Threshing the Highland Barley

During our photography expedition to the Dongchuan Hongtudi (东川红土地) region of Yunnan Province (云南省), we took one aftrenoon the explore Huigou Village (花沟村) where we were staying. It was the harvesting season for the highland barley, so there were many famalies in the village threshing for the grains. We were not hindered by the roaring machine and dust but just concentrated on the composition of the photos. However, all of us ended up with dust all over our body.

Baba Charlie Nyonya Cake

Baba Charlie is a home-based bakery hidden inside small lanes. Its secluded location doesn't hinder the enthusiasm of food hunters to track it down. We needed a local who was in the neighbourhood to show us the way. This bakery specialises in Nyonya kuih that are mainly made from coconut and glutinous rice flour. There are many types of Nyonya kuih to choose from.

Other than Nyonya kuih, Baba Charlie carries also some snack items. This kuih kapit that we bought was extremely crispy and delicious.

We were there at around 2 p.m. and there was still new kuih being produced. This place closes at 3 p.m. and that shows how good the business is. The lady boss told me that I was lucky to witness her cutting the kuih at this hour because normally they are already tidying during this time.

The onde-onde was just hot from the oven. Since it was labelled as the hot-sale item, we bought it as well. It was quite nice with the warm coconut syrup exploding in the mouth from the outer glutinous rice skin.

By the time of this writing, Baba Charlie has already established a café at a shoplot nearby the bakery. Do check out this place when you are in Melaka hunting for some authentic Nyonya kuih.

The Chicken and the Balls

When it comes to chicken rice in Melaka, most people are recommending the two places at Jonker Street, i.e., Kedai Kopi Chung Wah and Hoe Kee Chicken Rice. However, the Melaka Top 3 begged to differ. It was a difficult decision to make for us as we were going to have only one chicken rice meal, so we decided to go for the No. 1 listed in the Melaka Top 3 website, i.e., Huang Chang Chicken Rice Restaurant.

This place is a bit outskirt of the city, humbly hidden inside a housing estate. Nevertheless, it was not difficult to find with GPS.

The first thing you see inside the shop is the big signboard with the standard operating procedure. You order the food and drinks at the counter and a receipt will be issued. You place the receipt on the table and your order will be served.

The serving stations were full with workers manning the rice balls and chopping the chicken. They were working non-stop as the crowd was building up when we visited this place. There were many packets prepared for take-away too.

The food and drinks were served quite promptly after making payment. The standard operating procedure really helps in the efficiency. The poached chicken was very juicy, succulent, tender and flavourful. The chilli, garlic and ginger dip was top notch too. Adding a bit of soy sauce to the dip is highly recommended.

The chicken rice balls were quite sticky and moist. They were full of the chicken flavour and you can tell that they authentically cooked with chicken stock.

If you want a taste of the Melaka chicken rice, I highly recommend this place. However, the queue can be as long as the two famous shops at Jonker Street.

The Hello Kitty Trishaw

It is always a pleasure to go on a trishaw ride to tour the city when on vacation. The trishaw operators at Melaka go an extra mile to make their trishaws as attractive as possible. For those Hello Kitty fans out there, I guess you won't miss a ride on any of this.

The Night Market at Jonker Walk

On every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Jonker Walk is closed to traffic and turned into a night market. Not unlike any night market everywhere else in Malaysia, 90% of the stalls are selling food, clothing, accessories and handicrafts. As mentioned in my earlier post, it was quite a disappointment for me as I have heard many good things about this place and it is a must visit place. Well, probably we weren't hunting for food, clothing, accessories and handicrafts. However, if you like the hustle and bustle of a night market, then this place may be a good place for you.

Jonker Walk

Jonker Street of Melaka is located at the Chinatown area. Jonker Walk is a stretch of the street that has been turned into a tourist attraction. During every weekend, the street is closed to traffic and turned into a bustling night market. I was quite excited before I visited this place as I have heard a lot of it from people who have been there. I was a bit disappointed when I was finally there, probably due to my high expectation. It is just a typical night market that can be found all over Malaysia.

Roaming the Markets at Cameron Highlands

There are several daily markets and a weekend market at Cameron Highlands. Some of the markets are open air but mostly are in shop lots.

The most common merchandises at the markets are local produce. These are the places to get the freshest stuff produced in Cameron Highlands. There are some vegetables and fruits that are commonly seen in supermarkets and there are some uncommon ones.

These olive-like fruits are called "buah cinta" or literally the love fruit. I don't know how is the taste because I didn't try.

We also bumped into a stall selling sea coconuts. This was the first time I saw the real fruit of sea coconuts, so I bought one to try out. The flesh was very refreshing and not as sweet as the canned fruit. The water was also full of fragrant.