Penang

Penang (Butterworth) used to be the “British” capitol of Malaya, and as can be seen, the city centre is full of ‘Georgian’ and ‘Victorian’ architecture. The whole of the city centre has been placed under a U.N.E.S.C.O. heritage order and must be retained. The ‘beachfront’ however has been allowed to develop to high rise, but problems still arise because there is no sewage system, the slurry draining into creeks and ultimately onto the beach. As can be seen in the first photograph “EM biotechnology” has been used to ‘refresh’ poisoned waterways. This is the problem Malaysia now faces, the “tiger” economy is surging, leaving very fine specimens of grand housing next to tower blocks, where the land size is large and suitable for development, the buildings are demolished through neglect, leaving the religious and cultural artefacts of a rich history stranded in between.