 Connected to the island by the Penang Bridge, Prai
is a thriving industrial premise on the mainland. While her island sister
hogs most of the limelight, Prai has her own share of
attractions.
Penang Bridge
The Penang Bridge,
which links Penang Island and the mainland was officially opened on September
15, 1988. The spectacularly beautiful bridge spans 13.5km across the channel,
offering a beautiful view of the open sea, ships and the sprawling
coastline.
Mengkuang
Dam,
Bukit
Mertajam
The biggest dam
in Penang which has a storage capacity of 23, 639 million litres of water
is located in the Mengkuang Valley north of Bukit Mertajam on the mainland.
Jogging tracks and walking trails are available for the fitness buffs. The
dam was recently host to the Penang International Dragon Boat Festival.
Penang Bird Park, Jalan
Todak
 A five-minute drive from the Penang
Bridge, this 2-hectare bird park is home to more than 800 birds of 300 species
from all over the world. Be prepared to see the huge birds of prey, pelican
and the gigantic cassowaries, emu, and ostriches, all housed in large aviaries
in simulated natural surroundings.
The park also boasts beautifully
landscaped garden with cascading waterfalls and ponds with lotus, water lilies
and water fowls which swim freely.
St. Anne’s Church,
Jalan Kulim, Bukit Mertajam
From a small chapel built atop
a hillock by visiting priest Fr. Adolphe Couellan in 1846, it grew to become
a center of pilgrimage in the region. Hence a bigger church was built next
to the old one, now called the Shrine. The dedication of the new church with
its multi-tiered Minangkabau roofs and Gothic architecture was held on the
26 July 2002.
The church was named after St Anne,
mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and has a sitting capacity of 1,800.
Celebrations are held on a grand scale annually in conjunction with the annual
St Anne's Feast (in the month of July) which is usually followed by two nights
of candelight procession by thousands of devotees at the church
grounds.
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