Goodbye Singapore, we arrived in Malaysia by land. The bus carrying our group crossed the Ksecon Link bridge over the strait connecting Singapore with the state of Johor (Malaysia). A breathtaking landscape unfolded before our eyes, with the lush green rainforest of Malaysia to the left.
Malaysia is a Muslim-majority country that still retains 60% of its primary forest. Malaysia's land area is the same as Vietnam's, but its population is only about one-third. It is a multi-ethnic country with Malays making up the majority (80%), followed by people of Chinese and Indian descent.
The car sped along, winding mountain passes. On either side of the road stretched endless forests, seemingly without end. Among them were vast stretches of oil palm plantations, hundreds of kilometers long. This is one of the main crops in this region, primarily used for oil extraction and processing of by-products from the oil palm tree.
The scenery in Malaysia is very peaceful, yet cars are everywhere, unlike in Singapore. The tour guide explained: “The Malaysian government encourages people to use cars because there are two domestic manufacturers. The government provides 100% car loans, with interest-free installments, so almost every household owns a car; some even have 4 or 5. Furthermore, gasoline is cheap here; 97 octane gasoline costs only about 13,000 VND per liter at current prices. On the other hand, the roads here are very good. They are built by private companies through bidding processes, and the government inspects the quality.”
We arrived in the ancient city of Malacca in the late afternoon. The sunset bathed the ancient city in a magical golden hue, as if shrouded in mythical mist. The fortifications, temples, and houses seemed to have stepped right out of a fairy tale, from a place that was once one of Malaysia's oldest kingdoms.
Night fell, its light shimmering, half-real, half-illusory. I strolled through the ancient streets, listening as if to echoes of history from over five centuries ago, when this kingdom was first established. The city's strategic location attracted the attention of Asian and European merchants. The Portuguese were the first to arrive and establish their rule, their fortress bearing their name remaining to this day. Following them came the Dutch, then the English, and finally the Japanese, creating a multicultural tapestry, both in architecture and religion.
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| Street band on a weekend night in Malacca. |
I strolled around the Dutch Square, also known as the Red Square because of the red-painted houses – the main color of Dutch-style architecture. In the square stands the old Christ Church, a famous landmark of Malacca. Along the way, colorful three-wheeled rickshaws (similar to Vietnamese cyclos) with twinkling lights and decorated with favorite cartoon characters played cheerful Indian music as they moved along.
I walked into a Chinese neighborhood and witnessed the well-organized business practices of this world- leading business community. The preservation of Chinese cultural identity, as in most of their communities, was a priority. Moving on to the Muslim quarter, I saw a folk artist sitting on a bridge, playing and singing traditional folk songs on a musical instrument similar to Vietnamese folk singing. A few hundred meters away, a group of young musicians were singing various songs in the local language, including the familiar Spanish song "Besame Mucho" (Let's Love Each Other). Their passionate and enthusiastic singing captivated the audience.
We sat down and each ordered a durian ice cream, a popular specialty in this Muslim country. Glistening in the night, the winding Malacca River flowed through the ancient city, whispering stories of the kingdom's golden age, of a time long, long ago…
(To be continued)
Source: https://baodaklak.vn/van-hoa-du-lich-van-hoc-nghe-thuat/202508/sing-ma-du-ky-bai-2-1060446/
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