Melaka Day 4 (Xiang Ji Satay │ Dutch Square │ A Famosa │ Haji Nasir Ikan Bakar)

Melaka Day 4!

A day after Chinese New Year and we wanted to go on a cruise along the Melaka river. Alas we woke up at close to 10:00am and by the time we left the Airbnb it was past 11:00am.

We walked out of Imperio Residence to catch a Panorama Melaka to Jonker Street in front of the flats at Taman Hilir Kota 1. It duly arrived and for a fare of RM1.50 (approximately USD/EUR0.30) each the bus took us to Jalan Kubu.

We disembarked and were greeted by the Jonker Walk archway. We strolled along Jalan Tokong before turning left onto Jalan Portugis headed north until we reached Xiang Ji Satay House. 

It was a day after Chinese New Year, and they were swamped with take-out orders, so we were lucky to arrive before orders were closed. This place is a favourite of Brendan's so we will be sure to bring him here during our next trip to Melaka.

We ordered 30 sticks of satay with a serving of Nasi Himpit (rice cubes?) together a round of Coca Cola for RM45.00 (approximately USD11/EUR10).

We then resumed our walkabout headed back south along Jalan Portugis before turning left onto Jalan Tokong. We then turned left onto Jalan Hang Kasturi before darting into an alley where the Melaka Street Art (The Well) was situated.

At the end of the alley we emerged onto Jalan Kampung Pantai and we darted into another alley that took us directly to the riverside. We then walked across the Kampung Jawa Bridge and turned left but alas the café Sin See Tai was closed.

We continued our walkabout onto Jalan Bunga Raya headed south then walked over to Jalan Laksamana. Here we continued walking southwest until we arrived at Dutch Square or Red Square. Here was the Melaka Clock Tower, The Stadthuys, Queen Victoria's Fountain and Christ Church.

We then continued our walkabout along Jalan Kota right up to its end before arriving at the most popular landmark in Melaka, the A' Famosa.

The weather was hot, so we dashed into Dataran Pahlawan's north entrance before exiting its south entrance. We then walked into Starbucks and spent the next half an hour cooling down while enjoying some beverages.

We then walked back into Dataran Pahlawan all the way to its east entrance where we hailed a Grab car for a fare of RM9.00 (approximately USD/EUR2) back to the Airbnb.

We spent the afternoon indoors and a thunderstorm rolled in. Later in the evening we tried to hail Grab car to Alai, to no avail so we hopped in Puteh and went on a leisurely drive east along Jalan Padang Temu onto Jalan Permatang Pasir to Alai where we planned to have an early dinner at Haji Nasir Ikan Bakar. 

A favourite grilled fish restaurant of ours, we've been coming here since way back when for its picturesque settings and the delicious food, of course.

However outdoor dining was not permitted due to the unpredictability of the weather so that put paid our intentions of capturing the sunset. We browsed the various fresh seafood items on offer before settling on:

• Grilled Siakap (Asian Sea Bass)
• Prawns in Sambal Sauce
• Fried Flour-Dipped Calamari
• Salted Kailan (Chinese Broccoli)

together with a round of drinks came to RM65.00 (approximately USD15/EUR14). Not our first, never our last time to Haji Nasir's Grilled Fish restaurant, we would recommend them to anyone looking for a picturesque dining experience with reasonably priced seafood.

We then hopped back into Puteh and made our way back to the Airbnb. We are firm in our resolve to catch a river cruise tomorrow morning, so please stay tuned!

(Do visit our YouTube Channel Have Perut Will Travel)

📍 Location:
Imperio Residence Seafront by Perfect Host 

- https://goo.gl/maps/8UdsDiF8pJYHtchh7
Taman Hilir Kota 1 - https://goo.gl/maps/H9bgvU7ofDTqgvjp7
Xiang Ji Satay House - https://goo.gl/maps/MKPMqoH1v7knY8LB8
Jambatan Kg Jawa - https://goo.gl/maps/nc7tpCdmC8LnZ4tT7
Dutch Square (Red Square) - https://goo.gl/maps/oZvcoeDiC2xPaibQ7
A Famosa - https://goo.gl/maps/vbfdTzVmrnDuUZQu8
Starbucks Dataran Pahlawan - https://goo.gl/maps/gjsBsTBu5cWrQpA86
Haji Nasir Ikan Bakar - https://goo.gl/maps/CY31Z8dguudsVf946