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Rising 830 meters above Georgetown, the top of Penang Hill provides a cool
retreat from the sticky heat below - it's generally about 5° C cooler than at
sea level. From the summit you've got a spectacular view over the island and
across to the mainland. There are pleasant gardens, an old-fashioned kiosk, a
restaurant and a hotel, as well as a Hindu temple, a Muslim mosque on the top.
Penang Hill is particularly pleasant at dusk as Georgetown, far below, starts to
light up.
Penang Hill was first cleared by Francis Light soon after settlement to grow
strawberry; the hill was originally known as Strawberry Hill. A trail to the top
was cleared from the Botanical Gardens waterfall and access was by foot or
packhorse, or sedan chair for the wealthy. In 1890 the famous hoteliers, the
Sarkies brothers, opened the Crag Hotel, which is now a Public Works Department
building. The official name of the hill was Flag Hill (now translated as Bukit
Bendera), but it is universally known as Penang Hill.
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