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Gurney Drive (Malay: ''Persiaran Gurney''; Chinese: 新关仔角) is a popular seafront promenade in Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia. The road is also one Penang's most popular tourist destinations, famous for the "hawker food" sold from food stalls formerly located along the seafront, now relocated close by. Previously known as the New Coast Road, it was completed in 1936 along what was then known as the North Beach, and renamed in 1952 after Sir Henry Gurney, British High Commissioner in Malaya (1950–1951), who was assassinated by the guerrillas of the Malayan Communist Party during the Malayan Emergency.〔()〕 Over the years, the beaches along Gurney Drive have largely been lost to coastal erosion. More recently, a land reclamation project at nearby Tanjung Tokong has reversed the erosion, leading to the accretion of silt and mud off Gurney Drive. Mangrove saplings have sprouted in the mud, which is now frequented by egrets and other birds as well as mudskippers. There have been suggestions that this area, formerly earmarked for reclamation under the (now suspended) Penang Outer Ring Road project, be reclaimed for a recreational park or allowed to be developed into a mangrove forest.〔()〕 ==History== Gurney Drive sits on a reclaimed land created off Teluk Ayer Rajah, the bay that curves between George Town and Tanjung Tokong. The intention to build a coastal road was already in the plans as early as 1930 after the idea of extending North Beach, as Northam Road (now Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah) was called. The first of Gurney Drive was completed in 1934, and at that time, it was simply named "North Beach". This section of Gurney Drive was planted with Casuarina trees in 1962, and is a distinctive section of the promenade. Gurney Drive was initially named as New Coast Road, then when it was renamed to its current name there was a debate over why the road should b the Municipal Commissioners wrote direct to Lady Gurney. She took the change very bravely and even offered to help with regard to the statue or bust. There were negotiations with a sculptor in London, David McFall, who agreed to do the job for 500 guineas or $4,500. When the recommendation for the provision of $6,000 for bust came up before the Finance Committee, it was decided not only to defer the provision of a bust but also that the drive should continue be called Gurney Drive. In 1962, a councillor was reportedly suggested that the council should consider renaming Gurney Drive to “Casuarina Drive” and “Casuarina Beach”, since that the double rows of Casuarina trees are planted along the seafront promenade. Gurney Drive was once a sandy beach where people could collect seashells i.e. ''siput remis'' or small mussels which were abundant back then. The sea water was so clean and pollution-free that it became a venue for dragon boat races from the 1960s to 1980s. However, such excitement of these events and the clear water is much lost now. Back then people would swim in the sea and fishermen would return to the beach with their catches, especially for fishes and king crabs along the shore. Gurney Drive had many prominent pre-war houses, colonial bungalows and the College General Complex, which was once used to train Catholic priests in Thailand, India, China, Japan and Myanmar. These prominent landmarks had now been largely replaced by hotels and modern shopping centres. Today, Gurney Drive a home to many shopping arcades, hotels and luxury high-end condominiums. Condominiums with the view of the sea can fetch up to the price of more than RM2,000 per sq. ft. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gurney Drive」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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