Malacca, a Mini Post.

The founding of Malacca is seen as the beginning of the Malaysian nation-state. Malacca was not on our list of Malaysian destinations originally, but after we found out about its historical significance to the founding of the country, we decided to check it out. A 4 hour bus ride south of KL lead us to this UNESCO World Heritage Site. Malacca used to be one of the most important ports in all of Asia; it was founded by an exiled Sumatran prince back in 1400. Any ship trying to travel from Eastern Asia to India or beyond has to pass through the straights of Malacca, or make a several thousand kilometer detour around Indonesia. Although other cities along the straights had been trading with distant nations for many years, Malacca quickly gained the monopoly due to its low or lack of import tax and highly organized port administration. Four high level government officials were assigned to take care of foreign traders while they were in the port. Malacca came under successive colonial eras when it was conquered by the Portuguese in 1511, followed by Dutch rule in 1641 before the British took over in 1824.Because of this, Malacca has unique colonial architecture and a population of mixed decent. We stayed for a couple of days, not giving the city true justice. Even though the city was filled with museums and cultural relics, we felt that we had gotten the idea after about 48 hours. Also although there are volumes of information and warehouses filled with historical relics from the colonial era, all buildings, writings, and pre-colonial information about Malacca had been destroyed by the Portuguese and other imperialists. We weren't really interested in learning more about Portuguese gun models and the meticulous record keeping of the British.

The city is flooded with tourists and flamboyantly decorated bicycle rickshaws. We're not sure which heritage this comes from.

The main canal running through the city. This used to transport goods inland from the port. It now transports tourists through Malacca for about $20 for a half day ride.

St. Francis Xavier Church. Gutted out and filled with tombs of old colonialists. St. Francis body was buried here for a few years before being exhumed and moved to Goa, another colony of the Portuguese located in South India.

Kara in front of the former gravesite.

View of the port from St. Francis Xavier Church. The large pole in the foreground was built last year for tourists to get a panoramic view of the city.

Walking towards Jonker Street, Malacca's Chinatown. This area was designated for Chinese sailors to stay while their ships were in port back in the 1400s. It is a charming part of the city that boasts quiet streets and nice lighting.

Old City Center. This Church was founded in the late 1700s and its architecture is typical of other colonial buildings in the area.

There are more Malaysian tourists who come to visit Malacca than foreign. It's kind of like Philadelphia in America.

Malacca museum: smiling colonial dudes. Max really likes this picture for some reason. "They're just all so happy to be colonialists, I don't know..."

Being enticed by the Beyonce blasting (yes they sport radios) bicycle rickshaw driver. We did not get in. Our walks through the historic district were filled with the sounds of American top 40, Euro techno, and Bollywood music. The rickshaw drivers seemed really excited to be playing this music as part of an entertainment service, but we thought it was tacky, so fucking loud, and definitely out of place.

On the "Eye on Malacca." This ferris wheel used to be in Kuala Lumpur but was moved to Malacca to boost tourism. Gave a nice view of the city.

We enjoyed our ride.

Apparently Malacca's desire for tall vantage points was not satisfied by the "Eye," so they built this revolving tower (shown at beginning of post).

View of Malacca from this revolving thing.

We felt like this was kind of a boring post, and maybe a boring place, but we went there, and we wanted to share it with you. We'll try to get crazier next time.
Max wants to say that he is glad we went there.
History is important.

Also, it was a good stop over to Singapore, our next destination.

K and M