PERANAKAN CULTURE IN MELAKA

5th. September 2008

Do you know that the Peranakan ( Baba and Nyonya ) heritage and culture began in Melaka?

The culture of the Peranakans is a community which began when Chinese traders in the 17th century moved to Malacca. They settled down in Malacca and adopted local customs and traditions.

The community of Peranakans subsequently moved on to Penang in the late 18th century and to Singapore in the early 1900s. Though Melaka has a vibrant Peranakan heritage and has a private museum to highlight the Peranakan heritage, Singapore has opened two impressive museums that feature the Peranakan heritage.

In April, the Asian Civilisations Museum steered the opening of the $12-million Peranakan Museum in Armenian Street and today, the National University of Singapore opens its $4-million Baba House in Neil Road. Both the museum and the house are stocked with artefacts, both tell the story of the Peranakans.

It is about time that the Baba and Nyonyas of Melaka pool their resources to preserve the uniqueness of the Peranakan culture.

It has been reported that the Melaka Peranakans will be hosting the "21st. Baba Convention" from 5th. to 7th. December 2008.

Peranakans from all over the world will converge into Melaka for this convention. It is expected Peranakans from Penang, Singapore, Phuket and overseas will meet up in Melaka for this historic event.

May we wish the organisers well for organising this event and wish them all the success in hosting this convention. As Melaka is now a World Heritage City, we need to preserve our unique cultures such as Malay, Chinese, Indian, Peranakan, Chitty, Portuguese and Dutch alive for generations to come.

Kamsiah.

NO BUS SERVICE FROM MELAKA TO KLIA

5th. September 2008

A traveller from Penang wrote to the newspapers complaining that there are no direct bus services from Melaka to Kuala Lumpur International Airport. We wonder why. There are buses travelling from Melaka Sentral to Kuala Lumpur but not one makes a detour to KLIA/LCCT at Sepang. This problem can be easily solved by having some bus services to call on KLIA/LCCT while enroute to Kuala Lumpur.

Also, some bus services while travelling from KL to Melaka can call on KLIA/LCCT as well.

We want to make Melaka, now a World Heritage City to be accessible to all visitors - locals and foreign travellers. A direct bus link will be good for the industry. We hope some bus companies will see this as a business opportunity not to be missed.

Below is the letter written to some national newspapers.

"While there are frequent services to Kuala Lumpur, other Klang Valley locations and Seremban, it appears to be quite inconvenient, especially for first-time visitors to Malaysia, to have to haul their entire luggage from bus to bus in order to reach Malacca.

This is exacerbated by the decentralisation of interstate bus services, most notably in Kuala Lumpur.

Further problems arise when one has to catch a flight from Malacca: having to change buses means that around twice the time of a direct journey, if not more, needs to be allocated in order not to miss one’s plane.

Interestingly, there are direct, albeit less frequent, bus services to Ipoh – a good 100km further away from KLIA compared to Malacca!

It would seem that only those who can afford a taxi or better can enjoy a direct ride to Malacca from the airport.

Given the promotion of Malacca as a premier tourist destination, it reflects poorly on this country that not enough seems to be done to facilitate the journey of both locals and foreigners to the recently-listed Unesco World Heritage Site.

The constant flow of tourists, not to mention locals, second-home owners and university students, should provide enough demand for a reasonably frequent direct bus service from Melaka Sentral to either KLIA, LCCT or both."

NEOH JOON KEE,
Penang.

RM 50 Million Fund for Heritage Buildings in 2009 Budget

Yesterday, Prime Minister Badawi allocated RM 50 million fund for conservation work for the World Heritage Cities of Melaka and Georgetown in his Budget 2009. Compared to an overall budget of RM 209 billion, this amount is certainly a drop in an ocean.

Moreover, the amount is to be divided with Melaka and Georgetown. Conservation work and renovating heritage buildings are not cheap and involves specialised expertise. Hopefully, this allocation is just the beginning for Malaysia in recognising the importance of preserving our heritage for future generations.

I remember once some VIP mentioned that preserving old buildings is not progressive. They should be demolished and newer buildings must be built to replace them. How wrong these comments are. These old buildings with their unique characters reflect the architectural designs of their times and should be preserved.

Build newer buildings by all means BUT ensure that they are built outside the core heritage areas. Visitors to our heritage cities want to see unique buildings and cultures. They certainly do not want to see skyscrapers like theirs at home. If they want to see these skyscrapers,they can do so back in their own backyard.

Singapore has destroyed their heritage buildings during the building frenzy in 1970s and 1980s and they are regretting it. Bras Basah Road had elegant colonial buildings but they were bulldozed. Similarly, Hong Kong followed the same course on their buildings. Luckily, the Hong Kong authorities have maintained the Hong Kong Tram system.

The past can certainly co-exist with the present and we should preserve them for the future. Food for thought.

GETTING THE CRUISE LINERS TO BERTH INTO MELAKA

25th. August 2008

It was recently reported that a Malaysian Cruise Liner had to by-pass Melaka because Melaka had no proper disembarking and embarking facilities. The waterway into Melaka is shallow and cruise liners must anchor off-shore before passengers and crew can disembark into Melaka.



A cruise liner can bring in at least 2000 passengers or more into our shores at any one time. Should half of the passengers and crew decide to visit Melaka, more than 1,000 people of high nett worth can visit for a single day. That means we need to have shuttle boats to bring in the visitors and to bring them back to the ship. Moreover, on reaching our shores, we need to transport them to our historical sites and entertainment venues. We need at least 25 air-conditioned buses to ferry them around.

Do we have the necessary facilities and space to cater for such a crowd at any one time?

The Melaka State authorities should identify a suitable space to build a proper CIQ facilities so that our special guests can visit us without any hassle. The spin off is inmeasurable since the large entourage per visit will give direct economic benefits to locals. Local traders can sell their local souvenirs, offer our visitors our local cuisines and show them our friendly hospitality.

Imagine how many guests can visit us if we can receive at least 4 cruise ships or more per month.

Tourism Melaka would like to appeal to our Melaka State Government to undertake this infrastructure as early as possible. We should undertake this project on a fastrack basis so that Melaka can reap the rewards from our status as Melaka - World Heritage City and Everlasting Living Heritage.

MELAKA MUST ENSURE SECURITY & SAFETY TO MALACCANS AND VISITORS TO MELAKA

During my recent weekend visit my home town in Melaka, I had a very bad experience in a recently opened cineplex . Located on the 5th. floor of the shopping complex, it housed 10 cinema screens for customers to view different movies.

The first thing you will notice on the ticketing level of this new cineplex is the lack of sitting. The whole area was not designed to house a cinema and is not catered for families to see shows at all.

There are no chairs for the elderly to sit and there is ONLY ONE lift and 2 excalators. There is also one fire exit.

My worst fears about the safety and security of the cineplex were justified when the show I attended ended just after mid-night on Saturday, 19th. July 2008.

Patrons who have gone to see their favourite shows at the different cineplexes were not allowed to use the 2 excalators to go down to the ground floor by the security guards. All patrons, young and elderly, were forced to use the fire exit staircase and a small lift catered for 10 persons only. With a minimum of 1000 or more patrons coming out of their cineplexes at about the same time, meant that the safety and security of patrons are being taken for granted. Patrons have to walk at least 5 floors of stairs to go to the groundfloor.

What will happen if there is a fire on the fifth floor? With limited fire escapes and one small lift to cater for rushing patrons, we are just waiting for a disaster to occur. The questions raised here are :-
1. Has the Fire and Safety department done a safety check and who gave the approval for

these cineplexes to be opened? Are there any fire springkler systems installed?

2. Since there is clearly a lack of fire escape exits, has the cineplex owners been notified of these
short comings?

3. Who ordered the security guards to prevent patrons to use the escalators? In fact the

escalators should be changed to going down mode to ensure patrons leave the premises in an

orderly fashion instead of using fire exit only.

As Melaka City has just been given the status of Unesco World Heritage City together with Georgetown in Penang, the authorities in Melaka City must ensure the safety and security of Malaccans and guests to our heritage city.

We want visitors and locals alike to enjoy our city and feel safe while visiting our historical sites, enjoy the shopping and being entertained in various entertainment outlets such as cineplexes and theatres.

Tourism Melaka strongly urge the authorities to audit all the public entertainment centres around our City so that immediate measures can be taken before any unforseen incident occurs.

MELAKA LISTED ON UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE CITY LIST

9th. July 2008

Eight more sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List

7 July 2008 – Eight new sites in places such as Malaysia and Croatia have joined the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), it was announced today.

The additions mark the first time Papua New Guinea and San Marino have had sites inscribed on the List.

Melaka and George Town, cities on the Straits of Malacca in Malaysia, have been imbued with a multicultural heritage after more than five centuries of trading and cultural exchanges between East and West.

This was the official announcement by UNESCO on listing Melaka and Georgetown as Historic cities on the Straits of Malacca on 8th. July 2008. Indeed, it is a proud day for all Malaccans in Melaka and around the world.

As Malaccans, we have known all these years that Melaka is a unique place and steep in history. We have a tradition of long history, melting pot of cultures, harmonious living of different races, religion and creed over the centuries. History is and will continue to be our assets and we as Malaccans, wherever we are, should continue to preserve and enhance the historic sites, traditions, heritage such as food heritage, cultural values, languages, artform and skills of our uniqueness.

This listing in UNESCO's World Heritage Sites comes with commitment and responsibility for all Malaccans. We cannot just think of profits which we can gain from the influx of visitors from around the world. We need to extend our hospitality, grace, friendliness and be courteous to our guests, locals and foreigners, as they come to view our city, taste our food and enjoy our hospitality in our inns, hotels and guest houses. Let us tell our guests why Melaka is a place that is worth visiting and they are always welcomed over and over again.

For all Government agencies, non-government agencies, Melaka Government, professional bodies and inviduals including all Malaccans, who have done our small part in getting Melaka listed, Tourism Melaka want to extend our gratitude and a big THANK YOU for a job well done.

This listing is important to put Melaka on the world heritage list and is just a small step. We have many more challenges ahead. Let us strive to maintain our listing status, preserve our heritage, cultures, languages and food over the years.

INTERESTING NEW OFFERINGS IN MELAKA IN 2008

Melaka has just celebrated Chinese New Year where major tourist spots were filled with tourists and locals alike. There were large crowds at Stadthuys, Dataran Pahlawan, Mahkota Parade,Jonkers' Walk and people were seen taking the open top Panorama buses and river cruises.


For shoppers, new kids on the block were Mydin Hypermarket at Melaka Bazaar located at Melaka Sentral (this hypermarket is opened 24 hours) and 3-floors Carrefour Melaka at Dataran Pahlawan.

Then, we have newly opened Aldy Hotel Chinatown at Jalan Bunga Raya and Jalan Munshi Abdullah junction at Melaka New Chinatown and Melaka's first boutique hotel, Majestic Hotel,Malacca at the end of Jalan Bunga Raya. Another boutique hotel has her ground breaking ceremony at the mouth of Melaka River recently and will be opened in end 2009.

For those interested to view and enjoy the Melaka River walk, you will be surprised to see that the Melaka River water is clean for once. You will not be able to see the muddy water of yesteryears. Maybe, it has been due to the new barrage at the river mouth which stops the sea water to move upstream when high tide occurs. Before, the sea water with the muddy silt travels up the Melaka River when there is high tide. Now, the barrage has stopped this occurrence and kept the river full all the day. Another benefit of this is that river cruises can now be operated daily,daytime and at night and they are getting popular with visitors.

To be opened soon will be the "Melaka Tower" which visitors can view Melaka City above 110 metres via a rotating cabin.

Melaka open top Panorama red double decker buses and the colourful "becas" are must try events and everyone is excited about riding these buses and becas.

So, if you want to visit Melaka, there are certainly various activities for everyone. Melaka has history, historical sites, museums, river walks and sea & sea cruises, food, shopping, cultures and friendly Malaccans to be your hosts.

Enjoy