Held like a weekly ritual, Jonker Walk is open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The street heats up with electrifying atmosphere from as early as 5pm till late. Correct me if i am wrong, but i dare say, its as if the whole of Malacca is out here at Jonker Walk to shop.
If you are driving in Malacca, make sure you are not parked on Jonker because we did. And man, it was a nightmare because all the stalls were streaming in to start business and we couldnt get out. We had to wait till everything ended around 1 am before we could move the car. Luckily we were staying in Malacca for the night.
Here is a pictorial story book we did up to show you what to expect in Malacca. Jonker Street Market is a must see when you are visiting Malacca.
Along the whole street, you can find some really nice Chinese temples, antique shops, and guesthouses hidden behind the overflowing stalls.
If you are tired of sitting at the side stall watching the crowd move by endlessly, you might want to check out the many activities held at the chinese temples. We were drawn to music coming out from this temple.
And another amazing thing is, if you are lucky you can actually get to watch the local lion dance troop practicing! The gong and the drum beats are so captivating that it will have you standing there for more. Lively and Hair raising is more the term to discribe watching a lion dance troop in action!
One thing that i personally love about Jonker Walk is that, over here you can find all sorts of special” toys”. Battery operated helicopters, portable electric handheld fans, “baby milo” limited edition dolls, and some really nice money boxes are among the usual.
This stall was selling chocolate fruit fondue. Some of them was sugar coated and some was with chocolate rice. Kids will go crazy if they see this.
Laksa is a popular spicy noodle soup from the Peranakan culture, which is a merger of Chinese and Malay elements found in Malaysia and Singapore, and to a lesser extent Indonesia. The nyonya laksa here is served with a generous chunk of tuna meat with it. Tangy sourish and spicy taste to the whole bowl of noodles. Great and you need to give it a try while you are here!
Tang Yuan are “Glutinous balls cooked in sweet flavoured soup”
Chinese usually eat Tang Yuan together with their families, during the Lantern Festival. They believe that the round shape and smoothness of the balls symbolise family togetherness and that everything in the New Year goes well and smoothly without any problems.
One thing that i told my self, that i would be getting my son( when i get one) is a BEN TEN watch. Man, do you know how cool these things are? Some of them can shoot out laser light and others plastic discs at your enemies! And how much do these watches cost? RM 10 only. I wished we had these, back in my time.
Gold inggots that seemed to have chinese caligraphy, mostly wishing you good luck and wealth.
Off course all along the road you can see how artsy Melakans are. We managed to snap this happy local performing.
There are plenty of those “twinkly boom box blasting” trishaws parked at the start of Jonker street, offering services to take you home.
Its actually quite an experience to ride on one at night. Although we personally would recommend taking it during the day to visit the attractions.
There are no such thing as free things in this world. You still need to pay to pee. Funny how this man really takes his job so seriously.
With all the crowds, you are bound to get sweaty in no time. Make sure you dress down. We still see the occasional “local” tourist in high heels and mini skirts. Just remember, its too crowded to be dressing to be seen. You know the saying ?” The nicer you dress, the more you pay for something”. The hawker might think you are a rich shopper from Hong Kong or Singapore. He might not be so relunctant to bargain with you. Thats why i always dress like a bum with no money.
No wonder this vendor didn’t really serve me because of my dressing. I still got my photograph though. This place was selling all sorts of antique money notes. It does add to the whole feeling of Malacca’s historical title.
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