Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Convent Lebuh Light

Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Convent Lebuh Light atau nama ringkasnya SMK Convent Lebuh Light, merupakan sebuah Sekolah convent tertua di Asia Tenggara.
The First Journey
On 17th November 1851, at 8 o’clock in the evening, the Missionaries were to leave for Anvers, from where they were to embark. But the departure was delayed for some days, to wait for favourable weather. They did not set sail until 6th December 1851. ;)
The Missionaries selected were:
They took a Belgian Trading Ship "La Julie", quite a beautiful sailing boat from Antwerp, Belgium.
During the long voyage, they studied English and Malay. Unfortunately, on 13th March 1852, at sea near Christmas Island. Mother St. Pauline breathed her last.
On 17th March 1852, the Missionaries found themselves facing the Island of Sumatra and the Island of Krakatua. They lowered the anchor and later experienced a terrible storm. The boat only raised anchor on 29th March 1852.They were only seven more miles to Singapore.
Upon arrival at Singapore, they were told that the Vicar Apostolic, Bishop Boucho awaited them in Penang. Thus, they had to leave, just on arrival. By then, one Sister had left the Mission and another fell ill and was to remain an invalid all her life.
On 4th April 1852, they set sail, once more for Penang. They embarked at 6p.m. on a miserable little English boat of 300 tons, called “L’Edward Marquard”. At 8 o’clock, they left the harbour of Singapore.
They arrived at Penang on Monday, 12th April 1852. The sisters lived, at first, in an attap-roofed housed in Church Street (in the neighbourhood of the then Catholic Church). On 1 July 1852, they received 16 orphans, 9 boarders and 30 day pupils. The children were to be raised and educated by the Sisters. The Sisters taught during the day and sewed at night to raise money for food and clothing.
The Second Journey
At the end of the year, Mother St. Mathilde (1814-1971) arrived accompanied by Sister St. Damian Dejan, Sister St. Appolinaire and Sister St Gregoire Connolly. They left Paris for Southampton on 17th September 1852 on the “S. S. Bentinck”, a fine boat for that time and making its first voyage.
They headed towards Gibralter and then to Malta, where they arrived at noon on 28th September 1852. The missionaries continued their journey to Alexandria and later took an Egyptian Government boat through the Nile to Cairo, which is 170 km distant from Alexandria. They journeyed across the desert in a caravan from Cairo to Suez. Here, they took a little steam-boat to the “Indostan”, which was too big to come right into port, even to Suez. The “Indostan” was larger than the “Bentinck” but older and not so beautiful.
They then traveled to Aden and reached Ceylon on 20th October 1852. There, they boarded “the Singapore”, narrow for its length but sailed beautifully to Penang. They arrived in Penang on 28th October 1852 and began work immediately. They wrote day to day diaries, which have been archived. Their entries tell of the happenings of their life in Penang.
As the number of children increased, the attap bungalow Church St. became crowded. Mother St. Mathilde set about finding new premises.