Heeren House Melaka

... American guy was looking up at this ledge pointing. When we got closer we saw a kitten calling out, it was stuck. I wasted no time in climbing up and carrying it down! As I did a group of local men who were sat across the road stood up and aplauded me, I felt like a hero! <br><br> We have eaten in some really nice resturants, the food here is amazing and very cheap. At one of the traditional Malakan ...

... s available here, for next to nothing too. The national dish is coconut rice, surrounded by breaded chicken, chilli and onions, cucumber, anchovies and peanuts - all in different piles so you can mix them up.<br>With the rain finally stopping, I had time to wander the town at my own pace and soak up the atmosphere (as opposed to the moisture). Slightly run down and a little rough around the edges (although probably ...

so i had some time to kill before going to KL to visit my friends so i stoped off in this nice lil historic town its been influanced by pretty much everyone from india china malay dutch portuguse english and of course japan!! The historic area is very nice the only thing i dont understand is why so many malls, half of which seem to be empty

... for lunch, but when we finally found it after several detours (through school-letting-out rush hour), we found it closed. We ended up lunching at a real restaurant (not a hawker stall) in Chinatown boasting Peranakan food. Peranakan refers to the early Chinese settlers who moved down into Malaysia in the 14th century and intermarried with the native Malays. The resulting culture is a fusion of the two, and so the cuisine follows. We tried (and I'm ...

... happens to be a New Years display which we stay and watch, this one has diffferent traditional Chinese dances which are really good to watch. In the evening we walk around trying to find somewhere to eat and find ourselves in China town again which has got much more lively and theres lots of people out on the streets celebrating. It looks really cool with all the lanterns above the streets and fireworks going off in the distance and the atmosphere is really nice. Theres a kind ...

... but infinitely more character-filled Shirah's Guesthouse. Then we set off to explore, heading towards Jalan Hang Jebat - also known as Jonker Street - the heart of Melaka's Chinatown. Being the ultimate consumers that we are, we had only just started our meander and the purchases already consisted of a painting for me and a t-shirt for Grant. Budget? What budget? Eh, so the painting shaves a couple of days off my travels, I'm sure we can ...

... a potter, eat...and that's a comfortable day gone. For us, it was the first time we'd travelled together without any kind of plan other than to get from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in about 4 and a half days. For me, it was a return to a more adventurous way of travelling and for Michelle an introduction to a whole new way of doing things. Luck, as always plays a part, but whilst travelling either side of the ...