It rained heavily — just as I was about to leave Casa Blanca Guest House with my laundry bag. The rain was welcoming indeed but the best time should be around noon. It subsided to a drizzle after an hour. I left the guest house before the rain stopped completely.
I was not planning to go far. There was a laundry shop nearby and Restoran Tengkera Duck Noodle (大树下鸭面) was right beside it. Seeing some empty tables in the restaurant when I walked past, I decided to have my breakfast before the crowds came in after the rain.
I had a regular duck noodle, added on some braised tau kwa (卤豆包) and a braised egg (卤蛋), and a cup of Melaka kopi-o kosong. The duck noodle was served dry-style with a bowl of light-herbal soup. It was as good as before. And true enough, crowds started pouring in while I was halfway through eating.
The laundry shop next door was not in tip-top condition as half the washing machines were “not in used”. It costs RM6 for a 21-minute normal cold temperature wash, with free detergent included, and RM4 for drying at normal high temperature (24 minutes). I was the first to use the machines before the rest were taken up and a couple had to wait.
I brought the cleaned clothings back to the guest house, hang them in the room to dry, rest a while before going to the old town to look for early lunch. The atmosphere after a morning rain was super hot and humid.
I came to Ah Ma Ho Liao (阿嬷好料) along Jalan Tokong, which moved here from an alley just outside the old town. Their menu had also expanded. I ordered their signature curry mee and iced aiyu jelly (爱玉). The tasty curry mee had lots of ingredients and not too spicy. The aiyu jelly was cooling and great to have on a hot day.
Not far from Ah Ma Ho Liao, the lovely Seedallas Workshop Cafe along Jalan Tokong had closed down and replaced by an Indian restaurant. It was a pity. I really liked their Seedallas Special, an "ice shaken espresso".
I took a walk around Melaka Old Town, to the Dutch Square, Maritime Museum, Muzium Samudera, Museum of the Royal Malaysian Marine, Taming Sari Tower, the Sultanate Palace, etc. Most of them were closed on Monday — or this very Monday for whatever reasons. I was not keen to enter even if they were opened since I had visited almost all of them at least once — they were not free admissions and foreigners pay extra.
Dutch Square, St. Paul’s Hill, Church of St. Paul and A Formosa drew all the crowds since they were no entrance fees.
After a quick walk round the cluster of museums and historical sites, I needed to get out of the heat again. I came to Lao Qian Ice Cafe (钱中园冰室), which was located inside San Shu Gong (三叔公), a famous local products shop at the main junction of Jonker Walk.
Wanting to reminisce the taste of the durian cendol that I had tried a couple times before, I purchased a tub and found an empty table on the second floor. Another reason to be here was the air-conditioning and washroom.
The durian cendol had extra ingredients like sea coconut and some sweet jelly cubes. Overall, it tasted quite nice with adequate durian flavour but I could not see any durian flesh.
After cooled off, I took a short walk again and popped into Ola Lavendria Cafe for its white Melaka cheese cake. I added a hot cappuccino to go along. The slice of lemon on the cake was not just for decoration but added some lemony flavour to the cheese cake.
A heavy rain was coming. I retreated to the guest house asap to rest before dinner.
When it was time to hunt for dinner, I went to Pak Putra Restaurant to try my luck but it was closed (said to be closed on alternate Mondays). Most of the food outlets along Jalan Kota Laksamana 1/2 were opened but I wanted to check out the old town first.
There was no Jonker Street Night Market on Monday night but Hang Kasturi Food Street (大力士美食街), which was part of the night market, continued to setup shops for 3 days due to the Hari Raya Puasa festive period. I combed the whole stretch of Jonker Walk for available options before returning to the food street. Well, it was the vibe.
I had oyster egg (耗煎) and a soursop fruit juice (红毛榴莲果汁). The oyster egg, or oysters and eggs, was not fantastic.
Fearing that the food might not last me through the night, I went for another 6 sticks of chicken satay (鸡肉沙爹), which were not bad.
Total expenses at the food street was RM29, which was more than my average cafe expenses. Well, it was never cheap to eat at a night market.