The Narrow Streets Widen…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

We are winding our way through narrow streets in Melaka in Malaysia, some of the streets are so narrow we are in danger of collecting street decorations, laundry and any other item pointing streetwards on the wing mirrors of the coach, but our driver shows his skill and we manage to negotiate the way without collecting any additional ornamentation.

After brushing past a few longer stemmed plants we suddenly find ourselves in wider streets and can see more than just building material flashing past our windows.

Our guide gives us some history about Melaka  (a.k.a. Malacca) such as the fact that the city centre has been listed as a World Heritage Site since 2008 and that the area has had it’s fair share of invaders, colonisers and rulers who included over the centuries the Thai,Vietnamese, Portuguese, Dutch, British as well as other influences for shorter periods of time in between. This was mostly because Melaka was an excellent all weather port in a very strategic position at the narrowest point of the Malacca Straights.  We also learn that the head of state in Melaka is a Governor rather than a Sultan (as in other areas of Malaysia) Let’s take a look…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Getting There…

Dear Readers,

Apologies for not answering your kind Comments of late,  I took a week off work to go adventuring with the family over the school half-term break and as luck would have it, as soon as the holiday started I came down with a rotten cold which I still have and am finding hard to shake.

I’ve been keeping up with family activities as best I could but my asthma’s so bad at night I’m also needing “time out” during the day to rest more during the day to catch up. Luckily I worked hard on the travel diary before this struck so you will still have a daily post, but in the meantime I’m doing my best to ditch the bugs and get back to full health as soon as possible.

I’ll be back to reply to comments as soon as I can… Thanks for your understanding!

ps I tried to write a poem but unlike Tilly who makes it all look effortless,  I’m a rotten poet… I could probably blame my bad prose on having a head like concrete but truth is that poetry is a talent, one I don’t have.

There once was a gal called Kiwidutch
who didn’t like germs very much
She started to wheeze after somebody sneezed
and in her holiday that really sucked

it’s the kids half-term time off for school
we thought we could do lots that’s cool
and we certainly did, but Kiwi’s forbid
to do too much or be a fool(ish)

Kiwi has posts all lined up for her blog
but meantime her head’s fully clogged
No Comments replied she apologetically sighs
until her head is better unfogged

She’s taking a cartload of pills
none of them give her a thrill
She will certainly win when they all kick in
and banish all of her ills