Magical Melaka: Political Leaders, Kung Fu Masters, & Night Bike Rides

Malaysian Political Leaders....

To celebrate the Chinese New Year, Melaka is all decked out in its Chinatown district. The night market was all the rage the night we visited (and will be until the 23rd)...we walked the market with news friends from the hostel from Slovenia, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and tasted a bunch of goodies from the stands. 

Then, all of a sudden, a dragon parade came up behind us. At the end of the dragon parade procession was none other than one of the Chinese political leaders of Malaysia and his entourage. Seeing as we all stood out like sore thumbs, he came over and gave each of us two tangerines, which symbolizes wishes of good luck in the New year. Back in the day, he also won Mr. Malaysia and Mr. Universe. Speaking of which, there are absurdly huge, golden statues around the city of him flexing. Very niccccccce.

Kung Fu Masters...

Later on in the evening, we passed by a booth with sandals that were comprised of rows of wooden circles with different words in Chinese inscribed on them. The group threw the shoes at me and asked me which pegs hurt my feet. After pointing to the respective pegs , the lady told me my problem was back pain. Incredibly true! Not much long after, the owner of our hostel, Howard, ran into Melaka's Kung Fu Master and two time Guinness World Records holder for opening 4 coconuts in under 30 seconds with his pointer finger....ouch! He told the master about my back pains so he called me over, sprayed an ointment on my skin, and lifted me up and stretched my back. I'm not sure if it was the surprise of him doing all of that in the middle of the street or if he is legit, but it worked. Thank you Master Ho!

Night Bike Rides...

During our second evening in Melaka, we joined some people from our hostel in a destination dinner ride. At the start of our ride, Howard gave us instructions about the ride while the sounds of the call to prayer reverberated around us. Mixed with the song, "Tonight", by Usher playing on his bike's MP3 speaker system, of course. After we were all clear, all eight of us took off on our 10K bike trek to a coastal neighborhood seafood market. While Howard had warned us of the level of bike skill we needed, it was still a surprise; we weaved through lanes and along roads on our journey. Luckily, Malaysian drivers will yield to you if you use hand gestures. Needless to say, we Lance Armstrong-ed it in our 8 person bike fleet down the windy, traffic ridden streets of Melaka...it was such an adrenaline rush. Halfway through our ride, thankfully on a smaller suburban street, we experienced our only accident: Jennifer's seat fell off and she along with it! Luckily, Jen is known for her grace in falling and came out like a champ. 

The worst news was that the seat was unable to be put back on even with tools; so Howard took her bike and rode without a seat: superhero status. Once we arrived at the market, we chose a stingray, fish, and squid to be cooked for us. Everything was insanely good; and all for 18 ringgits (or $5.75 USD!)- the most expensive of our meals so far and still a bargain! 

On our journey back, we made a multiple hour pit-stop at the Reggae Hut, a local bar, located along Melaka's canal front. It was perfect. We drank beers with people from allover (Holland, Germany, Canada, France, Japan, etc), watched two of our new Malaysian friends (one of which is the Malay version of Captain Jack Sparrow) do fireball dancing (poetry in motion) while a Mongolian throat singer played his horse fiddle and chanted. The night ended with a flour fight. I love Melaka.

Also, nasi lemuk is delicious...

Melaka was a complete success! Next stop: Kuala Lumpur.