Year: 2012

A cruise worth taking in Malacca I WOULD like to congratulate the Malacca River Cruise for being awarded the Malaysia Tourism Awards 2010/2011 under the Man-Made Attraction category. I have taken the cruise a few times and each time I have come away with great satisfaction. The cruise itself I

s a success story which can be used as a point of reference for other tourist sites. I remember years back when Malacca River was nothing more than a dirty river. Visitors to the historical city would never want to look at the dirty, smelly river. Kampung Morten was dimly lit. Mangrove and lalang grew on both sides of the river. Clothes hung everywhere as the river served as a backyard to houses. Today, throughout the cruise, the river is beautifully and colourfully lit. The stench is no longer there. Kampung Morten is a great example of Malay traditional houses and it glows majestically at night. A jogging track has replaced the mangrove swamp and lalang and pedestrians can now walk along the river that has many benches for visitors to rest. Many bridges were renovated and upgraded with beautiful sculptures. The laundry has been replaced by creative wall murals painted by art students depicting historical events of Malacca. Wow! What a transformation! The Malacca River today was rejuvenated through collaborative efforts and hardwork by many departments and also the people of Malacca. Congratulations again to all who were and are involved in this project. Please continue to further improve this river cruise. I hope to see new things added the next time I take the cruise. Do continue to make Malaysia and Malacca proud! Tahniah. T.K. TEH, Kuala Lumpur.