How Sun Yat-sen shaped Penang in Malaysia and influenced the lives of its Chinese residents
The Sun Yat-sen Museum at 120 Armenian Street, George Town, Penang. Photo: Thomas Bird
It is the 15th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, the Hungry Ghost Festival, and fires blaze on the streets. Some onlookers pray. Many more stand by and watch plumes of black smoke billow above the vintage shopfronts and restaurants.
The pious residents of Penang's state capital, George Town, are burning "hell money" to appease the ancestors who emerge from the "lower realm" around this time of year. Deeper into this Unesco Heritage Site neighbourhood, at a temple on King Street dedicated to Bogong - the Elder Lord - an entire braised hog and extravagant fruit platter has been prepared.