Port Dickson, Malacca, And Mc Donald's

We just got back from a family trip to Port Dickson, which was a refreshing break in the “Everything's closed” factor of the Chinese New Year celebrations.

The hotel I stayed at was nice, but has obviously not aged well. Yet the hotel was planed very well; all ground level rooms (One of which I stayed in) were located in a U shape, around a pool which had a walkway to an outdoor grilling pavilion, Karaoke bar and access to the shore of the Strait of Malacca. We spent a good portion of our time singing karaoke and swimming in the pool. Before I sung my first Karaoke songs, I tried a Malaysian Desert that they call ABC. ABC is perhaps best described as an iceberg, crushed Ice forms a mountain which sits on-top of a sweet liquid dotted with corn and strips of Jell-O that are scooped up and poured on the mountain before it is eaten. One night we Karaoke’d so long into the night that my voice stared to falter! The pool was both similar to and different than American pools. The pool incorporated waterfalls to stick your head under like many higher end pools in the United States, but the ones here were themed as a stream flowing from a higher smaller pool. The kids pool was also different, simply being a gated off portion of the larger pool. The pool also had a swim up bar, but it differed from the American kind in that no alcohol is served there, rather they serve various snacks and non-alcoholic drinks (Islam forbids alcohol). We got Waffles with spreads at the bar. I ordered Kiwi jam and Coconut spread, the result tasted almost heavenly.

In the middle of our trip we made a surprise visit to Malacca; One of the oldest cities in Malaysia. The European influenced roots of Malacca were clearly visible, although it was probably highlighted to help boost tourism. We visited many neat little things there like ruins of old fortifications, and a 400 year old bakery inside a historical museum. We hired some bicycle rickshaws, which I clumsily drove for part of the way. Quite a neat short visit.
Later while in Malacca we visited my host grandparents and visited a mall. Seeing some of the things other countries imply are American staples always brings me a mix of enjoyment and shock. “US Tuna Baked Potato!” “Buy a US Pizza with crab and get 2 cups Mushroom soup FREE!”. We ended up snacking at the “Big Apple” which is like an Fake American Cafe. In the end that didn't matter though because their doughnuts were really good, and were priced well at under one US Dollar each.  Later we would pass by a Sultans son as we got ready to leave (Clumsy, oblivious me didn't put the pieces together until it was too late).
When I heard I would be eating lunch at Mc Donald's I initially felt somewhat disappointed. After all the main reason for the initial success of Mc Donald's could be described in one word; “Uniformity”. However my visit had many small surprises for me. The biggest difference is perhaps in something as simple as Ketchup and Mustard. Surprisingly Malaysians have Ketchup and Chili Sauce; my host sisters thought the idea of Mustard being an option was revolting. Malaysian Mc Donald's also has a unique item that is not only exclusive regionally, but also seasonally; the “Prosperity Burger” which is only available for one month around Chinese New Year. The burger is a essentially a beef or chicken patty smothered in spicy sauce, black peppers, and onions. The burger itself is very aromic, spicy, and perhaps the one of the only things I really enjoy at Mc Donalds. Along with the burger comes a “ang pau”, which has a random coupon for a free item(Free 12 oz. Coke for me). The Drinks are also different. Aside from certain drinks like “Milo” which is like a watered down hot chocolate, there are a lot of drinks which are not sold, like diet soda, root beer. As a side note Luxury items like electronics are much cheaper in America than in Malaysia, but everything else is about the same or less, like Ice cream at Mc Donald's which costs as little as 1 Ringgit (33 US cents).