06/11/07 - 08/11/07 Shirah's Guesthouse 25RM

Arrived at Melaka bus station and had two very helpful touts for the town guesthouses tell us where to go and how to get there on the public bus... much cheaper than a taxi!!!

Decided to stop at Shirah's as it was fairly cheap and we got a massive room with a balcony... and we couldn't be bothered to walk any further with our backpacks.

Melaka was really nice... and so different from the other towns we have visited. There's a massive mix of heritage and cultures.... there's even a random dutch square with a windmill clock tower and water fountain.

We visited St Pauls Church on the hill which was built by the Portugese catholics and saw what was left of the A'Famosa fortress, which the portugese built to defend themselves from Dutch invasion. We also visited various museums, one of which had a floor devoted to beauty, which rather than being a big avon advert was about scarification, tattooing, long-necking, piercings and all the strange things trhat different cultures do to themselves and the reasons why. Some of the most awful to view were stretching of the mouth by having constant plates inserted and binding of the feet... ouch!

We also went to the local shopping centres and some beautiful gardens.