Streets Of Malaysia! Specifically Kuching :D - Padungan Street

        After finishing my mid-semester exams, and having holidays for a week, I'm came back home to Kuching! I'm so happy to be back home! :D What with all the wondrous food, family and friends. :D Anyway, we're asked to write a blog on the streets of Malaysia so I'm going to write about the streets in my hometown, Kuching. 

        The first street is Padungan Street or Padungan in short. Padungan was commenced in the 1920s. It is one of the oldest streets in Kuching. Ever since it was developed, it had a sense of the future as it was different from other streets. It had looked weird in the past as the roads were bigger than others. Since there weren't any cars then, people thought it was funny to have such big roads. But as the time passed, and cars were used, it was essential for everyone that the roads in Padungan were spacious for cars to drive through. Padungan today has a whiff of the 20s and the 21st century. It has an aura of both old and new. For example, there are shops that are more than 20 years old to shops that are only 2 years old. 

       Other than that, Padungan is where our famous landmark the statue of a 'Kucing' - Cat - is. It is one of the many tourists attractions here in Kuching. People who come here would definitely make a trip to see the statue. It is picturesquely backed by a substitute City Gate. Padungan is flourished with rooftop ornaments, decorative facades and, mansard gardens and mucilage everywhere. Walking down the roads of Padungan should be enjoyable and taken slowly as you wouldn't want to miss the antique yet beautiful buildings that are there. 

        Padungan is also famous for its variety of food. It has food that were passed down from generation to generation, to western or Italian food. Young and old people would gather there every hour of the day. As shops are open at different time of the day, there's always people around. The older folks would just sit at the coffee shops during the day and talk about their lives while the younger people would come out at night to just chill at the modern cafes like Bing!, Tao and Memories. :D Padungan is famous for its Dim Sum on Sunday mornings where even young people would drag themselves from their beds to get there early as the Dim Sum would be finished if you were to go late. The 'Sarawak Laksa' is a must have when you go to Padungan. It is famous for being one of the best 'laksa' in Kuching. Thinking about it is making my mouth water. Yum Yum! :D Kuching's best lacquered duck and crispy chicken are also sold in Padungan. 

        On some nights, if you are lucky, there would be some locals who bring their guitars, flutes, drums and local instruments to different places around Padungan to play impromptu songs for the entertainment of the people there. Padungan is indeed a must go place in Kuching. :D

Shophouses alongside Padungan Street.

 

The 'City Gate'