Melacca, the ancient capital

October 19th (Wednesday)

It was time to leave Kuala Lumpur. Though comfortable and manageable, the big city life seems pretty much the same wherever you are. So, down the coast to Melacca I went. Over five centuries ago, the Malay empire flurished from this coastal town. Unfortunately, today the town retains only a faint whisper of its former glories.

The only attraction in town that caught my eye was the Baba-Nonya heritage house. The descedents of Chinese merchants and Malay locals, the Baba-Nonyas were a unique group that left their mark, however small, on the history of Malaysia. This house represented the lavish wealth that they enjoyed. By combining three houses into one single residence, they created an amazing mansion right downtown. The heritage house has numerous rooms filled with ancient liquors, a bridal chamber, fashionable clothing, and other memories of daily life. My favorite part was the staircase, that could be locked from above to keep out burglers and to keep in roving husbands.

Melacca does contain some other sites, mostly from the colonial times, and it was a bit relaxing after the hustle and bustle of KL. I really liked the guesthouse I stayed at though, called the Traveller's Lodge. Run by a Muslim family who enforce certain rules of diet and etiquette within the lodge, the guesthouse was clean and comfortable and well-run. There was even a rooftop garden where one can read and relax.

But, alas, I wanted to move on to Tioman, and Melacca didn't have anything else to keep me around for another day. I did eat a vegetarian patty from McDonalds, curious as to how it'll taste. Tasted like a cross between a potato croquette and a falafel. I also highly enjoyed the taxi ride because the taxi driver (and all his friends at teh stand) were energetically discussing what to do in Melacca and where to go and where to avoid and all that.