Having been recently appointed to the Avira branding project through Grey Singapore (Yolk Interactive) it was decided that I should visit Penang and Kuala Lumpur to get acquainted with the folks who will be making Avira the most prestigious property development in South East Asia: The Eastern & Oriental Group. I must admit my utter daftness at the start for two reasons: I had never been to Penang nor was I aware of the E&O brand. Ridiculously ignorant, really. Arriving in Penang instantly took me to the growing up years in Singapore. Where balmy breezes were set against new and old and the charms of yesteryear was not only revered and protected.

The gracious E&O team lodged us at Penang’s proudest heritage hotel: the Eastern & Oriental Hotel (from where the group had inherited their name). As a budding novelist I was thrilled to learn that Rudyard Kipling and Herman Hesse roamed the same corridors and was inspired to write some of the best works here. This very hotel was carefully refurbished right down to the detail with it’s new ‘Victory Wing’ extension remarkably added with no dilution of it’s existing glorious form. Every room is sea-facing and stunning sunrises await each guest every morning. My lucky stars. We were shown their other jewel: The Lone Pine Resort which made mid 50s perforated-concrete style utterly fabulous. While many would have ripped down colonial bungalow architecture, E&O embraced it and built upon it. The result is a walk into a time and space where time and space was all there was. And a sandy beach awaited you just seconds from your immaculately designed suites. The only regrets they had about it was that all rooms have been booked and weren’t able to accommodate me for the next night. Ah well, next time.

I have to stop you here and inform you that it’s not all play. This was after all, a “working trip”. In the course of our stay, I was to be introduced to the non-hospitality side of the E&O and that I did with genuine surprise. What I had thought to be just like the many developments I have seen in Melbourne, Singapore and Dubai where I did the most work in property-branding, I was properly corrected. Was it possible to imbue the same building and architectural values employed in their beautiful hotels to apartments, villas and community clubhouses? The E&O certainly did. I recorded details that both pleased and infuriated me: pleasing in the way that is the stuff of fantasy (high ceilings, generous spaces, extra-functional spaces like ensuites in every room) and infuriating as in why couldn’t my own apartment be as thoughtfully designed (recessed air-conditioning units hidden away by wooden grills etc). I wish I could share some of the photos to prove my claims but legally I can’t just yet.*

What you see here are just a quick sampler. The full gallery can be viewed here on Flickr. You’ll find the other fun shots that quite awesomely you’ll never get anywhere else except maybe my Instagram page. Penang food is quite possibly the best in the Malay Peninsula. Truthfully I am still working off the inches I’ve put on. I warn that you not see the food pics too early before meal time. If you are in Singapore, you can sample a bit of that through E&O’s food venture, The Delicious Restaurant.

Thanks to the Yolk Interactive crew (Ben, Kelveen and Vivian) and the E&O team (Amy, Lyn & Gan) for making this so awesome and utterly unforgettable. Honoured to be part of the project! JT6

*you can check the showrooms out in person, it’s way better than photos..
Trust me.