Lockdown, Our Food Tours in Penang, and Hope

Hello, friends. We hope you are safe and well. Like much of the world right now, Malaysia is on lockdown. We call it the Movement Control Order (MCO) and we’re expecting it to last well into May 2020. Therefore, there won’t be any of our regular food tours until at least May and probably not until it is safe for people to travel again.

As you can imagine, that’s a pretty scary thought. We’ve spent years connecting with people from here and all over the world, eating together and sharing stories of the UNESCO World Heritage site of George Town. Not being able to do that, possibly for a long time, is heartbreaking. Right now, we’re just trying to take it day to day and be grateful for what we have at this moment.

We generally try to avoid cliches but sometimes you just can’t escape them - it’s often in the darkest of times that we find hope and humanity. In the many years we’ve spent seeking out the stories of George Town from diverse people it often boils down to that. This island has seen some shit - colonialism, slavery, war, famine. And through it all, it has also seen neighbours helping each other, kindness from strangers, laughter, love and hope.

All the research we’ve done about things that happened in the past has always been important to us, and yet in retrospect, it always seemed poignant but distant. It’s not an understatement to say we’re living through someone else’s history lesson at the moment. 

But we do not doubt for a second, that our humanity - yours and ours - will shine through it. We believe that.

It is easy to descend into cynicism and to look at the worst of human nature and imagine that to be the definitive versions of our story. There’s a strange comfort in rejecting hope. But it is an empty comfort.

In all the struggles we have faced, in all the dark times we have endured, it is hope that has seen us through to the other side. It is hope, and kindness and the courage to be our best selves. We have all the confidence that you are up to that challenge. That within you is a capacity for untold greatness that shows itself in the small things - a kind word, a selfless gesture, a step forward.

We’re storytellers. And it does hurt us not being able to do what we love and what we’re passionate about. But there is a hope that this cloud will pass. In the meantime, we’re trying to find ways to keep telling you the story of Penang by other means. And we’re looking forward to telling you these amazing, life-affirming stories face-to-face again one day. We’re hanging on to that. 

In the meantime - stay safe, be kind and wash your hands.