Aaron, Leticia, and Chris! Oh My!

We've been really lucky to have had lots of visitors from our family to Penang! Last year, the handsome and distinguished Dr. Aaron Craig Jessop, brilliant visionary of the arts of Nuclear Medicine (and Jennifer's little brother) was invited to give a speech at a medical conference in Beijing, China. We were pleased that Aaron, his  spectacularly beautiful wife Leticia, and his awesome brother-in-law and favorite uncle to all nephews (and those who think they are his nephews) Chris took the scenic route to Beijing by way of Penang and spent a few days with us. We had such a wonderful time!!

Here is Chris, Leticia, and Aaron in front of Masjid Kapitan Keiling. This is one of the most picturesque mosques in Penang. It was originally built in the 1800's by Indian immigrants. It's been expanded upon several times since.

Here is Aaron and Leticia in front of the Khoo Kongsi, or Khoo Clan House. This is where the film "The King and I" starring Jodie Foster was filmed. It's a wonderful example of Chinese architecture and style.

Just behind our house are two Buddhist temples, one Thai temple and one Burmese temple. This is the Thai temple, Wat Chaiyamangalaram, with an enormous reclining Buddha inside. According to tradition, this is the position Buddha was in just before he entered nirvana. If you were born on Tuesday like Craig and me, then this is your Buddha pose.

Across the street from Wat Chaiyamangalaram is a Burmese temple, the Dhammikarama temple. Yes, we know the difference. Do you?

Of course we had to take them to our favorite shopping down a street alley in Georgetown. This is where you can buy silk pajamas and cotton shirts. It's also where Jennifer can find her sewing notions.

You haven't experienced Penang until you've been to the Ritz Salon and had your hair washed -- while sitting upright in your chair! The hair wash includes a head massage and one of the best haircuts you've ever had.

After leaving the Ritz Salon, we were all feeling like a million bucks - so now everyone wanted to dress like a million bucks! So we went to our favorite tailor where Aaron and Chris both had suits made. Leticia had a Chinese style Chamsum tailored just for her. No one who has had 4 children should look so good!! (added by Jennifer)

Ah, then we hit the fish spa. This is where you can have the dead layer of your epidermis eaten off by tiny little fish. It's not for people with ticklish feet!

And then there's the food! We LOVE Penang food, and so did Aaron, Leticia, and Chris. Here we are at our favorite chicken rice spot. I could eat chicken rice all day long!

This is our favorite breakfast spot where we eat tofu fa, wonton mee, and kway teow th'ng (also known as super soup).

And then there's the Fishing Villiage restaurant near the end of the world. Well, the end of the road on Penang, anayway. This is where you can get fresh seafood like red snapper, garupa, and lobster.

The most famous dish, however, is the black pepper squid. We eat it like it's candy! These little crispy critters are covered in sweet black pepper sauce then served up so that we can eat them by the plateful!

We had a great time touring, shopping, and most of all eating with Aaron and his co-travelers!