In the mood for historic Malacca

In the mood for historic Malacca

Dewi Anggraeni, The Jakarta Post, Malacca

For those Indonesians of the generation where the Story of
Hang Tuah featured in their secondary school's literature and
history lessons, Malacca, a city on the southwest coast of the
Malay peninsula, is never far from memory recall.

The five protagonists in the story -- Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat,
Hang Kasturi, Hang Lekir and Hang Lekiu -- were valiant knights
of the 15th century kingdom of Malacca, known as Melaka to
Indonesians.

The five Hangs are indeed immortalised in Malacca, in a manner
of speaking. Their names have been given to streets with cultural
and historical significance.

"Historic" is often used to describe Malacca. For a first-time
visitor the place may be linked to history in a pleasant but
unintended meaning. At entering the township, you will feel as if
you are stepping back into history.

To begin with, the slower pace of life, the friendly locals
with their readiness to answer questions from a stranger, are all
delightfully alluring to big-city-weary tourists. Not
surprisingly Malacca seems to be a place for people from
Singapore and Kuala Lumpur to relax.

Founded by Parameshwara, a fugitive prince from Sumatra, in
the beginning of 14th century, Malacca has experienced its fair
share of political turbulence.

According to Abdullah bin Abdulkadir Munsyi's Malay
Chronicles, China's Admiral Cheng Ho visited Malacca in 1403 and
gave his official recognition to Parameshwara as the king of
Malacca. Parameshwara reciprocated by acknowledging his
responsibilities to China, sending gifts to the emperor in 1405,
and asking him to make Malacca part of the Chinese empire, to
protect itself from the neighboring kingdom, Siam.

Successive Islamic sultans then reigned until the first
Western force, the Portuguese, invaded and occupied the place,
followed by the Dutch and the British. While it may have had a
violent and bloody history, the present Malacca shows a richness
of culture in a peaceful living.

By road from Singapore, Malacca is only some three hours away,
while two and a half hours is enough to reach it from Kuala
Lumpur.

Most of the streets in the township, built around the winding
Malacca river, are so narrow you cannot avoid close proximity
with other people. Fortunately you generally come across locals
with very friendly body language and a laid-back attitude.

Around the northern part of the river is a group of narrow and
bustling streets of temples, mosques, cafes and restaurants,
shops and houses.

When you walk into Chinatown, which is a cluster of three
streets, you are confronted with sights you would think are
things of the past. In Jalan Tukang Besi you see blacksmiths
making household and garden utensils using charcoal stoves and
anvils. In Jalan Hang Kasturi, you can buy handmade lanterns,
used here for hanging at the front of Chinese homes, in honor of
the God of Jade, I am told.

In Jalan To'kong, also known as Temple Street, shops are
selling all the necessities for deities and ancestry worship,
such as scented joss sticks, joss paper, and statues of various
gods made of papier mache. If you walk along these streets early
in the evening, you see all these things being burned as
offerings, filling the atmosphere with a kind of dreamlike other-
worldness.

In Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, you'll see the heritage of
Straits Chinese, known as the Babas and the Nyonyas, who are
descended from Chinese nobles who settled in the area. There is
even a private Baba-Nyonya Heritage Museum, open to visitors and
certainly worth the modest fee charged.

Next to Jalan Hang Kasturi, Jalan Hang Jebat, also known as
Jonkers Street, is lined on both sides with antique and souvenir
art stores, many of these sandwiched between a coffin maker shop
and a motorcycle repair workshop, or between an automotive
electrician place and a restaurant.

Around the southern part of the river is a cluster known as
Malacca's historic belt, where you find among others, the
Cultural Museum, Stadthuys, the Chinese Cemetery, St Paul's
Church, Christ Church, and the Protestant Cemetery, and Porta de
Santiago. The road in the core of this centre are paved instead
of bitumenised, emphasising a busy but pleasant village
atmosphere.

One of the historic sites, St. Paul's Church, the ruins of a
former chapel built in 1521 by Portuguese captain Duarte de
Coelho, is definitely worth an extended visit for its eerie
ambience, if nothing else. De Coelho built it in dedication to de
Nossa Senyora de Oiteru, or Our Lady of the Hill, for what he
believed as his miraculous escape from the corsair attack in the
South China Sea. Of course once you step out of the ruins the
eeriness quickly disappears, blown away by the colourful sight of
art and souvenir stalls filling its peripheries.

Jalan Laksamana, where the road is paved, is lined with shops
selling beautiful garments and accessories, operated by local
Indians and Malays.

Apart from the strong presence of Malays and Baba-nyonyas
(Straits Chinese) as well as recent recent immigrant Chinese, the
population of Malacca shows little evidence of Portuguese, Dutch
and British descendants. These countries, once powerful occupying
forces in different times, are only represented in architecture
and specific buildings. The Stadthuys for example, now the
Malacca Historical Museum, is as solidly Dutch as when it was
built in 1650 as a municipal office, and is still better known by
its Dutch name.

Getting around the township is best done by walking. However,
if from time to time you want to give the weary feet a rest,
there is no shortage of trishaw drivers who would take you for
short trips. Or, why not take a ferry along the river, to see the
township several meters below the street level? It certainly
gives you an interesting perspective and paints a different
character of the place.