"UNESCO City - Sumatran, Portuguese, Dutch, British" Top 5 Page for this destination Negeri Melaka by SLLiew

Negeri Melaka Travel Guide: 1,778 reviews and 4,362 photos

UNESCO City - Sumatran, Portuguese, Dutch, British - Negeri Melaka

As of July 2008, Melaka has been added to UNESCO World Heritage List of Historic Cities.

Melaka (Malacca in English) is a popular tourist destination. It is a day trip from Kuala Lumpur and a favorite weekend escapade for Singaporeans too.

I always enjoy the historic atmosphere of the town and the nonya food (earlier Chinese who intermarried with locals) and Hainanese chicken rice balls.

There are many museums and parks at nearby Ayer Keroh for family orientated trips.

HISTORY OF MELAKA

Per history book, Malacca was founded in 1403 by a Sumatran prince called Parameswara as a port along the strategic Straits of Melaka, between Malay peninsular and Sumatra, connecting Indian Ocean with South China Sea.

Later, the prince converted to Islam and Melaka became an Malay Islamic empire stretching from Johor (Singapore and Riau Islands) to Perak and Pahang in the Peninsular Malaysia.

In 1511, Melaka fell to the Portuguese. In 1641, the Dutch took over the port and in 1824, Melaka became English sphere when it was exchanged with Bencoolen in Sumatra as a Dutch-English agreement.

Then, Melaka jointly with Penang and Singapore became Straits Settlements.

Later it gained independence as Melaka State in Federation of Malaya on August 31, 1957. Malaya later became Malaysia when Sabah and Sarawak joined the Federation.

Intro Updated Jul 8, 2008
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Reviews (13)

Hang Li Po's Well Things to Do (9)

Another popular tourist stop for a group photograph is the Hang Li Po's Well. It is located at the Sam Poh Kong temple.... more travel advice

St. Paul's Church on a hill top - Negeri Melaka

St. Paul's Church on a hill top Things to Do (9)

Starting from Fort A'Famosa at Porto de Santiago, there is a path and a series of steps to reach the top of the hill... more travel advice

The old Fort A'Famosa Things to Do (9)

This famous Melaka landmark, the Porta de Santiago is what remained of the mighty Fort A'Famosa that was built by... more travel advice

History Museum at Stadhuy - Negeri Melaka

History Museum at Stadhuy Things to Do (9)

Housed in the red color old Dutch colonial administrative building (Stadhuy), this is a museum which has a rich display... more travel advice

Local Customs (2)
See All Portuguese Eurasian Community

Transportation (2)
See All Take a ride in trishaw around town

Comments (4)

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ChristinaNest Sep 3, 2007 at 7:06 AM

Nice updates SL! Maybe you can add more photos of the fort and the old church after you visit next time.
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SWFC_Fan Aug 30, 2007 at 12:56 PM

Happy Independence Day, SL!! :-) Great tips and photos of Melaka - brings back good memories of my trip there!!
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deecat Aug 29, 2007 at 5:26 AM

This was quite educational for me. Learned about "trishaw" and the red buildings. Still smiling about title of "Painting Town Red". Enjoyed Malacca River, Bukit China [huge graveyard], old fort, and the churches.
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victorwkf Aug 28, 2007 at 10:15 PM

Hi SL, Melaka is a very charming and historical town. One of these days, I may re-visit Melaka to further explore the place :)