Malacca

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March 10-14, 2016



I arrived into Malacca in the early afternoon after a 4-hour bus ride from Singapore. The day was hot, with not a single cloud in the sky. After settling into my hotel, I decided to walk around the area. I stayed near the old Portuguese settlement area of the city. The neighborhood is well laid out, and waking in the late afternoon felt nice. I got to the center of the settlement as all of the restaurants were setting up for the evening. I sat down at the J&J Corner 10 Restaurant for dinner. The lady running the business served delicious food. I had some Portuguese baked fish—in a hearty tomato and vegetable sauce—along with some steamed vegetables in garlic. I spent the rest of the evening relaxing and getting ready for the next day.



The following day I started the day early. After an amazing Indian breakfast, I headed to the heritage area. The area around the Christ Church Melaka is full of tourists. I explored several of the attractions nearby throughout the morning. In the early afternoon I headed into Jonker Street to walk around and to find a nice place to relax. Geogrpahér Café is a nice sport right in the middle of the bustle of Jonker Street. After some chilled wine and a nice lunch I was ready to continue walking in the sun. I spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening walking the streets and relaxing on the riverfront.



Being next to one another, the next day I visited A Famosa and the Malacca Sultanate Palace Museum. From there, I walked a short distance over to the Taming Sari Tower. Though it only takes 5 minutes, the views that the ride provides, I thought, were worth the price of admission. After a relaxing and filling lunch, I decided to take a riverboat tour in the middle of the afternoon. It takes 45 minutes for the boat to cruise up and down the river. The river is lined with lots of coffee shops and restaurants full of tourists and locals. By the time the tour had finished it was early evening and the sun was setting, so I decided to head over to Jonker Street and walked around the night market. One of my favorite things to do when I arrive in a new city is to explore its night market. The one in Malacca did not disappoint one bit. It is full of crowds and stalls for people to purchase almost anything. The atmosphere is wonderful, especially with the cool building as a backdrop. However, the highlight for me was definitely the food area. It is hectically fun and full of people waiting for the next open table. I ate some amazing noodles, a succulent lamb dish, and some great seafood. After a couple of beers at a nearby bar, I headed back to the hotel.



The last full day, I spent it relaxing at the hotel in the morning. By early afternoon I headed out to explore some of the area between my hotel and the city center. I relaxed at a local coffee shop and had an early dinner at the Restoran Ole Sayang. I finished the day by visiting the Malacca Straits Mosque.

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