Lamp Post

Weather-beaten lamp post at Gurney Drive
Weather-beaten lamp post at Gurney Drive.

This is one of the few remaining concrete lamp posts at Gurney Drive. It certainly has seen better days. Years of neglect and exposure to the harsh elements have peeled away the surface and exposed the reinforcement bars. I still remember how they lit up the promenade in the evenings. Sadly, unchecked erosion of the beach had toppled the others a long time ago. It is a matter of time before the sea claims this and the rest of the surviving ones as well.

Stairway To Heaven

11 Gurney Drive
11 Gurney Drive, Penang.

Wuan and I were on our way back to the hotel after a slow stroll along the quieter end of Gurney Drive. It was almost noon. Tall Casuarina tree shaded us from the midday sun. We stopped outside 11 Gurney Drive to rest a little. I looked up. The sight of the skyscraper fascinated me. It was like a neverending flight of stairs leading all the way to heaven and beyond.