5 Things I Never Knew About Malacca

Chicken rice balls, durian chendol, Jonkers Street and … Little Nonya.

These were the Top 4 synonyms that slid to the tips of my friends’ tongues when I mentioned Malacca. And voila! - a portable 4-pointer guiding companion etched onto my memory.

Or so I thought. The superficiality of my knowledge of Malacca could not have lacked more depth.

Without beating around the mangrove tree, let me bring on the 5 Trucs that filled the wide gap of knowledge of this UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

1. The Majestic Malacca (MM)

Any travel-savvy folk will tell you about YTL’s impeccable record for producing some of the world’s finest and award-winning resorts. This jaw-dropping, love-at-first-sight Peranakan style hotel has a feisty family history that would put any daytime soap to shame.

Highlights of our Deluxe King room:

- Large clawfoot bathtub

- Open concept (with option to close off the bathroom for the shy ones)

- Large poster bed with EXTREMELY comfortable mattresses: Guaranteed to put the most hardcore insomniac to sleep

- 4 adaptors above the writing desk: For techno-geeks and their travel toys, this thoughtful provision is a MUST!

My personal applause goes to their support of historical and eco-preservation. A fact I learned from a “product” of their investment - presenting MM’s  Historical Trail Guide…

2. Donovan Louis

Good thing my travel companion and I did not give in to complacency, thinking “we’ve covered the essentials on Day 1 already”.  Else we would have missed out on Day 2 with Malacca’s very own David Attenborough.

Donovan took us on a carefully crafted trail through the city centre, bringing more than just a one-way historical narration, with interactive dialogues soaked in ecology, culture and commerce. In fact, much credit goes to Don for imparting the following insights into Malacca.

3. Round the world in 6 centuries

Malacca may be Malaysia’s third smallest state.

It was, however, an important trading post especially from the 15th to 20th century, which saw the confluence of  Chinese, Protuguese, Dutch, British and Japanese politics and economics.

“Spice was to that era, what Oil is to us now.”

From the first spice trade agreement signed by Ming Dynasty’s Zheng He of 1421 fame, to the onset of colonial rule with the arrival of Portuguese explorer Diogo Lopez de Siqueirathe in 1509, the Dutch in 1641 and the British in 1795, the influx of these foreign elements brought trade, commerce, legal infrastructure, education and religion to Melaka.

Not without a price though. Even till today, the irony of a bustling economy is that it can come at the expense of a gradual wearing out of a cultural fabric that took centuries of blood, sweat and tears, to weave.

4. Before Dan Brown

Tracing the Malacca River, we ended up at Christ Church and the ruins of St. Paul’s Church where St. Francis Xavier was first buried.

Who would have known that encassed in the “touristy” façade of these locations were 3 mysterious nuggets of information:

• Most towers I know lead one upward. Christ Church’s clock tower which hides an underground escape route from the Governor’s abode, does just the opposite. I wonder what lies beneath…

• When St. Francis Xavier (see lead image) died, his perfectly (and naturally) preserved body had to be sent to the Vatican for inspection. As this was not feasible, the alternative was to chop off his right hand as a sample. We were told that while the Vatican were deliberating between a Yes/No, the hand picked up the pen and signed on the paper, initiating itself into sainthood.No goosebumps yet? How about this: (1) When St. Francis’ statue was erected, all limbs were intact. Apparently, during World War II, the Japanese dropped a bomb which missed the entire statue save for its right hand. The appendage was rightfully restored. (2) One day, however, Zeus decided to throw one of his lightning bolts, which struck… you got it, the right hand of St. Francis’ statue.Fact or fiction? You decide.Also, if you look closely at the statue’s feet, you’ll find that his big toes are missing. Anyone has a story to tell?
  
  • Skull & Bones are synonymous with the likes of Johnny Depp’s character in Pirates of the Carribean. The origin of this symbol, however, lies in the mysterious fraternity known as the Free Masons. Upon death, the practising Free Mason would have been declared an official member of the fraternity, by having this symbol carved onto its gravestone.

 



4. Story behind the Historical City’s Name

When the Portuguese explorers arrived, they knew that this was the point of no return. In order to retain a part of their identity, and probably to combat homesickness, they named this outpost after the epicostal seaport in Spain – Malaga.

Melaka and Malacca would be the Malay and English naming conventions respectively.

5. The End of History

My favourite part!

Fans of reknowned political economist, Francis Fukuyama, would be familiar with his best seller “The End of History & The Last Man”.

In this book, Fukuyama argued that “Liberal Democracy may signal the end point of humanity’s sociocultural evolution and the final form of human government.”

What does it say then, when Democracy is enshrined in a museum?



Fancy a trip “Back to the Future”, anyone?

---

 thangdynasty is a work-in-progress maintained by an accidental equity trader whose brief foray into the world of investments turned out… not so brief. Although unmotivated by the senseless pursuit of money in and for itself, she remains sadistically intrigued by the complex anatomy stealthily at work behind the whole spectrum of Markets – Fine Art, Financial, Fish and Fools. A budding art collector and supporter of emerging artists, she slogs to prevent collateral damage to her bank account resulting from occasional manic art buying sprees.

---