Melaka (February 22-February 24, 2012)

Melaka, in southern Malaysia, is another of the British Straits Settlements and, like Georgetown in Penang, it has strong colonial and Chinese influences. We explored the city by foot, as usual, and found that the rich history of Melaka was present everywhere we looked. The bright pink buildings of the 17^th century Stadthuys (Dutch Town Square), the 16^th century Portuguese St. Paul’s Cathedral sitting atop Bukit St. Paul (St. Pauls Hill), and the 17^th century Cheng Hoon Teng temple, as well as the colorfully decorated rickshaws we saw all around town all spoke to the rich cultural history of this city. Melaka’s famous cuisine also reflects the city’s diverse history, and we sampled our fair share of the city’s specialties during our two days. Highlights were dim sum breakfasts, laksa (thick curry noodle soup), celup (a satay-flavored hot pot), popiah (a local take on spring rolls), the best cendol we had in Malaysia, and several Nonya (descendents of 15^th and 16^th century Chinese immigrants, as opposed to more recent Chinese immigrants) dishes including pork and rice dumplings steamed in banana leaves and pineapple tarts.

Click on the photo below for our Melaka photo album.