Alexander Fernandez - Penang Monthly

Tan Shih Thoe Talks About the Business of Art at Hin Bus Depot

7 min read

HIN BUS DEPOT celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, and so, Penang Monthly thinks it a great occasion to sit down with Tan Shih Thoe, the brain (and the br...

by Alexander Fernandez

Getting Around in Penang: Managing the Transition to Better Public Transport

11 min read

A WELL-STRUCTURED bus system offers a wide range of benefits that go beyond mere transportation. It addresses the critical issue of affordability by providing a...

by Alexander Fernandez

The Kristang of Melaka: How Long Will They Continue to Survive?

5 min read

WHEN I ARRIVED at the Portuguese Settlement, also known as St. John’s village, in Ujong Pasir, Melaka on a weekday morning, the streets were dead quiet and ther...

by Alexander Fernandez

A Sense of Wet Markets in Penang, Now

3 min read

Wet markets serve the needs of their surrounding communities. Based on this premise, they should bear unique characteristics that reflect the diverse communitie...

by Alexander Fernandez

A Jungle in a Bottle, Anyone?

6 min read

Ever seen mosses and ferns inside a laboratory flask, and done a double take? What you would have been observing was a self-sustaining enclosed ecosystem &ndash...

by Alexander Fernandez

Penang’s Eurasians – Too Important to Be Ignored

6 min read

Known to locals as “Serani” – a contraction of the Malay word “nasrani”, meaning Christi...

by Alexander Fernandez

Heralds of Dawn in the Heart of the City

4 min read

TEN MINUTES BEFORE the break of dawn, Mr. Radhi arrives at the doorstep of Masjid Melayu Lebuh Acheh to prep for the day. It is a Friday, so he is garbed in a s...

by Alexander Fernandez & Lokman Redzuan

ESCAPE – Making Tourism Sustainable by Maintaining High Standards

4 min read

TUCKED DEEP IN Teluk Bahang is the kampung-concept theme park ESCAPE, the brainchild of chief ESCAPE officer Sim Choo Kheng. Inspired by his childhood adventure...

by Alexander Fernandez

Malaysians Move from Game-playing to Game-making

6 min read

GONE ARE THE days of the parent-child barter trade: “Score Straight As in your exams, and you’ll get that Gameboy Yellow you wanted.” Today, t...

by Alexander Fernandez

Suffering the MCO in the Services Sector

5 min read

PENANG’S SERVICES SECTOR is a shadow of its former self. On top of an already flailing entertainment industry and a row of F&B outlets biting the dust...

by Alexander Fernandez & Nursyazana Khidir Neoh

Nursyazana Khidir Neoh

eSports in Malaysia: What Awaits Competitive Gaming?

5 min read

WHEN LAN GAMING cybercafes first emerged in the early 2000s, they were all the rage. They provided a social and competitive environment for gamers to gather and...

by Alexander Fernandez

Back to School: Making Learning a Lifelong Endeavour

4 min read

MY MOTHER WAS telling me all about the Saturday baking class that she has started attending – the new recipe that she has added into her repertoire, the occasio...

by Alexander Fernandez