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Published: October 24th 2010
Food. Yep, that's about all I have to say. Just the food. It's
that good.
And on that note, allow me to reveal our "mystery" food from the last blog - the weird one Jeremy was eating in Kuala Lumpur. Our guesses ranged from shaved meat to lung to wontons, and I must admit I'm amazed at how much the food does resemble (in my opinion) thinly sliced lunchmeat. Perhaps you will be surprised to learn, then, that our dish was "Ais Kacang" - a dessert! Basically, a gigantic block of ice-cream is placed under what looks like a meat slicer, shaved into light, airy little pieces, and topped with cornflakes and red beans. This particular flavor was "red bean," although they had some others such as green tea, strawberry, and (the killer) durian. Thanks for all the fun guesses!!
So!! After an easy two-hour bus ride to our south (and a twenty-cent bus ride on the "local" bus into town - we feared it might actually fall apart while we were on it), we landed in the quaint port city of Melaka (also spelled Malacca, I'll probably used them interchangeably here). If you guys can imagine Key West
filled with Asian influences instead of Spanish, you're on the right track. Melaka is simply divine. It's artsy. It's quirky. It's filled with some of the best food I've ever tasted. It is an incredible blend of different cultures, all rolled into one tiny city center. Here's the brief run-down: In the 14th century, a Hindu prince from Indonesia made it his favored port for its strategic location on the trade routes. The Chinese took over in 1405, the Portuguese in 1511, the Dutch in 1641, the British in 1795, and even the Japanese (briefly) during World War II. Everyone wanted it because of its strategic location, halfway between India and China by ship. At its peak, over 2,000 ships were docked off its coast, and a total of 84 languages were spoken here. And, as you can imagine, they have all left their marks on the little port town in terms of cuisine, art, and architecture. There are ancient forts, Muslim mosques, Chinese temples, Catholic churches, and even a Dutch windmill, all standing virtually right next to each other. A narrow waterway (a la Venice) runs right through the center of the town. Throw in some funky art galleries
and coffee houses, some amazing restaurants, and you're beginning to get the picture.
The culinary specialty is "Nonyan" food, a local blend of Chinese and Malay flavors. It is, in three words, to die for. I have our food captioned and explained in each photo, so I won't repeat it all here. Suffice to say, it's sweet, it's spicy, and it is just plain delicious. (And cheap!! An average entree will run you between $2-$4. Need a drink? Probably fifty cents. Dessert? A dollar, maybe. I don't know how they do it, but I'm so glad they do!)
There is also a very nifty museum in the city for you history buffs who have read 1421 or 1434, about the Chinese discovering America before Columbus did...well, the sea-faring voyager who made all those journeys, Cheng Ho (or Zheng He, alternately) had a base right here in Malacca during the early 1400's. What was his home and storehouse is now a museum dedicated to his life and his expeditions. Fascinating stuff. For instance, on one voyage from Africa, he brought back a giraffe as a gift for the emperor, because it closely resembled a mythical Chinese creature. His ship
was longer than a football field and could give some modern cruise ships a run for their money. They invented a way of growing bean sprouts on board the vessels to avoid scurvy (Vitamin-C deficiency). These sailors traveled like kings compared to the European voyagers who would set sail centuries after them. Quite impressive!
After two nights in Melaka, we got to the bus station just in time to catch a direct bus to our next location, the island of Penang, on the northwest coast of the country. What was meant to be a 7-hour journey turned into over 10 by the time we hit a traffic jam on the interstate and torrential thunderstorms for virtually the entire drive. Sigh. At least the AC was blasting and our seats reclined with cushy leg rests, so we didn't mind the trip at all. Beat the heck out of being stuck outside in the rain! Now we're chilling out in Penang for a couple of days, so our next blog will be coming along shortly! And, on Tuesday, we'll be crossing the Thailand border and slowly making our way up the southern part of the country to Bangkok, and on into
Chaing Mai for my massage school in two weeks - yay!!!
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Janet Lomas
non-member comment
Wow-----Again!!
Hi Jeremy and Amy: I am continuing to enjoy your blogs and pictures. I have read them all!! I did have your "mystery dessert" right. I knew what it was, as we saw had some similar when we were in Taiwan. Sounds like you are having a wonderful time and seeing so many lovely places and eating all those "goodies". See you soon. Love You!