MELAKA TRADITIONAL HOUSES

Opening Homes for Heritage's Sake.
By Corinne Wan ~ Web in Travel
Sunday, 2nd October 2011
When I was approached to be a judge for this year’s Melaka Tourism Awards and to choose the 'Best Tourist Attraction - Traditional House', my first question was 'What’s a traditional house? Aren’t all the houses in Malay kampungs (villages) traditional?'.

(Pictured: Kampung Padang Sebang,Photos courtesy of the writer)

The answer: "Come and see for yourself as the traditional houses in Melaka are a class of their own".

With that ringing in my head I arrived in Melaka to be immediately whisked off by my three charming minders in a four wheel to start my tour of the five houses I had to judge.

And, in the process, I discovered Melaka "hidden gems", not much publicised and oft skipped by visitors as they are not on the itinerary of the usual "must visit" attractions, such as Jonker Walk,The Stadthuys or the Malacca River Cruise.

A pity really as they are buildings of unique architecture and beauty as I found during my journey of discovery.

A typical traditional Melaka house stands on 12 to 16 main pillars (about two metres high).

Its most striking feature is the decorative flower-motif tiled steps, which also serve as the house’s main entrance. (pictured above the steps of Kampung Duyong)

The houses are very colourful. Villa Sentosa (pictured below) has a pink driveway and red tiled steps, Kampung Bukit Palah is in brilliant yellow, while the others are in various hues.

There is no entrance fee. Visitors can just wander into the house and a member of the family, who stays in the house, happily shows them around. If they wish, the visitors can make a donation, with the contributions going to the upkeep of the house.

Full story: www.webintravel.com//blog/opening-homes-for-heritages-sake_2029