Travel Photos Day

As promised, finally... I managed to sort out my photos from recent trips to Malacca.  Actually, I have so many from 4 separate trips but that will take an album to fill (lol!)

Some background : Malacca was an important port for spice trade some 600 years ago.  It was founded by Parameswara, a prince from Temasek in the late 1300's.  By the early 1400's, Malacca had become an important port in the spice route.  It attracted the interest of China's most famous sea explorer and diplomat Admiral Zheng He who visited Malacca in the early 1400's. (There is a lovely museum in the city on the life and history of Zheng He and his travels).  Later in the mid 1400's, in appreciation of the Sultan's tribute, the Ming Emperor sent Hang Li Po (allegedly a princess) to marry the local ruler, Sultan Mansur Shah.  Along with Hang Li Po, came 500 attendants who assimilated with the locals and later became known as the Peranakans (or Straits Chinese).

Malacca's sultanate declined in the 1500s and Malacca fell into the hands of the Portuguese in 1511, and the Dutch in 1641 and finally the English in 1798.  Today, one can see historic buildings and archeological findings of the many influences of Malacca's past.  At one time, Malacca was central to the spread of Islam as well as a place where the first non-european translation of the Bible was printed.  There are churches as well as mosques and temples of old in the city today. 

Here are the photos...  

An old fort built by the Portuguese

Clock tower, and the Stadthuys (Dutch Admin building)

A scene of the Malacca River

Church of Christ

Entrance to Church of Christ, lots of nicely decorated trishaws in front of the building

Malacca River

A cruise along the River

Following the Heritage Trail

The Cheng Hoon temple (translated as the Green Clouds temple)

Prayers at the temple

An interesting mosque with various influences in its architecture

Kampung Kling mosque (with a pagoda-like minaret)

the Corinthian pillars in the mosque

Beautiful tiles in the mosque

A typical Peranakan/Chinese house

Beautiful ornate doors and lanterns

Another view, round wooden door

A room in the house - today part of the house is now a restaurant

A shop house under restoration in Malacca

In the courtyard towards the back of the house

A view from the window to the back of the house

As you can see, the photographer is never in the pictures ;)  There's a lot more which I could and would love to share but I think it would take all the fun away, in case you visit the place oneday. 

Enjoy your day!