DAY NINE

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As much as I was able to get myself around Malaysia yesterday with great aplomb, I was an equal part completely lost today. It was still a good day in Melaka, Malaysia though.

I had a little bit later of stat today, but walked myself into the main part of town and decided to take a 45 minute river cruise to get myself situated. It was okay. It was along the waterway through a part of town, so the most interesting part was to see the houses along the way. After the cruise I set off for some sightseeing. The main thing I saw as Stadthuys which was a building the Dutch built when they occupied the city. It now houses a museum about the history of Melaka (I have found the history with all the conquering, it being a trading port, etc. quite interesting). I also visited an old Dutch church as well as part of a former fort. I then set off for some more site-seeing/lunch but just never got my bearings. To add fuel to the fire it was hot today! Probably the most humid day I have experienced so far. I did stop for a Durian fruit tart and then some street food and fresh mango juice. I sat down near the river but my lunch was quickly ruined when some people around me said they had seen a monkey in the tree I was under. I had not seen a monkey since my first or second stop—but I still have a flight/fight reaction at the thought that there might be one nearby. I then decided to head over to the museum I had been looking forward to (the People’s Museum)—but it was closed. Bummer! I decided to get some cendol (the dessert from last night) and head on home. I went to the food court at the nearby mall. The food courts here was quite different than you would see at a typically mall. The food is more of a buffet, but not in the neat compartmentalized way you would see at a US buffet. It’s just out there. The cendol was good and it made me think of opening up a cendol food cart in DC. DC people love ethnic food, food carts are all the rage—I think it could be a winning combo! I think the hardest part would be finding the ingredients. I got home around 4:30 and just relaxed in my room for a while. I got a mighty nice tan out of today!

One interesting part of Melaka were the Trishaws. Basically they are bicycles with carriers attached to the front or side so that a tourist or two can be biked around. What makes these trishaws special is how they are decorated. Fake flowers, Christmas lights, trinkets, stereos belting Malay/Hindi/American songs. They are quite a sight. I did not ride in one.

The one area that my hotel is near is the historic Portuguese area of Melaka. It was just about a 10-15 minute walk so I headed over. It was basically just a waterfront area with a bunch of restaurants, but a nice evening to have a meal al fresco. There were a lot of people down there—mostly locals. I decided to eat authentic and have some Portuguese seafood. I ordered apple juice and a Portuguese spice flavored crab. The apple juice was fresh and was green—so it was a bit tart. Excellent. They brought out the crab and indeed it was a crab. They then brought out the crab cracker. It was then I realized that I had never eaten a crab like that! I did my best, made a mess and am not sure how I did. It was very spicy, but pretty good. Definitely a memorable experience.

In my room right now and packed up ready to head to KL. I tried to schedule a bike tour but never heard back from the tour company. If I don’t hear back—I might attempt church tomorrow—I found out it was closer than I thought.

I am looking forward to getting to KL and be in a hotel for more than two days. I’ll be there for a week! I am in desperate need of doing laundry—so that will be my main focus tomorrow. Also need to start finding fun things to do in KL!

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