Moonbeamzz

Hi Bakedbean,
Really just after impressions of the quality/enjoyment of life in Melaka, availability of rental accommodation, recommended areas to rent in and what it is like for European expats to fit in generally as opposed to being a tourist. Also interested in cost of living as compared to Penang which on my visits I have found increasingly expensive.
Cheers

the troubadour

We owned a house out of town a bit. My OH being a local. Found the locals great. There were some real charecters around in those days. Melaka in those days was a bit of a sleepy hollow as the locals called it....but I enjoyed it but mostle because of the people. Shame the beaches there not ideal...but there is a pool. Also used to go to Port Dickson sometimes for better beach.Some great eating places as well. It has all changed so much in appearences..........A very easy place to be and to be part off I found...

Moonbeamzz

Thanks Troubadour, appreciate the feedback.
Cheers

larsson78

hi all!

A friend (who is retired) from US will stay with me in Melaka for a month this coming March. He's quite interested in MM2H program, and it would be great to meet up with local expats

I am a native Melakan. If anyone needs help, or want to meetup, feel free to PM me.


See ya soon!

CY

bakedbean

Hi Larsson and welcome to the forum Good to have a "native" on here to answer questions. Seems to be a lot of expats moving to Melaka these days, and they keep very quiet about details hehe. Would be nice if Melaka got more exposure I reckon.

There's a whole thread on MM2H below, if you want to pass on to your friends
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=757238

larsson78

I live in Melaka for almost whole of my life, though I was once an expat myself in Europe some times ago .

It's safe to say I am not a stranger to western culture, and I know how it's like trying start a new life abroad. Hopefully I would be able to offer some helps, if anyone need that

AusMex

Hi larsson, tried to send you a PM, would not go through, I need to find a hardware store, and auto parts store in Melaka.
Thanks
Frank

Moonbeamzz

Hi, maybe I've missed it but not seen much lately on Melaka. If someone has the time wouldn't mind an update on how life is there these days. Used to read a bit about golf estates at Ayer Keroh (what does a round of golf coat anyway) and some of the houses seemed quite nice and not overly expensive e.g. RM800K would get a very nice property. On the condominium side Klebang seemed to be popular. Really just looking for some feedback if anyone has local knowledge and the time to put a paragraph or so together.
Cheers
Peter

the troubadour

I'd like to get the latest as well about Melaka.

Bluenose1

Strange as it may seem, although living in Melaka, I don't have that much to contribute as I don't really go out that much. A few trips into the City, mainly in and around Mahkota Mall, and visiting family members who have been unfortunate enough to find themselves ensconced in Mahkota Medical (hospital!). We've been down to the beach at Klebang a few times with family and it's not that bad, although I have seen better!

I cannot help much on the food front either, as I do not do pedas (hot/spicey) food! Having said that, I would certainly reccommend Bistro 1683 on Jonker Walk - we've been there 4 or 5 times now, mainly with family, but popped in this afternoon with some friends who were down from KL. They have quite a varied menu and cater for just about all tastes.

About 45 minutes drive (actually, in terms of Km it's not very far, just the length of time it has taken us to get there each time we've been!) in the direction of Muar, is, I am assured (I'm not really into seafood either!), a great seafood restaurant. Although it is expensive (for Malaysia), it is well worth a visit. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the name of it, but I'll ask around the family. Of course, there are hawker stalls a-plenty, almost everywhere you look.

What I do find incredible is the vast number of empty shop lots, not just in Melaka City, but throughout the state. And they keep buiding. More and more are being thrown up, and I have to admit that, other than keeping people in the bulding trade working, I cannot understand their purpose! In my opinion, the rental prices aren't particularly attractive either!

Actually, it seems to be a similar thing with houses - so many are being built, you would think that someone must know something! Also, you would think that with that many being built (and lying empty) prices would be rock-bottom. But that doesn't appear to be the case. Having said that, although we have visited quite a few sites, we haven't actually got around to making what you would call concrete (fogive the pun !) enquiries.

There are a number of new estates being built in and around Cheng (either side of the main road near Tesco) and we did go to look at a few houses there. Upwards of RM700K for a 3-bedroomed house with virtually no land. In fact, the vast majority of houses being built are link houses (in the U.K we would call them terraced houses) and, unless you are lucky with a semi-detached on a corner plot (there are actually a couple of detached corner-plots), very few of them have any land to speak of.

There is also a huge build going on at 1 Malaysia (very close to Klebang beach) and again, the majority of those are link houses. Although these are close to the beach, they are not actually that close to the sea and, to be able to actually see the sea, you may just need to buy a pair of binolculars!

There is the zoo, which has a night-safari, but the safari now only operates on Bank and Public Holidays (the zoo is open virtually all year round) as we found out one day last month when we went late afternoon; also worth considering is the revolving tower - if you pick the right day, you get a great panorama of the Melaka skyline. In Melaka itself there is the river boat cruise (around 45 minutes - 1 hour).

That's my view of Melaka so far - I'm not sure if it will help anyone that much, but there you go!

ex reg

Of course food is a personal thing and generally I don't go much on Malay cooked sea food.

But between Malacca and a 45 min drive from the center there are many creeks and each one has a sea food village built around it.
The Portuguese settlement being about the nearest to the center.

Unfortunately we don't go much on any of these places. Tried just about all.

Next time you're not far from Jonkers then pop in to Bei Zhan just at the SW corner of Taman Laksamana. For us it's as nice as any in Malacca, in fact we'll be eating there this Thursday. The lamb shanks, otherwise known as deep fried lamb shoulder, or so I reckon, is excellent. So are other dishes.

the troubadour

Well I find it an interesting account from someone on the ground there. The over building is worth noting. Looking at pictures of modern Malacca it looks more a boom town. Somebody must be making money from the building, so I guess they must be selling.

What I do notice though is the newish developments beside the river always appear devoid of people in every picture I see. I wonder if a little sterile? They were just commencing improvements the last time I was in town.

I take it the ex pat population remains very low there. I get the impression you could quite easily relocate.

Bluenose1

To be honest, I really have no idea about the expat population! Whenever we are out and about, we do notice the odd fair-skinned person, but have no idea whether they are tourists or here for the duration! Suffice it to say that I still get stared at often enough to suggest that there cannot be many living here!

As for relocating - yes, of course anything is possible. That will not happen any time soon, though because:

a) We only arrived in Melaka in March;
b) We own land in Batu Berendam and are in the (very slow) process (it is Malaysia, after all!) of having our own house built;
c) Almost all of my wife's immediate family (it is a large family, she has 6 brothers and 5 sisters) live in or near Melaka. Her father's family are all from Melaka and her mother's family from Alor Gajah, which is only 30 minutes or so away. So, certainly for my wife, who has lived away from here for a number of years (including 6 years with me in the UK) then relocating is definitely not on the horizon!

bakedbean

For what it's worth, reading the MM2H site (which obviously is mainly MM2Hers and wannabes) there seems to be far more people considering Melaka these days, than say 2 to 3 years ago. I have a couple of friends who were initially thinking about Penang, but have moved to Melaka instead. They were influenced by (a) cheaper property, and (b) proximity to KLIA. They still travel internationally a fair bit. Something to consider I guess.

Moonbeamzz

Hey, thanks everybody it is always great to get an impression from people in the area. The wife and I have booked flights and will be in Malaysia for a couple of months next year for a look at a couple of places one of which is Melaka. Many years since I have lived in Malaysia (Butterworth/Penang) and over the last couple of years have been back a few times to have a look. Place has certainly changed and has more appeal now than 40 years ago (eek, 40 years wow), so much has changed and modernised. Malaysia is certainly on the way to 1st world status, not sure if that is good or not. Continue to appreciate any viewpoints MM2Hers care to offer on life in Malaysia particularly Melaka.
Cheers