It's Christmas Day, and in Melaka, it's steamy hot. Following last night's delicious dinner, I get out to explore the town and my stomach waits for the coming gastronomic party.
The day’s agenda consists of walking around town and sampling Melaka’s various cuisines.
The rich history of Melaka is partly reflected by the buildings around Town Square left by the successive colonial rulers: the Portuguese, the Dutch, and the British. In the morning, I amble down the quiet lanes and come upon Stadhuys, the fiery-red Dutch-built former town hall and governor’s residence that is the main tourist attraction in Melaka today. Trishaws richly and creatively decorated with vibrant artificial flowers line up along the water fountain dedicated to Queen Victoria in front of Stadhuys. Tourists, both domestic and foreign, mill around the trinket shops and pick their favorite trishaws for a ride. Walking up the small hill behind Stadhuys, I see the ruins of St. Paul’s Church built by the Portuguese. At the bottom of the hill on the other side sits Porta de Santiago, the only remaining part of the Portuguese fort. The narrow lanes of Chinatown are lined by shophouses in various stages of decay and renovation, some showing serious signs of weathering and some have been restored to their former splendor.
Melaka’s history is also partly reflected by its cuisines: Indian, Chinese, Malay, Nyonya (a Chinese-Malay fusion), and Portuguese (I guess the Dutch and the British didn’t care much about food). Following a breakfast of roti masala in Little India, I wander down the street and come across a soymilk stand and have a bowl of freshly made silken tofu in ginger syrup. Later, I wander back to Chinatown for a bowl of a trademark Melakan fare, the mildly-spiced and rich Nyonya laksa. For snacks, I wash down sumptuous tofu rendang (yes, tofu can be sumptuous, believe it or not) with sugar cane juice, and later, roti canai with teh tarik. Despite having all these food, I have worked up a good appetite by dinner time from walking around town all day. So I head back to Little India and have a meal of vegetable curries piled around rice topped with generous helpings of daal, all served on an environmentally-friendly disposable plate, a banana leaf. A big glass of thick lassi serves as the perfect accompaniment.
After this day-long food orgy, I waddle back to the guesthouse and end the perfect day with a few pieces of the colorful and wonderfully flavored Indian dessert cakes.
Living in Melaka, every day can be like Christmas. It really doesn’t get any better than this. I gotta do it again tomorrow!
The day’s agenda consists of walking around town and sampling Melaka’s various cuisines.
The rich history of Melaka is partly reflected by the buildings around Town Square left by the successive colonial rulers: the Portuguese, the Dutch, and the British. In the morning, I amble down the quiet lanes and come upon Stadhuys, the fiery-red Dutch-built former town hall and governor’s residence that is the main tourist attraction in Melaka today. Trishaws richly and creatively decorated with vibrant artificial flowers line up along the water fountain dedicated to Queen Victoria in front of Stadhuys. Tourists, both domestic and foreign, mill around the trinket shops and pick their favorite trishaws for a ride. Walking up the small hill behind Stadhuys, I see the ruins of St. Paul’s Church built by the Portuguese. At the bottom of the hill on the other side sits Porta de Santiago, the only remaining part of the Portuguese fort. The narrow lanes of Chinatown are lined by shophouses in various stages of decay and renovation, some showing serious signs of weathering and some have been restored to their former splendor.
Melaka’s history is also partly reflected by its cuisines: Indian, Chinese, Malay, Nyonya (a Chinese-Malay fusion), and Portuguese (I guess the Dutch and the British didn’t care much about food). Following a breakfast of roti masala in Little India, I wander down the street and come across a soymilk stand and have a bowl of freshly made silken tofu in ginger syrup. Later, I wander back to Chinatown for a bowl of a trademark Melakan fare, the mildly-spiced and rich Nyonya laksa. For snacks, I wash down sumptuous tofu rendang (yes, tofu can be sumptuous, believe it or not) with sugar cane juice, and later, roti canai with teh tarik. Despite having all these food, I have worked up a good appetite by dinner time from walking around town all day. So I head back to Little India and have a meal of vegetable curries piled around rice topped with generous helpings of daal, all served on an environmentally-friendly disposable plate, a banana leaf. A big glass of thick lassi serves as the perfect accompaniment.
After this day-long food orgy, I waddle back to the guesthouse and end the perfect day with a few pieces of the colorful and wonderfully flavored Indian dessert cakes.
Living in Melaka, every day can be like Christmas. It really doesn’t get any better than this. I gotta do it again tomorrow!
Flower Trishaws Congregate in Front of the Christ Church
Trishaw Driver Waiting for His Next Group of Customers
Looking Out the Window of St. Paul's Church
Shopped 'til She Dropped
Tough Modeling Job at the Orangutan House
"Give Piss a Chance"
Parking Spot
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