Penang tourism is still steady
Despite the unfavorable weather, businesses at well-known tourist destinations are faring fairly well.
Numerous reports indicated good attendance at Chew Jetty, with just brief delays due to sporadic downpours and strong gusts.
The 48-year-old Chew Chin Chuan, who owns two souvenir shops, observed that as soon as the rain stopped, tourists would come back.
When it rained, business decreased a little because some visitors found their wet feet uncomfortable.
Since it is the school holidays, people are still enjoying the area and going shopping despite the difficult weather.
"Families want to have fun and make the most of their time together," he stated, noting that the majority of visitors appeared committed to seeing the island's historic landmarks, bustling street food, and rich cultural heritage.
When the rain stopped, Cheah Kai Jun, 25, who runs an ice cream and dessert stand along the jetty, predicted that business would pick back up shortly.
"The past two days have seen exceptionally high tides, something that occurs once a year at this time of year.
"It is not too awful, although the water did get inside the dwellings." The business has been solid overall, he said.
Despite it being the school holiday season, Joseph Goh, the chief executive officer of Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm, stated that they have not noticed a decrease in the number of visitors.
"Despite the windy conditions, we are doing well.
"The rain makes things inconvenient, but once they are inside, everything is fine," he remarked.
Storms have battered Penang since Sunday; there have been reports of downed trees around the province, causing traffic to stutter on some key roadways.
A clump of ornamental bamboo and fig trees at Pinang Peranakan Mansion fell upon a car on Wednesday, killing a father and daughter, who were both Chinese tourists.
Because just the compound was impacted, a check conducted yesterday revealed that the tourist destination was still open to guests.
In the heritage enclave, visitors were seen swarming to popular tourist destinations in other places.
Despite being informed of the tragedy that occurred on Wednesday, Mohd Yazer Mohd Yahya,
48, was spotted visiting the Pinang Peranakan Mansion with his wife and four children.
"It was a regrettable event. After Perlis, this is our second stop; we are from Kuala Lumpur.
"Fallen trees have left us stranded in four different locations. It is unavoidable and has been happening everywhere.
Even though it has been pouring in Penang, we have managed to do every activity on our schedule thus far.
The manager added, "We went up Penang Hill today despite the downpour."
In a related development, Datuk Yeoh Soon Hin, deputy chairman of Tourism Malaysia, stated that the People's Republic of China Consulate-General in Penang has contacted its colleagues in Heilongjiang province in an attempt to find the relatives of the two tourists who were crushed to death.
He will communicate with pertinent government agencies to make arrangements for the handling of Liu Zhu's (59) and Liu Xinxin's (36), remains.
The 52-year-old local lady driving the automobile in question, who wished to go by Har, suffered bruising.
