at Melaka 11/11

This morning we walked the ancient streets of Melaka and saw various old buildings including the Statdhuys which had been the centre of Dutch administration. There had been a tropical downpour when we woke this morning and it continued drizzling for most of the morning. Unfortunately the Maritime Museum was closed which was a disappointment but we saw the Portuguese caravelle outside which looked so ungainly in boggles the mind to imagine how they sailed these vessels from Europe.

We took delivery of our rental car this morning (a Suzuki SX4) and simply parked it in the hotel carpark! Walked the streets incessantly for most of the day including the old Dutch street (Jonkers St.) Jim saw a sign advertising massages and thought that a nice shoulder and head massage would be just the thing! However, it was anything but relaxing. She straddled him and pummelled him and then almost took his head off!! Still, there was surprisingly no damage and all was well - although no better than had it not happened in the first place! Jean thought it was hilarious. Had a Portuguese dinner tonight (seafood with malt flakes). On the way back to the Puri feeling very mellow in the silky tropic night air we met a very interesting couple (also staying at the Puri). He was Korean/American and she was American and they had been involved in the American aerospace industry for many years - now retired.  Had a pleasant long chat and swapped addresses - as you do! Then early to bed in preparation for our first experience of Malaysian roads!

12/11 - on the road. Took our leave of the Puri very reluctantly; the place was beautiful and everyone so friendly and helpful. But you have to be a bit careful of Malaysian directions. They are inclined to mix up left and right and tell you anything to get rid of you - very much like the classic Irish directions!! We had decided to only go as far as Port Dixon which would be an easy drive and we wanted to check out the marina there. Also Jean had been there 40 years ago so was keen to see it again. We had a pleasant drive on windy rural roads and bought some fruit from a roadside stall. Oil palms everywhere again. Weather was overcast but had stopped raining. We arrived at Port Dixon early in the afternoon and checked into a resort which overlooked the marina. Very upmarket but NOT expensive which characterises everything in Malaysia. Introduced ourselves to the marina manager. When you look out to sea from here you are looking at the Malacca Straights which is one of the busiest waterways in the world and it had to be seen to be believed - just a procession of ships - some very large. Our conclusion was that the best defence on a small yacht would be to stay well inshore of the main shipping lanes. The inshore one is northbound.

Then began a series of coincidental events which led to the most incredible meeting for Jean. We decided to drive up the coast into PD proper to see how it had changed and it was a typical Malaysian coastal town - bustling and retail everywhere. But quite attractive. Nothing like Jean remembered of course. Then on the way back to the marina we began discussing where to eat tonight and Jean said she had noticed a sign saying "Coconut Grove" which was right on the beach  and looked promising. Jim said we should stop in and check it out which we did. The restaurant was closed just then (about 1600) but Jean spied a guy sitting at a table working on his laptop. Jim didn't immediately pay much attention but Jean thought she recognised him. She went up to him and said "Robbie?" He said "that's me" and it turned out that he had been a Cathay Pacific captain who lived next door to Jean and her ex husband (also a Cathay captain) in Hong Kong. She hadn't seen him for 20 + years!! It was a real long lost reunion and made all the more poignant by all the seemingly unrelated random events that brought us all there at that moment. He was retired now and lives mainly on Bribie Is., Queensland with his wife Jeya who is of Malay/Tamil Indian descent. Her parents live in Port Dixon and they keep an apartment there for when they are there visiting her family. We then had a great evening with Robbie and Jeya and had dinner with them almost sitting on the beach - very memorable and very nostalgic for Jean.

Much more to come...........................!!!!!