Malacca Gringo!

Nathalie and I decided it was time to unstuck ourselves from Kuala Lumpur.   We had spent three weeks there recharging our batteries and with a bit over one week to go before heading off to Indonesia, we were feeling a bit guilty for not seeing more of Malaysia.  

Malaysia itself has a lot to offer.  The country is split over two landmasses; the western peninsular part, home to the capital Kuala Lumpur and the Eastern island of Borneo (where it shares a land border with Indonesia).   There's simply too much to do in one month and in all honesty, its worth coming back just to explore it all.  

The main canal in Malacca

Given our shortened time-frame we built a small itinerary to visit the former colonial port of Malacca (named after the strait that passes next to it) and then up to Penang in the northwest of the Malay peninsula.  From there, we'll head back down to KL for one last day, where we'll make our final prep before leaving the country.  

What was Malacca like?  Great question!  Find out after the jump.  

We left the apartment we were staying at in Kuala Lumpur without much rush nor without much stress.   Getting to Malacca is easy; you simply need to go to the bus terminal and take the next available one out of town.   The main terminal is located on the metro line and once there, buying a ticket is easy: there are 18 counters selling tickets as well as automated kiosks.   We went for the electronic method and after selecting our choice of both bus company and comfort (we took a 'business class' bus with only three seats per row and ample leg room all for under four dollars per person), we headed through the security checkpoint and down to the departure lounge.  

Malacca is only a two-hour drive south of Kuala Lumpur.  The roads in Malaysia, at least the ones we took, are modern and well built giving us a quick, smooth ride.    Once we got into the bus terminal in Malacca,  we approached the taxi terminal and got a lift to our hotel (which we had booked on the bus ride down).  

Dragon Statue outside of a temple in old town Malacca

We checked into our basic but slightly overpriced (at least in terms of what the room offered; it was still well within our budget), put down our stuff and set out to see the city and grab a bite to eat as it was already the mid-afternoon and we hadn't eaten since breakfast.   Before we could get out of the hotel door, the owner approached us and asked us where we were going.  We told him that we wanted to head into town and explore.  Eager to show off his hometown, he kindly offered us a ride into the center.  We accepted his proposal and during the five minute trip, he gave us a checklist of places to visit and activities to do.  

Malacca (spelled 'Melaka' in Malay) is a former colonial post that, since the arrival of the European explorers 500 years ago, has passed hands between the Portuguese, the Dutch and finally the English.  The Chinese, ever present in the region, also established a strong presence in the area and seemed to be the dominant ethnicity, at least in the parts of the city we visited.  These influences have been reflected in both the architecture and the culture, and in the spirit of everything we've seen so far, proudly represent the unique blend that is Malaysia.  

Throughout the old town, the small, one-lane streets are lined with colonial-era buildings; influenced with British Victorian design and Portuguese ceramic tiles.  The center of the city is dissected by a man-made canal and along its banks are cafes, restaurants, and houses in what is an eerily familiar throwback to Amsterdam.    Across the many streets hang Chinese lanterns.   Charm abounds from both the small, main thoroughfare and the side-alleys feeding into it. 

A side street in old town Malacca with a mosque in the background

The first thought that came to mind was the town of Hoi An in Vietnam.  Nathalie and I had gone there back in April when we were touring the country (check out my post on it here).  In short, the town was incredibly charming but had this lingering superficial feel to it, even if it wasn't the case.  

Like Hoi An, Malacca's tiny streets are a throwback to days past.  However, unlike it's Vietnamese sister, Malacca is devoid of tourist saturation.  The shops in the center are still widely used by locals (whereas in Hoi An, it's nothing but gift shops and other tourist traps) and, other than the night market on Saturday and Sunday nights, the old part of the city maintains a constant sleepy cantor.   From what I gathered, the local officials are making a big push to develop the town into a prime tourist destination (the taxi driver we took to the airport on the way out of town claimed that there are around 500 hotels in the city).   I sincerely hope they do so cautiously in order to avoid the oversaturation that has taken away some of the authenticity of Hoi An.  

Nathalie and I rented bikes on our second, and only full day in town.  I think I'll write a  travel pro-tip about this, but I highly recommend that whenever you have the possibility to rent a bike and explore a  place, do so!  It's a great way to get around, you can cover more ground, and is definitely less tiring than walking.   We spent the majority of the afternoon casually cruising the town, turning down whichever street piqued our interests, stopping occasionally to have a coffee or a fresh juice, and to simply take in the sites.  

Street art on the side of the building running along the canal

In the evening, we went and saw a movie (a ticket costs around 5 USD), which was an experience within itself.  Malaysia is an impressive nation; having largely avoided the poverty pitfalls that seem to plague the rest of Southeast Asia.  However, being in a theater with 300 Malaysians certainly put some of our cultural differences in stark light.  First, it's seems like most people don't have a problem with talking loudly during the film.  Then, coughing and sneezing out loud seems to be perfectly acceptable behavior in a room full of hundreds of people in close proximity trying to focus on the large light and sound show in front of them.   Finally, the staff, gung ho to clean after the film finishes, opened the exit doors a few minutes before the last scene ended.   In the final 15 or so seconds of the film, the moment where the director is trying to deliver home the final message, the lights in the theater came on and everyone started to leave.  So much for sitting and watching the credits.  Oh well...it was a learning experience (plus I can re-watch the movie later when it's out on Netflix...and when I get a Netflix account).  

After the movie, we went and had dinner at a small restaurant around the corner from the theater.  On the walk back, we were once again treated to one of Malacca's forays into kitsh tourism: the flashing, neon trishaws.  What's a trishaw? It's a rickshaw that is pedal powered.  These are somewhat common and in exist in various forms throughout the region.   However, the drivers in Malacca have taken tackiness to the extreme by turning their trishaws into glowing, sonic monsters, complete with rope lights, Disney decals, and a sound system that's in all likelihood illegal in certain parts of the world.  

A statue commemorating Malcca's home-grown  Mr. Universe 

Their sole purpose is to ferry tourists around town  showing them the tourist sites (although it'd be pretty funny if people actually used these to commute to/from work).   For those of you who have been reading my blog over the past few months, you'll know that I keep a firm policy that prevents me from putting myself in situations where I'll be paraded around town by the locals  and I made no exception in Malacca despite the bright lights and bouncing music.   Here's an idea of what they look like (sorry, I wasn't able to get a good picture).

The next morning, we left Malacca, transferring painlessly from the hotel to the airport en route to Penang.  Sure, it was a short stay, but it was definitely worth the visit.  For one, Malacca gave us the chance to see another side on Malaysia; mainly one that isn't Kuala Lumpur.  Another positive point was that we were able to start moving again; which was reassuring given how hard I had crashed only a few weeks earlier.  I don't know if I would go again.  After all, I don't know what more I'd want to see and after two days, we felt that we had seen enough.  But that doesn't mean it shouldn't be visited. So if you're ever in Malaysia (and you should go if you have the chance), definitely try to get down to Malacca; you won't regret it!