To the Straits of Malacca

OK, perhaps a bus is a bit prosaic. However, it was transport and it did get me to Melaka (modern day Malacca in Malaysia). Going through passport and customs between Singapore and Malaysia was a bit more time consuming than cheerful neighbors might have tailored for. And our bus driver left someone behind, which can't look good in the annual evaluation.
Melaka in more than just nice. It was named a World Heritage Site by the UN in 2008, which is a pretty exclusive club.

The town has a nice combination of odd and beautiful and historical.

The odd being the most memorable.

I was drafted as straight man by a local medicine man (as in sells cures in a bottle) during some street theater last night. He asked the obvious visitors where they were from. I was the sole American, and we are just so popular!(?)
My role was to demonstrate that there were a significant number of things he could do that I could not. He, for example, could through a playing card 30 feet into the air in a straight line. I satisfied his needs.

He can also poke his finger through the husk of a coconut. I can hurt my finger.


This was not the oddest thing I've done in the last 48 hours.

These feet are not mine, let me say with all deliberate haste. But I have shared the experience. For about $3, one can dip ones feet into a tank with dozens of flesh chewing fish. For 15 minutes. Which seems long.

If you want this experience, you may need to come to Melaka. It may not catch on.