We got ready and walked to the KOMTAR building to buy some food for a picnic. There was quite a large supermarket, but there is never any cooked meat or deli counter, so all we managed to buy was a French stick from the bakery, cheese slices, apples, fresh orange juice and crisps! We then waited for a bus to Air Itam, as there was a dam there that was meant to be a good picnic spot. We did plan on going to the Botanical Gardens but it didn't seem like a bus was ever going to turn up as they were so infrequent. It was around a thirty minute wait before a bus arrived and as we were driving out of the centre of Georgetown we passed the 'State Mosque' and then reached Air Itam, but we had no idea where to get off the bus. There were quite a few other tourists on the bus so we assumed they would be going to the same place, so we waited until they got off. However, the bus driver called out that it was the last stop and we were no longer in Air Itam, but we were at the bottom of Penang Hill. It turned out alright though as we had wanted to make a trip up the hill but we thought the railway line was closed. We got a ticket and waited to board the small funicular train that took you to the top, which was 830m above sea level. It was a brand new train and a little nerve wracking as the train driver still seemed to be getting used to the operating system! There were even two men who just sat in a box on the front of the train. The track was so steep, it felt as though the train would just fall off! It took around ten minutes to reach the top of the hill and the view was amazing. It was a little cloudy but the summit offered a magnificent panoramic view of Georgetown and Butterworth. The 'Penang Bridge' was also visible and looked tiny. We were starving so found a bench in a quiet spot to eat. The bread was certainly the best thing we bought and I opted for a crisp sandwich as the cheese tasted of plastic! We walked around the 'Hill Station' to have a look at the Hindu temple and mosque. There was also a hotel, police station and English restaurant that served a roast dinner for fourteen pound! There were a number of walking trails but they all looked a bit too difficult to attempt in flip flops as the paths involved steep trekking. We waited for the train back down the hill and then caught the bus back to the KOMTAR building. We bought an ice-cream before walking back to our guesthouse. We decided to splash out on a bottle of Skol from the cheap supermarket we found and sat outside our guesthouse watching the world go by in the afternoon sun. It was still so hot even at 5pm. 
 
We got a shower and went to 'Ecco Cafe' for some Italian food, which was a nice change . We then headed to a little bar near our guesthouse for another Skol, before going to the Reggae Bar next door which was always full of other travelers every time we walked past. We got talking to some people from Milton Keynes who had just arrived in Penang from Thailand and weren't too keen on the place. We ended up buying cheaper alcohol from the supermarket and taking it into our guesthouse to drink. We were obviously a bit loud as one of the staff asked us to keep the noise down and kept checking that we were staying at the guesthouse! We saw a huge rat running around the place, which Andrew admitted to seeing on the first day but didn't tell me in case I refused to stay! We came to bed after 3am and neither of us could really remember getting into bed! We must have just collapsed as I vaguely remember stirring as Andrew switched off the bedroom light, as we had clearly just left it on when we got into bed.