A Double Dose of Chinatown

We left Singapore behind and headed back into the chaos. Several buses got us to Melaka (Malacca), a laid-back "world heritage" town on the west coast with Chinese, Portuguese, and Dutch influence. The main attraction here is the unique and delicious Chinese-Malay food. The town is very charming and we spent most of the time just walking around exploring in between meals. Did I mention the food is spectacular? The culture of Melaka is that of the Peranakan people - the descendants of Chinese immigrants from the 16th century, throughout the Dutch and British occupation - also called Baba Nonya. The "nonya" food was just amazing, and we ate all the local favorites: cendol, laksa, popiah, satay celup, and pineapple tarts.


When we decided to move on, it was more buses to get to Kuala Lumpur (KL). Malaysia has a great bus system, easy and affordable. The long-distance buses have air-con (luxurious!!).  KL was very exciting to explore. There is so much going on, something for everyone.  In Chinatown, the Petaling markets sell everything under the sun - souveniers, knock off designer items, jewelry, pirated DVDs, and tons of great local food and drinks. We spent our evenings wandering the stalls and trying wierd food & drinks. I never thought I would hear Kent say, "I love this soy milk drink!" One day we took a trip just outside the city to Batu Caves, which are Hindu temples and huge caves in limestone hills.  We also visited the Petronas Twin Towers, with a visit up to the 41st floor Sky Deck connecting the 2 towers, which was so cool.  Malaysia is definitely turning out to be a great country to travel - cheap, easy to get around, and great sights to see.