Penang - Fort Cornwallis

My first stop in Penang was Fort Cornwallis. This was the fort the British built to protect the colony from attack. Apparently, it was never well run and most of the soldiers were permanently drunk. It was an interesting place to visit. More after the jump...


The Fort is your standard sort of military building. High walls around the outside, big empty space in the middle. They've made good use of it here - a little theatre has been built in the middle. Apparently, they have shows and such here during the year. Good idea!


The star attraction is a big cannon that perches on the pointy bit facing the sea. It's meant to have special powers. If you're a woman trying to get pregnant, you're meant to stick a flower down the barrel and then you'll be magically pregnant. I put one in, just to see how it works. I'll let you know should I become pregnant... :-)


There were quite a few odd things going on inside the Fort. It looks like the people who man the desk and the gift shop live there. They seem to be animal fanciers, as there's a whole bunchof critters in cages. At the entrance, was a talking minah bird, in one corner was a guinea pig and there was a whole bunch of parrots and two horses! Not the sort of thing you expect to see in an historic attraction. Judging by the volume of tourists walking around (not many), I think they're free to do what they like!


Anyway, it cost RM4 to get in, which is about GBP0.75, so I wasn't complaining. If you come to Penang, you're more or less obliged to visit here, so do it first and get it out of the way.