MY HOME TOWN

Malacca Town (Malay: Bandar Melaka) is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Malacca. The Seri Negeri, the State Administrative and Development Centre which houses the Chief Minister's Office, the State Secretary's Office and the Legislative Assembly Hall are located in Malacca Town. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The site where the city of Malacca stands today was the center of Malaccan history. It was the capital of the Malaccan Sultanate and was the centre of the Malay world in the 15th and the 16th century after the Malays moved over from Sumatra and it was the most developed part of the Malay Peninsula before it fell to the Portuguese in 1511. Centuries of colonization by the Portuguese, Dutch and the British as well as development of Straits Chinese (Peranakan) culture have influenced the architecture of the town.

After World War II, anti-colonial sentiment developed amongst Malay nationalists, led to negotiations with the British and eventually the announcement of Independence by Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Prime Minister, at the Padang Pahlawan (Warrior's Field) at Bandar Hilir, in Melaka on 20 February 1956.

Since the founding of Singapore in 1819, Malacca has been in decline as its port was silting up and Singapore and Kuala Lumpur have grown. Over the years, many Malaccans have moved to Kuala Lumpur the Malaysian capital and to Singapore.

Most of the tourist attractions are concentrated in its small city centre, and one can walk down Jonker's Walk which is a row of shophouses of Peranakan architecture. In Bandar Hilir area, there are A Famosa Fort, S. Paul Hill and many museums (paid entrance) are available. One can also visit Pulau Melaka, an island formed through land reclamation mainly for housing purposes just by crossing a causeway that leads to the island. At the end of Pulau Melaka is situated Masjid Selat (Strait Mosque). Other islands include Pulau Upeh near Klebang Beach (currently udergoing reclaimation works) and Pulau Besar. For Pulau Besar, it can be reached from Anjung Batu jetty at Umbai.

Tourist can go around the town and its surrounding areas by using Bas Panorama Melaka. The bus operate in circle on the 2 routes. The bigger route starts at Melaka Sentral to Old Bus Station, Gajah Berang, Jonker Walk, Bandar Hilir, Kampung Portugis, Bukit Baru, State Mosque, Giant Hypermarket and finally back to Melaka Sentral. With reasonable round trip fare, the trip provides access for tourist for many places in the city because they can drop at all those places and get into another bus for further trip.

To reach Malacca city through the North-South Expressway, one has to take a detour from the town of Ayer Keroh and travel south through the Lebuh Ayer Keroh, while to reach Muar, which is 40 km from the Malacca Town itself, one has to travel by Jalan Ujong Pasir or using AMJ highway.