Blogs from Melaka City, Melaka, Malaysia, Asia

On our final evening we went to a fabulous vegetarian restaurant, the best I’ve ever eaten at, and it was just round the corner from our hotel. It‘s called the Mori Vegetarian Tea House. We were unfashionably early at 6pm but a tour group and a family arrived just after us. The food was sensational, sweet and sour jackfruit, mushroom satay, olive fried rice and drinks cost £6.50 each. It’s quite stark inside, not full of atmosphere but the food is to die for. They close at 9, so you have to be there by 8.15 at the latest. Then we walked down to the quay for the boat trip, 25 ringgits including a bottle of water in a carrying bag and a cute (not) keyring. We thought ho hum, this will be a bit boring ... read more

De reis naar de Cameron Highlands was lang. Eerst moest ik vanaf Langkawi de boot terug naar Penang nemen (gelukkig nu met een rustige zee en een film om te kijken), vervolgens de boot van Penang naar het vaste land en vandaar nog een busrit. Deze was langer dan ik dacht en ik kwam in het donker aan. Het was echter niet heel erg, want de route door de Highlands was erg mooi en nu het donker was waren alle aardbeikassen verlicht, maar daarnaast was er bijna geen andere verlichting waardoor ze er echt uit sprongen. Daarnaast waren de groene heuvels op zichzelf erg mooi. Je zou misschien niet direct verwachten om verse aardbeien in Azië te vinden, maar het klimaat in de Cameron Highlands is verrassend koel, ik moest in de avond zelf mijn vest ... read more

The Straits of Malacca held the key to wealth in the 17th through 20th century. This was a shortcut between China and Europe, and the city of Malacca – or Melaka – was located on the Straits and bisected by the Malacca River. Spices, silks, and all manner of trade goods flowed through here, and whoever controlled the straits controlled a whole lot of wealth. I was staying in a hotel near the river. I like walking along rivers, and since there was some interesting history along this river, a walk seemed in order. Past the local craft market and the Maritime Museum, I saw a building labeled Museum of Malaysian Customs. Now, at various times Malacca has been under the control of the Chinese, the Sultan Muhammed Shah, the Portuguese, the Dutch, the English, the ... read more

The breakfast was a real treat and we all agreed it was the best on the trip so far. At 10.00 we met on the foyer for a tour of old Melaka City. The influence of the Portuguese, the Dutch and the Chinese. How Dutch and British ships loaded up with bricks and tiles as ballast and sold them in the Eadt Indies for silks, spices etc. It became a world heritage site about ten years ago and there is a constant fund to resort the mish mash of buildings. Harmony Street was particularly interesting as it had a Hindu Temple, Mosque and Budddhist Temple all within two hundred yards of each other. After an hour and a half we called it a day as the kids were melting. We retraced our steps to an air ... read more

Nous arrivons à Malacca jeudi en début de matinée. Après quelques recherches pour dénicher notre point de chute, notre choix se porte sur la Travellers Planet Hotel & Guesthouse. Nous faisons ensuite le tour des guichets pour acheter nos tickets retour vers Singapour pour dimanche après-midi, ce qui s’avère un vrai parcours du combattant car tout ou presque est déjà vendu ! Heureusement qu’il reste des places auprès d’une compagnie de bus (la plus chère malheureusement, mais le tarif reste inférieur à si nous avions acheté nos tickets depuis Singapour). Nous rejoignons le centre-ville et notre logement en bus, et terminons cette 1ère journée sur place au calme. Vendredi et samedi sont consacrés à la découverte de la ville, inscrite comme George Town au patrimoine historique de l’UNESCO. Bien que Malacca semble moins agréable à visiter ... read more