November 2012
Through its heavily carved antique wooden doors is a respite from Lebuh Noordin’s daily bustle of vehicles and proprietors running a variety of small businesses from neighbouring shop houses. These same doors open immediately to a reception area reminiscent of a Nonya sitting area that blocks the bright and open living space behind it.
Walking in further reveals a dining area that only serves breakfast to guests and a courtyard where a rectangular, medium-sized swimming pool sits. Surrounding the dazzling blue pool is the hotel’s two Shop House suites and 14 standard Mews rooms located on two floors.
Courtyard
Despite its heritage environment and building, three-month old Noordin Mews exudes a modern, minimalistic feel. Swathed in predominantly dazzling white paint with grey accents on its walls, it seems to be a perfect canvas for unexpected quirky antique showpieces to shine from a few corners. There’s an old Vespa on display above the staircase and a glass vanity cabinet in each room displaying old grooming products such as hair oil, aftershave and face powder.
The rooms are all equipped with a large en-suite bathroom and are spacious with built in beds underneath thick mattresses covered in crisp, white sheets. For further comfort, the rooms have armchairs, an antique dressing table, closet space, flat screen television, wifi and are air conditioned to stave off the island’s tropical heat.
Although the room rates of RM250 for a standard room for two people and up to RM550 for the large suite with a connecting room for five people include breakfast, there’s no lunch or dinner served in their dining room. Which is not a problem since the hotel’s surrounded by eateries serving glorious food. For those wanting to sink their teeth into bites of local fare, there’s Cecil Market with plenty of hawker food, Little Kitchen that has Nyonya dishes and shopping malls such as 1st Avenue and Prangin Mall nearby that house familiar international restaurant chains.
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For those driving their own cars, there are plenty of legal parking spaces along Lebuh Noordin, just a few steps away from the hotel’s front door. And for those who don’t drive, they’d be more than happy to arrange airport transfers, tours, a masseuse for deep tissue massage and laundry.
Seeing that the hotel’s a 10-minute walk from historical landmarks such as Khoo Kongsi, Kuan Yin Temple, Kapitan Keling mosque and colourful Little India, you might want to opt for the best way to discover Penang’s heritage – which is either by foot or trishaw. Another 10-minute walk will take you to the clan jetties and the sea, overlooking Butterworth on the mainland. In short, the hotel’s conveniently located and will make your stay on the island a comfortable and undoubtedly trendy one. Su Aziz