"MELAKA" a Melaka Travel Page by longsanborn

My mother and I visited Melaka in June 2000. We have always wanted to visit Melaka but never had the chance. We had high expectations of seeing a historical town. However, when we got there, we were a little disappointed that there were not many places to see.

At the first glimpse of the Malacca town, part of the town is seemingly painted in red color. Actually, most of these red colored buildings are the result of the influences of the Portuguese occupation in the early days. In addition to that, China and British influences seem to blend into the Malacca town as well due to the rich cultural and historical heritage in the early days.

There are quite a few interesting places in the Malacca Town; these include the magnificent red colored buildings (Stadthuys, Dutch Square and Christ Church), and A' Famosa (Porta De Santiago).

Actually, the few buildings that are red in color are the most eye catching and attention demanding buildings. Three of these buildings are the Stadthuys, Dutch Square and Christ Church.

Malacca is well-known for its food. Most notable of all is the Nyonya-Baba cuisine which is a mixture of Chinese and Malay cooking with most dishes being spicy in nature. Interesting dishes of the Peranakan include Itek Tim (a soup containing duck and salted vegetables), Ayam Pong Teh (chicken casserole with salted brown-bean sauce) as well as the famous Nyonya Laksa.

The Portuguese colonization of the early 16th century also contributed dishes like Devil's Curry and Portuguese tart to the town's already rich cuisine. The interesting Chinese cuisine in Melaka includes the popular Chicken Rice Ball as well as dodol, a sort of solidified pudding generally made with durian or coconut. Ikan Bakar restaurants are also popular in Melaka with places like Umbai, Serkam and Alai being the choice of the populace.

The average tourist can find most popular Malaccan cuisine at the foodcourts - or medan selera as they are referred to in the local Malay language.

Melaka's ethnic Portuguese population is a unique cultural and historical legacy of Portuguese colonization in the 16th and 17th century. Even to this day, many of the ancient traditions passed down since the Portuguese occupation are still practised.