Christ Church Melaka – 17th Century Wonder in Malaysia

Melaka; state of Malaysia is packed with the south of Johor Bahru and at its north is Negeri Sembilan. Dating back to 15th century it was emanated from the renowned port city and has enjoyed of being the chain of great islands in the world. It was simultaneously noticed as the hub of eastern and western trade routes forming the passage of island in Melaka during the huge spread of Islam within Southeast Asia. Its economic defamation was visible when Portuguese captured the state in 1511 for hundred and thirty years approx. A Famosa fort was developed during the reign of Portuguese through the Red sea towards Nagasaki and Porta de Santiago was among its gateway which is still preserved and can be toured even today.

In the dates of 1803 to 1815 when the state was suffering by Napoleonic fights was then ruled by British Empire certainly which in 1824 was proven with the formation of Anglo-Dutch treaty then after two years in 1826 it came intact with Penang and Singapore island in order to better procurement of the passage between both the islands.

Christ Church Melaka

It was also noted that between the years of 1641 to 1824, an amalgamation of Portuguese and Dutch empires lowered the supremacy of the port to secondary level located on Java specifically. Then Dutch traders occupied the state of Melaka after taking it from Portuguese and inaugurated Christ Church Melaka therein.

Whereas, historic facts describe that dating back to 1753; the Christ Church Melaka was originally built by Dutch business men. Whereas the exact year of its inauguration is a bit confusing because related to some other facts the year of its formation depicts the year of 1741 in the cause of celebration that took place by the Dutch Empire. It was thus constructed on the church street known as Jalan Gereja where Presbyterian Church of Singapore and Malaysia is also seen here in the Malay Peninsula.

Special bright colored rides are available around the vicinity of Christ Church Melaka known as trishaws. The area where this church is built is one of the tempting monuments in the locality of the Stadthuys. There are two famous museums as well just in front of this church named as Ethnographical and Historical Museum.

Tourist fantastically possesses keen interest to visit Christ Church Melaka due to its historical background that is still kept alive to date. For the same reason visiting Christ Church Melaka is among best things to do in Melaka. The material of this monument is made of red bricks and the big white cross is seen on the top of it. The size of the church is not as huge and inside the church after entering the gate you may come across a long rectangular table having some selling products kept on it that are myriad catalogs and some religious stuff. Simultaneously you can also view around ten rows of long benches with comfortable back seat on it just before that huge table. The most eye catching view of this church is that the pews are all handmade and was formed around two hundred years back. A souvenir of Dutch army and civilians can be seen at large that includes fanlights and tiles particularly.

The vicinity of Christ Church Melaka is primarily filled with the cultural identity of Baba Nyonya (Between 15th and 17th century Chinese offspring visited to Malaysian and Singapore Peninsular) flourished with Nyonyan commercial and residential blocks i.e. houses and restaurants at large along the side.

I must say those who are fond of visiting ancient sites should come to view this church building. The Christ Church Melaka is among the recommended historical places to visit in Melaka. If you want to share your experience, please do so by adding comments below.

A Fruity Combination

A Fruity Combination

By: Fatini Idris

 Malaysian food is awesome. Ask anyone and they would agree that the flavours and colours of our cuisine is almost unparalleled to any other cuisines in the world. There are a lot of unique qualities about our dishes, especially given that we live in a multicultural society. Our usage of spices, although not uncommon when compared to other Asian countries, does have some distinctive difference due to the way we mix them together.

And it’s not just the spices that makes us different. Malay dishes for example, loves using fruits in their savoury gulai, or gravy, which goes perfectly together with plain rice. It may be an odd idea to some, especially if you’re not local. You might wonder, how does that even work? But it does. It so deliciously does.

Pajeri nenas

 

Take pajeri nanas (pineapple curry), for example. The fruit is not just used to complement the spices –  the pineapple is actually the main star of the dish.  Pajeri has a sweet, creamy and slightly sours taste balanced with the slight tinge of sourness from the pineapple, which what makes this dish unique. To make the curry, a blend of ingredients including onions, fresh turmeric, chilies and pan roasted coriander are blended together with thick paste of ripe pineapple. Cook it until it thickened and add coconut milk with little bit of salt to get the creamy taste. The result is simply divine.

Asam Mackerel Fish with Small Carambola
How about the Peranakan delicacy, gulai asam? Usually prepared with fish such as mackerel, belimbing buluh or bilimbi are sometimes added to add a little extra sour kick to the dish. As for the other ingredients, the preparation depends heavily on the use of kaffir lime leaves and other fresh herbs such as galangal ginger, ginger buds or bunga kantan and Vietnamese coriander to work up the aromatics. The cooking process involves soaking the pulp of the tamarind juice and chili until it is soft and then squeezing out the juice for cooking the fish. Once done, you’ll end up with a dish that is sour and spicy, perfectly blended together.

Kurau Salty Fish with Jackfruit Gulai

 

Another dish made extra delicious with the addition of a fruit is gulai nangka ikan masin kurau, or salted kurau fish and jackfruit gravy. Originating from Negeri Sembilan, the dish is usually yellowish-brown in colour due to the sautéed and browned spices which forms its base, and the addition of ground turmeric. The jackfruit adds to the texture and flavour of the gulai, and at the same time cuts off a little bit of the saltiness from the fish. And given that it is a Negeri Sembilan dish, it is usually spicy, but so very yummy.

Patin in Tempoyak Sauce

 

And we cannot talk about fruits in savoury dishes without talking about sambal tempoyak. Tempoyak is fermented durian, so unlike fresh ones that are sweet and creamy, tempoyak is pungent and has a sour taste to it. The fermentation process takes between 3 to 5 days, and once ready, it can be eaten uncooked as an accompaniment to the usual nasi and lauk meal, or used as an ingredient to several kinds of dishes. One of them is gulai tempoyak ikan patin, or patin fish in tempoyak gravy.  This is a popular dish in Pahang, where the combination of tempoyak, chillies, turmeric, and lemongrass, among others, make for a rich, and tasty dish that can be enjoyed during lunch or dinner.