A trip to Melaka - Part 2

I know this is coming too late ,was too very busy in the office !!

Continuing from the previous post .

I had to pull my friend who was busy clicking photos ,not that i wasn't clicking !!! One thing which we didn't want to miss was an Old Dutch fort ,we decided to take a Trishaw which we bargained for 15 RM for half an hour and we thought it was a smart deal !!! As we got into the Trishaw and he pedaling ,i was pitying him that he had to pedal in this hot sun for such a long distance only to realize that the destination was 10 minutes walk from the place we took the Trishaw .And now what ? He tells us you see the place and come i will wait for you here .That's when we realized it was not a smart deal ,by the time we see the place and come it will be half an hour !!!

Anyways we entered the 'Sultanate Palace' with a entry fees of 2 RM .

With the ticket we were given two plastic bags ,i was wondering what was that for ? As we neared the steps to the palace , it was written "please remove yours shoes" ,yes the plastic bags were to put your shoes and carry it along. The palace is a replica of the original palace and is based on the sketches found. The whole palace was made up of wood .It was beautiful .

The roofs had so much of symmetry in them .

It seems that not a single nail was used in the construction of this palace. By the end of half an hour we were out and we paid him the money .

As we decided to enter the Fort nearby we heard a loud heart thumping drum sounds nearby ,so we went where the crowd was gathered . I am not sure what was the function about but the music was really attracting everyone and towards the end the drummers came out of the stage and energy with which they were beating the drums was very high .

Everyone's foots were tapping and finally the music stopped and all these drummers lay on the ground ,it was very weird .Looked as if they were all drunk.

Next we entered the fort also known A'Famosa . Built by the Portuguese in 1511 as a fortress it sustained severe structural damage during the Dutch Invasion. The British had set to destroy it but timely intervention by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1808 saved what remains of A' Famosa today.

Thru the A'Famosa building are steps which lead to St. Paul's Church. Built by a Portuguese Captain by the name of Duarte Coelho, the chapel was turned by the Dutch into a burial ground for their noble dead and renamed it 'St. Paul's Church' from the the Portuguese's 'Our Lady Of The Hill'. Old tombstones found inside the ruins are the final resting place of several Dutch and Portugese nationals .

There was a person with a guitar playing soothing music .The view from the ruins which is on top of a hill was great !!

To be continued...