Melaka makan trip IV

I had been dying to satisfy those mille crepe craving in Malacca for the longest time. Initially, I wanted to go on a solo trip in May but somehow it got delayed till July when a friend proposed to join. So it happened, a first trip with Deborah, an ex-colleague.

We managed to sort out the logistics namely the accommodation and coach, one week before my Bali trip. It was 2 trips in a month - almost never happened before. It was a 3D2N trip meant for a lot of eating and chilling; the past 3 times I was there, it was only one night each and it was hard trying to stuff everything you wanted to eat. Anyhow, 3 days before the trip, something ruinous happened... What a timing - was it meant as an escape or retreat for me?

I still went on the trip, trying to be as unaffected as possible. Surprisingly, I managed it and amazed myself with the amount of strength within me. Happy food, a companion and being in a foreign city never fail to restore hope and cheerfulness in me. Sometimes I am glad such simple things manage to make me forget, even for a brief moment.

It was a Sunday (21/07/13) and the coach was about half full. (The last trip on 5 stars coach before they closed down!) As usual, we arrived at around 1pm. There was still a bit of haze going on in Melaka. We found our way to Wayfarer easily, a guesthouse we had booked. It wasn't by any chance the cheapest but it was a comfortable stay in a family run hotel. My review can be read here. If you're fuss-free and on a budget, it's possible to arrive and just check into a hostel, there are plenty around Jonker street for a very basic bed and shared facilities, you can easily survive for a week on what we paid for a night.

As it was my fourth visit and Deborah as well, we didn't intend to do much sightseeing. But we did on the Tuesday morning before we departed for Singapore after we accomplished all our food missions! That Sunday we arrived, there was the weekend market going on... That was my favourite activity on every trip to join in the festivities.

So on the first day, we conquered a few food places... The first one was satay across from our guesthouse, it seemed really popular as everyone sat down were having them. They had some special ones like pork (don't get them in SG for halal reason), chicken liver and intestines. Then it was A&W for root beer and curly fries! Then we returned to Jonker street for Jonker 88's cendol and yummy mango juice. When night fell and stalls opened up, we ate more stuff! We had the dim sum off a stall, a poorly fried oyster omelette and I had the usual kiwi smoothie and a stick of  sour china pears. I also bought a coral necklace made by a man in dreadlocks, how cool! To end the night, we chilled with a few drinks, one at the Geographer Cafe (not as good as it used to be) and then Port cafe/lounge, a new find by the riverside, not far away from where we stayed.

The following day, it was also a few places on our agenda. I took Deb to try that famous chicken rice (overpriced by the locals' standard), then we went to the malls for Nadeje's mille crepes. It was my second time there, I felt I enjoyed them more the first time round, probably better to share a few flavours with more people. We did some shopping (2 pairs of shoes for me, yay, mission accomplished) before we returned to Jonker 88 for baba laksa! I got myself a replacement hat that morning for the one I lost in Phuket as I bought the previous one here.

That evening, we went to a new cafe we chanced upon on the first day we arrived named Calanthe Art Cafe. It boosts 13 kinds of coffee from different states of Malaysia. So I just had to have a coffee even though I am not a big fan! Great ambience and incredibly packed and it was a Monday night! Afterwhich, we settled at Port cafe/lounge again, because it was so close to where we stayed and unbelievably relaxing by the river. There were more mosquitoes that night and I was reluctant to let the night and the trip end so quickly!

The following morning, we had decided to have breakfast at Voyage Travellers' Lounge, another super funky cafe. Food was good and very reasonably priced. I suddenly wished I had a week there in Melaka. We went to explore the sites before coming back for lunch at a Teochew restaurant recommended by the lady boss at Wayfarer. Teo Soon Loong, it's called. Overall, I enjoyed the food, the old man was exceptionally friendly (though we could tell he was trying to promote his mangoes). I felt the younger lad was more genuine though. We managed to tried their famous dishes - oyster noodle and orh nee (yam paste). The prices could be a bit steep but we told them about our budget beforehand and so everything was sorted when we ordered. It also seemed to be always full and filled with tourists especially Singaporeans, so call for a reservation. They open only at meal times and are closed on Monday. Check more details on Tripadvisor.

So that was the end of the foodie trip! Quite successful I would say as we conquered a few more new places! More to be discovered the next time...