Gurney Drive 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).
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.
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