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Malacca is located on the West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia facing the Straits of Malacca, about 150 kilometres from Kuala Lumpur between the states of Negeri Sembilan and Johor.  Malacca’s history began in 1403 with the arrival of Parameswara, an exiled prince from Sumatra.  In time, Malacca gained prominence as a vibrant port and maritime trading centre for ships from India and China.  In 1511, the Portuguese conquered Malacca and ruled for 130 years before the Dutch took over to reign for another 154 years.  Malacca in 1824 fell to the hands of the British Empire who ruled until the country gained independence in 1957.  Today, one will find many remnants of the glorious past dated back more than 600 years ago in this Historical City which makes it an interesting place not to be missed.

Suggested places of interest in no particular sequence:

1) A Formosa    

A fortress built by the Portuguese and it suffered severe damages during the Dutch invasion.  Timely intervention by Sir Stamford Raffles saved what remains of the fort today.

2) St Paul’s Church
 Built in 1521 by the Portuguese and was renamed to St Paul’s Church by the Dutch.  St. Francis Xavier was buried here in 1553 before his body was transferred to Goa in India.

3) St Francis Xavier Church
 A Gothic style church built in 1849 and was dedicated to St. Francis Xavier who was known as “The Apostle of The East” for his work in South East Asia during the 16th century.

4) St Peter’s Church
 Built in 1710 and is now considered to be the oldest Roman Catholic church in Malaysia

5) The Stadthuys
 Built in 1650 as the official residence of Dutch governor and is a major landmark in Malacca. It now houses the Museum of History and Ethnography which has many traditional bridal costumes and relics on display.

6) Christ Church
 Another legacy left behind by the Dutch and is just next to the Stadthuys. Under the British Empire it was used as an Anglican church and a weathercock as well as a bell tower was added to its design. 

7) Dutch Cemetery
 The cemetery was gazetted as a national monument under the Antiquities Act 1976.  It was first used in the last quarter of the 17th century and consists of 5 Dutch graves and 33 British graves.

8) St John’s Fort
 Located at St John Hill and was built by the Dutch in 18th century. One interesting feature about this fort is that all the canons embrasures face inland as most of the attacks during that time came mainly hinterland instead of from the sea.

9) Bukit Cina
 It was the official settlement of the entourage that arrive together with Princess Hang Li Po whom is to be married to the Sultan of Malacca. Today, Bukit China is believed to be the largest Chinese cemetery outside China with 12000 graves with many of the tombs dating back to the Ming dynasty.

10)Hang Li Po’s Well
 It was built by the followers of Hang Li Po for the source of water and the Dutch enclosed it with stout walls to reserve it for their exclusive use during great droughts.

11)British Cemetery
 The burial ground for the British soldiers who died fighting the resistance by the locals led by Dato’ Dol Said over the dissatisfaction on some taxes imposed.

12)Hang Tuah Mausoleum
 The famous Malay warrior who is a legend in the history of Malacca fought and defended successfully countless attacks against Malacca together with his 4 other comrades Hang Jebat, Hang Lekir, Hang Lekiu and Hang Kasturi.

13)Kampung Keling Mosque
 The mosque has Sumatran architecture influence, featuring a three-tiered roof rising like a pyramid and a beautifully-carved wooden ceiling. It has an odd minaret structured like a pagoda, reflecting an East-West architecture blend.  It is believed to be the oldest mosque in the country.

14)Cheng Hoon Teng Temple
 Built in 1646 and is the oldest Chinese temple in the country. All the materials were shipped out of China.

15)Jonker’s Street
 Once the richman’s street and now a living proof of Malacca’s rich baba-nyonya heritage. The street is also famous for its antique shops.

16)Malacca’s Sultanate Palace
 Situated at the foot of St. Paul’s Hill.  A wooden replica of the Melaka Sultanate’s Palace and the architectural design of the palace is based on the description in the Malay Annals or ‘Sejarah Melayu’ and is the only one of its kind in Malaysia. The palace now houses the Melaka Cultural Museum and is truly remarkable architecture beauty.

If you have more time these places would be interesting to visit as well; Baba & Nyonya Heritage Museum, Hang Jebat Mauselom, Hang Tuah’s Well, Maritime Museum, Portuguese Square, Memorial Hall, Sam Po Kong Temple & Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Temple.

Other interesting places in Malacca if you are not into too much historical, you can also consider the following places; Ayeh Keroh Recreational Forest, Auyin Hill Resort, Butterfly farm, Crocodile farm, Gadek Hot Spring, Light and Sound Spectacular, Malacca Zoo, Mini Asean, Mini Malaysia, A Formosa Water World and Pulau Besar.

Apart from these places of interest, Malacca is also well known for its food.  Popular Malacca favourites includes nasi lemak, satay celup (skewered food cooked in peanut sauce), rojak (food and vegetable salad), dodol (a sweet sticky palm sugar delicacy, cendol (cold dessert with coconut milk and palm sugar), chicken ball rice (where the rice is shaped into golf size balls and is served with chicken meat, cucumber and garlic-chilli sauce), otak-otak (spiced fish meat wrapped in banana leaves and grilled), perut ikan (preserved fish stomach in herbs) and the spicy Portuguese cooking such as the baked fish and the devil curry. 

As for the souvenirs hunters, the popular souvenirs from Malacca would be the handicrafts, antiques and local products such as gula melaka (palm sugar), cincaluk (fermented shrimp relish), dodol and varieties of titbits especially from the famous Tan Kim Hock outlets.

As stated in my earlier welcome note, this site is about sharing of general travel information to give some pointers/tips and perhaps may help you make up your mind on your next holiday destination. As promised, I will start the ball rolling by sharing a little about Malaysia my home country, walking through the uniqueness and places of interests in each of the 13 states and 1 federal territory over the next few episodes. 

Malaysia has a population of over 27 million and the capital city is Kuala Lumpur.  Located near the equator and experiences a tropical climate.  Malaysia is a federation that consists of 13 states and 1 federal territory with 3 components, city of Kuala Lumour, Labuan and Putrajaya. Uniquely the country is separated into 2 regions i.e. Peninsular Malaysia (West Malaysia) and Malaysian Borneo (East Malaysia) by the South China Sea.  Malaysia is part of the South East Asia and borders Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines. Weather is basically tropical climate with warm weather all year round with temperatures ranging from 23ºC to 32ºC and annual rainfall varies from 2,000mm to 2,500mm.

Malaysia has a very diverse culture with the many ethnic groups living together harmoniously with Malays who make up about 57% of the population as the predominant group with Chinese, Indians and other ethnic groups like the Orang Asli, Dayaks, Iban, Bidayuh,Kadazan Dusun, Bajau & Murut making up the rest. All these cultures have influenced each other, creating a truly Malaysian culture. Islam is the official religion but other religion is widely practiced e.g. Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism and etc. The Malay language is the official language but English is very widely spoken. 

Malaysia is made up of 13 states i.e. Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, and Terengganu; and one federal territory with three components, city of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya.  The country has much to offer in terms of Tourism from the cool hideaways in the highlands that roll down to warm, sandy beaches and rich, humid mangroves.