar area has been converted into office space, and alcohol is no longer sold on the premises. The actual swimming pool has not changed at all. It is still kidney shaped and the warm clear water is just as inviting as ever. I only wish I’d taken my swimming costume and towel that day. The large diving board has gone, and there are no tables and chairs around the pool area. I had taken with me some old black & white photos of the pool area and football field, taken in the 60’s. I showed there to some members of staff who had gathered around, but only one person was old enough to remember those days, and he had great fun telling the others about those times and the changes. The football pitch and goals are still there, and the buildings surrounding the field appear to be unchanged. Whilst standing on that field, I thought of the times we played matches against the tally clerks and other ship teams. I also wondered, where, after doing a days work, did we found the energy to run around in the heat and humidity that I was now feeling, and I was now just standing still. We then walked from the Mission towards the port and I saw that the Kampong has gone, replaced by large concrete pillars supporting a fly-over heading to the container terminal. The Jungle Bar was nowhere to be seen. The ‘Port View Restaurant/Bar’ has gone, though you can still see the broken chunks of cemented bricks and blocks scattered on top of the muddy bank leading down to the water’s edge. The old jetty where the launch would drop us off when we went ashore, and later pick us up when we were full of Tiger or Anchor, is now in ruin and no longer in use. It’s still standing but the steel and wood skeleton is looking quite sad. I wondered what had become of Spangles, the watchman who stood watch on our gangways. There are still lots of little boats around the jetty area, and they reminded me of the times we had to use them to get back to the ship when we had missed the last launch. Some of us paid the owner for this service, whilst others (so I believe) would borrow them and leave them tied to the bottom of the gangway. If you stand on the bank by the old jetty, facing the water, and look to the left, there is now a bridge crossing that stretch of water, and there appears to be a lot of industry down that way. The only ships at anchor where we once anchored are now small service vessels. There is a new jetty alongside the old one. It was at this new jetty that we boarded a long and narrow fast ferry which took us through the creeks to Pulau Ketam (known as Crab Island). As this fast ferry left Port Swettenham we headed out towards where the Deep Water Point berths once stood. The old berths are gone, replaced by a huge container terminal, with new road and rail links. As we sped by I was able to count at least 25 large container cranes, and 6 container ships alongside. When we reached Crab Island, we left the ferry and wondered into the village which is built on stilts, and has wooden boardwalks as walkways between the buildings. In one of the little restaurants there I had some lovely tiger prawns and nasi goreng, washed down with a couple of bottles of Tiger. I was in heaven. When we arrived back at Port Swettenham jetty we walked to the railway station. As we walked along, so many memories came flooding back. The heat, smells, sounds, monsoon ditches, scurrying chit-chats, and the sound of crickets. Reading these may not sound exciting, but when you’re there, they are all so real.
From K.L. we made a 50 minute flight to Penang where we stayed for ten days. The hotel was 35 minutes from Georgetown, (a £4 taxi ride, or 80p by bus). On one trip into Georgetown I walked through the old China Town and Little India, down towards the docks. That area has hardly changed. The buildings and streets are just the same. If the traffic could have been replaced with 1960’s cars, I could easily have been back in that era, or walking along Anson Road in Singapore. There’s more traffic now with lots of scooters and motorbikes whizzing around. There are still plenty of trishaws about, used mainly by tourists these days. (Apparently, Penang and Malacca are the only places where you will now find them in Malaysia). The Odeon cinema is still in Penang Road, but now it only shows Indian ‘Bollywood’ films. When I walked to the old clock tower, I approached a couple of trishaw men and showed them some old black and white photos taken in that area, and a photo of a ‘bluey’. The elder of two recognised the ‘bluey’ and even named a few ‘blue flu’ and ‘glen’ boats. He also remembered the Ben and Maersk ships regularly calling there. I then hired him to run me around. For 45 minutes he pedalled me around old Georgetown, the dock area and along the front past the Weld where we used to catch the launch if anchored out. The Weld is now part of the Penang Sailing Club. He pointed out where the old bars used to be, such as the Railway Bar, City Lights, Liverpool Bar, and Piccadilly, all now gone. We pulled up outside the Hong Kong Bar which is the only one left, but unfortunately was closed due to a fire last year. There was a security grating across the entrance but the inner doors were wide open. Through the grating I could see all the furniture, the bar, pictures and military plaques on the walls. Apart from some smoke damage, which didn’t look too bad, the place seemed alright. A bit of cleaning and decorating would soon have it restored. The Mariners Club is now closed and awaiting redevelopment, but sadly not for seamen. After being dropped off (and I gave a good dropsy), I ventured inside the dock gates. I sweet-talked the dock police sergeant who allowed me to enter the docks to look around and take some photos. The old Godowns (sheds) are still there, also the quay and bollards which we once tied up to. The only ships docking here now are passenger liners and ferries, (all cargo ships now use the Butterworth side on the mainland). One ferry goes from here to Belawan, on a 4 hour crossing. It was from this dock we later embarked on boat excursions. One of these excursions was an evening cruise on a pleasure boat, sailing past Georgetown, Butterworth and under a new 4½ mile long bridge which now links Penang island to the mainland. Due to high tolls for crossing the bridge, the old Penang/Butterworth ferries are still doing a roaring trade. The other excursion was a 2½ hour, fast ferry trip to the island of Langkawi. The outward trip was nice, as there was a very warm breeze with a slight spray from the bow. It crossed my mind, that when I was homeward bound on my last deep sea voyage all those years ago, little did I think that in 35 years I would again be sailing up the Malacca strait, and passing the same islands. There were lots of little fishing boats and the sea was strewn with the usual flotsam, coconuts, palm leaves etc, but alas no discarded dunnage, cargo mats or gash from a passing ‘bluey’. Langkawi is a nice holiday resort island, and is duty-free. We bought 2 bottle of Gordon’s Gin at £4 a bottle. On the trip back to Georgetown I saw the sun set, which was as beautiful as I remember with the sky, sea and clouds all lit up, and far in the distance, lightening strikes over the mainland. After it had gone dark, the breeze was still very warm but clammy, and although it hadn’t rained, the humidity made everything wet to touch. As we came into Georgetown the quay was illuminated by the Godown arc-lights, and alongside was a small lighter unloading sacks of something or other under ‘cluster’ lights. I could well have been leaning over the focsle bulwark, or on the poop rail, waiting to throw a heaving line ashore from a ‘bluey’ arriving after dark.
All taxis are now air-conditioned, in fact most indoor places are. You can still find the odd high ceiling rooms with the old fashioned rotating fan hanging from the ceiling. It’s only in these types of buildings you see the chit-chat lizards scurrying along the walls, probably due to the air-conditioning being too cold for them. The air-conditioning is very good for reducing mosquito bites, but sitting outside, especially in the evening, the mosquitoes are still a problem. In fact I don’t remember ever being bitten as much as I did during this visit. My blood must have sweetened with age. I was told by one of the locals that due to global weather changes, Malaysia is hotter now than when we went there all those years ago. It has been too long between visits for me to make any comparisons. All I can say is, it’s still very hot out there. The words ‘Selamat Datang’ (welcome), are everywhere, and I had not forgotten the only bit of Malay I learnt- ‘satw, dwa, tiga, ampa, lima’ (1,2,3,4,5). There is a limit to how much we may want to relive the past. I certainly wouldn’t want to be screwing-down deep-tank lids in Port Swettenham or Singapore, rubbing Stockholm-tar onto stays, climbing under winch beds to paint the insides, soogeeing deck-heads in cold weather with the soogee running down inside my oilskin and soaking my shirt and jumper sleeves. But what I experienced on this holiday was pure nostalgia. I came home with a good bronzy, which I didn’t have to toil for, and with no white flip-flop marks on my feet.
What’s Gone
You don’t get a bottle of Tiger, Anchor or F&N in shops when shopping. Conny-onny tins with string.
All our old drinking haunts. (Today’s young seamen, what few there are, prefer modern disco clubs and night clubs. I didn’t see any Betel Nut stains anywhere. There is a strong ‘No Smoking’ policy in most places. The men now relax by sitting on chairs and seats instead of squatting on the ground, and most no longer wear sarongs, preferring trousers or jeans. Everywhere, especially cities, seems cleaner, with less litter in the streets and in the monsoon ditches.
Still There
Tiger Balm and Singapore Gin Sling. Rubber and palm plantations. Squatting toilets can still be found, but are rare. As you walk past shops, you still get “Come, look-see. You buy cheap my shop”.
There are still plenty of small Kampongs and old houses with rusty corrugated tin roofs out in the country and on the outskirts of towns and villages. ‘Straits Times’, is now the same size as our Daily Mail & Express, but without ship movement lists by Mansfield’s, Guthrie & Co, Straits Steamship Co, or any other company we remember. The monsoons are the same, with the warm and sudden heavy downpours which stop just as suddenly and everything quickly drying out.
Shopping
You still barter for Taxi’s, trishaws, at market stalls and shops (except those shops in modern shopping malls, where prices are fixed). Market stalls haven’t changed much, apart from selling more up-to-date goods. You still see the odd Indian stall selling what we remember, such as Tiger Balm, nail clippers, combs, shoe polish etc. Instead of the old primus pump-up lanterns which used to hiss, the stalls now have fluorescent strip lighting, powered by little generators. Penang now has a large Tesco supermarket.
Costs
A taxi ride costs approximately £4 for a ½ hour journey.
£3-80 will buy 2 pairs of ladies shoes. £6 will buy 1 pair of gents ‘Bata’ make quality leather shoes.
Tiger beer costs £1 to £1-50 per bottle, (depending on size), or £2 for draught.
F & N (Fraser & Neave) soft drinks cost 40p to 50p.
Cheongsams cost £18 for long ones and £12 for short ones.
A made to measure suit costs between £40 and £80, and a made to measure shirt about £10.
A 2 course meal, on average from £2 to £5. (Expect steak or lobster for £6).
A Hyundai hire car was £28 for 24 hours. The car consumed ½ a tank of petrol going around the island, and it cost £6 to re-fill.
Note of interest. I believe that the Chinese in Hong Kong still use bamboo poles as scaffolding when they erect buildings; however, instead of using vines to secure the poles together, they now use plastic cable-ties.