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Published: November 9th 2006
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Captain Jish
Well shiver me timbers, if it isn't Captain Jish Harris ready to take to the seas. Now I know it's been a bit quiet on th old blog front of late but in all honesty folks, there hasn't been a lot to say about our last few days in Melaka. That's not to say we haven't been out and about because we've managed to do a lot more walking. It's just that we haven't been anywhere new that was really worth mentioning.
After our day at the Butterfly and Reptile park, Glynn and I put our feet up and did very little indeed other than discover a new vegetarian restaurant just 2 minute's walk from our hostel, the Traveller's Lodge. Run by a very friendly Chinese family, the food was yummy and very cheap so it pretty much became our new lunchtime hangout after that.
We did manage a particularly long trek one afternoon when we attempted to visit the Portuguese Settlement that was marked on the map as being a major tourist attraction. To get there, we had to walk for well over an hour along roads with little or no footpath and alongside possibly some of the smelliest, foulest drains in all of Asia. We saw plenty of nice old style buildings and
All Hail Captain Jish
Jish reminds us that only bonafide captains are allowed in the chamber. some pretty ramshackle wooden stilt houses that were unbelievably still in use, although most of Malaysia seems to be more modernised than many countries we've visited so far. When we finally reached the so-called settlement, we headed straight for the Portuguese Square and found.....nothing. It was like a mini souvenir and restaurant complex but the only thing open was a cafe with a local man snoozing face down on the table. All around it was totally and utterly deserted. The funniest thing about his wasn't just how predominantly this area had featured on our tourist map but that the complex had only been built in 2000 and was then refurbished in 2004. So in just 2 years and despite a cash injection, this place has given up and died completely. Very odd indeed. It was the same story at the waterfront so it really was a waste of time and effort going there.
On our last day in Melaka we had a brilliant time when we returned to the replica Portuguese galleon, only this time we got to go inside! Before we left the hostel, Glynn fashioned Jish a little pirate hat and eye patch out of paper and
Up the Rigging
He may only be a small captain but Jish still manages to show us the correct way to climb the rigging. almost stuck it permanently to his head before realising the superglue hadn't quite dried! On board the galleon (RM3 each, bears go free), we had loads of fun posing Jish on all the exhibits even though we weren't supposed to touch anything. The boat doubles up as a bit of a museum you see so as well as exploring above deck, we got to go down below and get a sense of what it must have been like to be at sea in one of these things. It was most entertaining especially as we attracted a lot of attention for our antics with Jish ;-)
Today we said our goodbyes to Melaka and the Traveller's Lodge and caught the bus to Singapore. Buses leave every hour from Sentral so we had the pick of what time we wanted to leave. We opted for a midday bus and RM17 got us on a VIP style bus with wide, comfy seats for the 4.5 hour trip to our final destination in Asia. Passport control was a breeze - possibly the easiest crossing we've had yet. We found the subway easily enough once we arrived and by 6pm were settled into our
Chart ing a Course
Captain Jish takes the helm, ready to steer us away from trouble. room at our new hostel: A Travller's Rest Stop. The room is triangular and accessed directly from the street which is a bit bizarre. We don't have a window but instead have a big frosted glass front door, like you would expect to find on a shop. It's only for a few days though as we are moving to a better room on Thursday.
We rounded off our day with a feast at a veggie restaurant in the Pearls Centre a couple of streets from the hostel. The food was amazing although it certainly wasn't anywhere near as cheap as Melaka so we probably won't be eating there again.
A few quick messages before I leave you:
Esther - Ich hoffe, es geht Dir wieder besser. Ich rufe demnaechst bei Dir zu Hause an.
Linda - Glad the house move went ok. Hope you're settling in ok and not feling too fazed by all that unpacking!
Salma - Only a few days to go till the big day. I hope the wedding goes fabulously - have a brilliant day and give my love to Rich.
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mom and dad
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new adventure
hi kds i bet you are looking forward to your next leg of your journey will send pics to you as soon as i can love mom and dad plus lee x x x x x x