Melaka (Malaysia) > Reviews > Melaka the Doorway of Malaysian History

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money
Shopping
Nightlife
Ease of getting around
Family Friendly

Advantages:	hospitable, welcoming, laid back, beautiful
Disadvantages:	public transport especially buses are not very reliable

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Have you ever wondered how it will feel like to go live in a town where almost everyone knew everyone? Well this is the impression i got of Melaka, a city located strategically in the centre of the Malaysian Peninsula connecting the South and the North. Although we only spent a weekend in this small town, we met the same taxi driver twice. And mind you, you can walk the town in about an hour. Everything in nearby.
My mates and I tried the local food. Laksa (some sort of curry noodle at the cost of 30p). That was a Bargain. Melaka is the place where the Malaysian history was said to have begun. It goes back to Parameswara who happens to be the founder of Malacca in the 1400's. It's amazing to know that the Portugese had conquered this town in 1511 and some of their predecessors still live here. They have now become like the locals living in this city. They are able to communicate in the local dialect which is Malay (the official language of Malaysia).
The must see places in this city are the Tanjung Bidara which is a beautiful sandy beach and the Flor Di Lama which is a ship used by Alfonso de Al Buquer when he left Melaka during the Dutch intervention in 1641. The ship was said to have sunk and was retrieved by the people several hundreds of years later. It is now a museum. Finally if you have time to spare, you should go by doing some shopping as things are relatively cheap. £5 can get you something decent.
On the whole i liked Melaka because it was a city that gave me loads of pleasure to just kickback and get value for my money.