Tuesday, November 27, 2012

EYE ON MALAYSIA AT PULAU MELAKA

November 26, 2012 18:36 PM

'Eye On Malaysia' Wheel In Pulau Melaka To Operate In April

MELAKA, Nov 26 (Bernama) -- The 101-metre high "Eye on Malaysia" Ferris wheel under construction in Pulau Melaka is expected to start operating in April next year, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam said today.

Construction of the 13th highest Ferris wheel in the world, being built at a cost of RM40 million, had progressed to 15 per cent, involving installation of piles, he said.

"The installation of the wheel structure will begin in February," he said during a visit to the project s Site.

Mohd Ali said the made-in-China Ferris wheel, with 54 gondolas, could assist in the development of Pulau Melaka, which also has a wildlife theatre, as a major tourist attraction of the world.

Besides the Ferris wheel, local company The Eye Sdn Bhd was also developing a water and light theme park as well as a 28-storey hotel, he said. ≤P> Mohd Ali invited more tourism industry players to invest in the state, particularly in the development of large-scale theme parks.

-- BERNAMA

Friday, November 23, 2012

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Thursday November 22, 2012

Have mausoleum for Parameswara

DURING the recent Deepavali holidays, my family and I went to Malacca.

While driving around Malacca town, I noticed Parameswara, the founder of Malacca, had a very short road named after him.

Tun Razak, our “ Bapa Pembangunan” has the longest road in Malacca named after him.

I am not saying, naming the longest road in Malacca after our beloved late Prime Minister is wrong, but why not credit the founder of Malacca with a road which is more prominent and deserving.

We all have learnt since Form 1 that Parameswara was the founder of Malacca.

It’s sad to see that while most of the warriors of Malacca have mausoleums, the main man, who named and brought such progress to the state doesn’t have one.

I’ve read a few articles that the mausoleumof Parameswara is under the lighthouse built by the Portuguese in 1528 or 1529.

Why does the archaeology department not take proactive measures and redesign a mausoleum for the founder of Malacca?

Parameswara was not a myth. Let’s ensure he gets a proper mausoleum for his contributions.

Since the Government is making history a compulsory subject, why not start with what we have.

If Hang Jebat and his friends can have a mausoleum, it’s a shame we don’t have one for Parameswara.

If the A Famosa was patched and rebuilt a few times, what does it take to build a mausoleum for Parameswara?

MEYSHNA NAIR 

Kuala Lumpur

MELAKA FORT WALLS BEING EXCAVATED

23rd. November 2012

Due to the discovery of the old Melaka forteress wall besides the Melaka River carpark, excavation works are currently being done. Red laterite blocks that form her foundations can be seen. This find is very encouraging to the historical past of Melaka where there was a wall surrounding the administrative centre of Malacca.

The British demolished the surrounding walls of Malacca by explosive gunpowder under Farquhar so as to destroy the defensive fortified walls forever. When Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore, was recuperating in Malacca from the swampy conditions in Singapore then, he strongly objected to this demolition. He wrote a formal letter of protest against this to Lord Minto, Viceroy at British India in 1800s.

Due to Raffles intervention, the total demolition of Malacca fort was stopped. Unfortunately, only A Famosa was saved which we can see today.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

ZOO MELAKA TO BE PRIVATISED

21 November 2012 | last updated at 09:50PM

State govt to take over Zoo Melaka by year's end

By Hanis Maketab hzmak@nst.com.my

MALACCA: The State zoological park or Zoo Melaka would be taken over by the State Government from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks of Malaysia, which is under the Federal Government, by the year’s end.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam said the management of the zoo would be primarily taken over by a consortium which would be headed by the Hang Tuah Jaya Municipal Council.

The consortium would be made up of Koperasi Hang Tuah Jaya, Koperasi Bela Masyarakat (Kobemas) and WildlifeTheatre Melaka.

The consortium hopes to adopt the management style of the Singapore Zoo to steer Zoo Melaka to greater heights. Mohd Ali said that while the state government was awaiting an official letter from the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, preparations were currently under-way for the take over.

“Th privatisation will include an upgrade of its facilities and infrastructure, which is expected to cost up to RM6 million.

“We would also be changing the name of the zoo to 'Melaka Zoo and Night Safari'. Once everything is finalised, the zoo would be a private entity, it will no longer receive the RM4 million yearly grant from the Federal Government, and therefore, the new management must work towards ensuring the zoo's continued success,” he said. Mohd Ali said he hoped the zoo's privatisation would be the first step in improving it as a major tourist attraction not only for the state, but for Malaysia as well. "Malacca Zoo is currently one of the best zoos in the country, and I believe it can one day become a world-renowned zoo," he said.

When asked on the fate of the contract employees of the Zoo Melaka, Mohd Ali said that they would be absorbed by the Hang Tuah Jaya Municipal Council. Zoo Melaka is a 54-acre (approximately 21.22 ha) zoological park located beside Lebuh Ayer Keroh in Malacca.

The zoo has progressed rapidly since 1979 to become the second biggest zoo in the country, behind the National Zoo of Malaysia (Zoo Negara). Zoo Melaka annually records than 400,000 visitors and more than half of the visitors are from Melaka and the neighbouring states. Its annual ticket collection exceeds RM3 million. The number of exhibits has also increased significantly since it opened and as of today there are a total of over 1,200 specimen made up of 215 different species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians in the zoo.

The major attractions in Zoo Melaka are the highly endangered Sumatran Rhinoceros, Malayan Sun Bear, Malayan Gaur, Serow and the Malayan Tiger. The zoo is also renowned world over as a a centre for wildlife research, conservation and breeding, especially for the Malayan Tiger, Wild Dogs (Dhole), panther, tapir, serow, barking deer, sambar deer and many others. 

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

PORTO HISTORIA COMMERCIAL COMPLEX

Malacca to build Porto Historia commercial complex costing RM92mil

MALACCA: The state government will build a heritage city commercial complex called Porto Historia at a cost of RM92mil in Kota Laksamana, here, to further spur economic growth, especially in Central Malacca.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam said the real estate development project on a 1.9ha site facing Malacca River, would comprise a three-storey commercial building with 55 shoplots.

He said the building of Porto Historia was the result of a smart partnership between the state government's subsidiary company, Dunia Melayu Dunia Islam Finance House Berhad, and First Avenue Partners (Asia) Sdn Bhd. It is expected to be completed by November 2013.

"All the shoplots to be built are sold out, showing high demand for real estate ownership in this state, which will further improve the economy," he said after the ground-breaking ceremony for the project, Tuesday.

He said the commercial complex to be built based on Malacca's architectural heritage would also be a tourist spot, besides creating more than 200 job opportunities, especially for members of Koperasi Bela Masyarakat Melaka Berhad (Kobemas).

Mohd Ali said any developer that wished to put up a building or develop a real estate project must preserve Malacca's architectural heritage in line with Malacca as a Unesco-recognised world heritage city.

He said the state government would assist in preparing the drawing plans in meeting the design requirement based on Malacca's architectural heritage. - Bernama

Friday, November 9, 2012

MACAU GALLERY IN MELAKA

Gallery opens to promote Macau’s culture

By By LEO ARROKKIASAMMY malacca@thestar.com.my

MALACCA: Malaccans could now cherish Macau’s unique culture and art that is largely made up of a combination of Chinese and Portuguese, with the launch of the Macau gallery here.

The gallery that was opened recently is located in Bukit Peringgit, about ten minutes away from the historic city centre.

The gallery occupies a heritage building that was originally a colonial bungalow and was later used as a state government department office.

Promoting Macau: The Macau gallery at Bukit Peringgit Malacca. Macau’s secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Cheong U, and Macau Government Tourist Offices (MGTO) Director Joao Manuel Costa Antunes together with Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam and Mayor Zainal Abu jointly cut the ribbons and performed an eye-dotting on a lionhead used by lion dance troupe to mark the opening of the Macau Gallery.

Other delegates from Macau who attended the opening ceremony were MGTO Destination Promotion Head, Betty Fok, Macau Museum Director Chan Leng Hin, Macau’s Maritime Museum Director, Wu Chu Peng and representatives from University of Macau.

Also present at the opening ceremony were state Education,Youth & Sports committee chairman Datuk Gan Tian Loo and State Secretary Datuk Wira Omar Kaseh.

Designed and managed by MGTO, the gallery is divided into zones with different themes to promote Macau’s history, culture and economy.

A total of 12 art pieces by Macau painters will be displayed at the gallery till the end of September to depict some of Macaus world heritage sites.

During the gala dinner held at a popular hotel in Malacca, Antunes said that both Macau and Malacca had a historical link peppered with rich Portuguese past and being recognised by the UNESCO as world heritage sites.

“The gallery will be a catalyst for mutual exchange for both Macau and Malacca to enhance understanding, strengthen friendship and consolidate cooperation,” he said.

Mohd Ali in his speech said the Macau gallery would also boost the effort placed by the state government to turn Bukit Peringgit as a tourist destination.

In 2009, the Macau Special Administrative Region Government and the Authorities of Malacca agreed on a MoU for the management of the heritage building with the purpose of transforming the property into a centre for promotion and exhibition of Macau’s culture and arts.

WILDLIFE THEATRE TO CELEBRATE 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

View wildlife up close and personal

By NEENA ATEERAH MOHD NOR AND NABIIHAH RHAIHANA ABDULLAH | streets@nstp.com.my 0 comments

MALACCA: DO you know that a baby sea lion can recognise its mother's distinctive calls amid a multitude of other sea lions? Or that the boa actually gives birth instead of laying eggs?

Rio performing for the audience at a bird show

These facts might not be known to many but, at the Kinderzoo programme, children and adults alike have the opportunity to be enlightened on the rare and unique world of sea lions, reptiles and birds at Wildlife Theatre Melaka.

Kinderzoo, which caters to children from as young as preschool age up to secondary level, is aimed at creating an educational wildlife programme outside the classroom, to impart knowledge and to encourage interaction with the animals as environmental and wildlife conservation takes on a more important role in our modern world. Its manager and curator Azman Ghazali has 17 years' experience of working with animals. He said the Kinderzoo provides a unique curriculum pertaining to the conservation of the environment and wildlife.

"We are not running a zoo. Our focus is on small groups of people because we want to give the real learning process like what the children have in their school. We believe that by dividing the children into several groups, they can absorb the knowledge more easily," he said.

The children will usually be divided into three groups, as there are three dedicated classes on birds, sea lions and reptiles.

"The trainers would also teach the children on how to treat animals well. We want to educate these young people to be more responsible for the fauna as we are concerned about the animals' extinction," he said.

Located at the manmade island of Pulau Melaka, the Wildlife Theatre Melaka is home to three lovable sea lions, colourful birds, captivating reptiles and a mysterious tribe from the tropical rainforest of Borneo.

Wildlife Theatre Melaka corporate communications executive Katherine Fam said besides the Kinderzoo, visitors would also be entertained in a show by the trio of sea lions -- John, Mary and Ann -- as well as the band of slithery reptiles and colourful exotic birds from all over the world.

During the 90-minute show, held at an amphitheatre that could accommodate up to 800 people, animal acts and antics would be showcased.

Guests would also be entertained by a native Borneo tribe with their exciting jungle rhythms while being taken on a cultural journey.

The Wildlife Theatre Melaka will be celebrating its first anniversary with a carnival on Nov 17, from 10.30am to 9pm.

"To mark our inaugural anniversary this year, we will be hosting a full-day carnival with exciting activities and spectacular performances. It will be packed with fun, educational activities and nutritious food for the whole family," said Fam.

Among the activities lined up from morning to night are snake guessing game, traditional congkak game, naming the baby raccoons game and Borneo cultural dance. The programme will climax with a grand finale featuring fire-eating performances. "We will be running four shows, at 10.30am, 3pm, 5pm and 7.30pm. And as a show of appreciation, our tickets will be sold on a Buy 1, Free 1 basis," said Fam.

"Except for the 5pm performance, the tickets for the shows will be priced at RM20 for adults and RM15 for children and senior citizens. The tickets for the 5pm show will be RM25 for adults and RM20 for children and senior citizens, as there will also be a magic show.

"On the day of the carnival, visitors can also be part of our history by participating in the naming of baby raccoons. We currently have a pair of two-month-old raccoons from Procyon Lotor species originating from North America, and they do not have a name yet, so there will be a contest to select the most suitable name for the babies."

Pulau Melaka is about half a kilometre off the coast of Taman Melaka Raya, and merely five minutes' drive from A'Famosa and Jonker Walk.

For details, visit www.wildlifetheatre.com.my or Wildlife Theatre Melaka's Facebook page.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

NATIONAL ARCHIVES TO RECOVER PRE-1800 HISTORICAL RECORDS

National Archives to recover country’s pre-1800 historical records

Posted on October 31, 2012, Wednesday

MELAKA: The National Archives is on a mission to recover records on the country’s history dating back before the year 1800, of which many are currently kept in foreign countries, especially in India.

Its director-general Daresah Ismail said this effort could help to enlighten the people on the history during that era, as the historical records kept by the Naational Archives at the moment were mostly after the year 1800.

“We lack of historical records during the British, Dutch and Portugese colonial eras before 1800 because those records had been brought back by them.

“So the National Archives is now attempting to bring back copies of the records especially from India as it was a former administrative centre for the British,” she told reporters after attending an outreach programme at Saad Foundation College here, yesterday.

Daresah added that the oldest collection at the National Archives was on churches in Melaka during the Dutch colonial era in the 16th century as well as the birth and death registry of that time.

“We also have copies of documents from Japan which contained stories on Admiral Hang Tuah and the Melaka Malay Sultanate in the 1500s,” she said. — Bernama

WEBMASTER: IT WILL BE INTERESTING IF WE CAN GET A COPY OF SIR STAMFORD RAFFLES'S LETTER TO LORD MINTO APPEAL TO HIM TO STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MALACCA A FAMOSA FORTRESS.

MELAKA 750 YEARS OLD - FACT OR FICTION?

Chinese archives hold key to Malacca’s founding

October 11, 2012

FMT LETTER: From NK Khoo, via e-mail

The Malacca sultanate’s existence is proven only through cross reference with other historical archives from China, Siam, Portuguese, etc. because all archives from the Malacca palace were believed to have been destroyed during the wartime.

Historians are fully aware that China’s Ming dynasty history is the most well documented archives in the world, unlike Malacca’s history which was written a hundred years later.

Ming palace records are still existence and can be accessed by researchers to verify when Parameswara visited Nanjing.

Parameswara’s visit to China in 1405 was well documented in the Ming palace official journals with the details such as of what food served to him and his delegation on a particular day.

If the founding date for Malacca is 1262, then the history of the Ming Dynasty and Siam are all proven wrong or at least the Ming Dynasty history has to be brought forward 150 years to synchronise with the new Malacca history as claimed by Malacca government. This is a very unlikely event!

Most world renowned historians will not accept a history announced by local government without proper research works done on the subject. History still has to substantiated with evidences like palace official documents, artifacts, cross reference archives, etc.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

MELAKA WANTS MORE SINGAPOREAN TOURISTS

02 November 2012 | last updated at 01:20PM

Melaka to draw more Singaporean tourists

SINGAPORE: The Melaka government is set to attract more tourists from Singapore to the Unesco World Heritage City of Melaka through collaboration with the main industry players in the city state, said Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam.

"We are really looking forward to establishing networking and cooperation with the main industry players here in order to attract more tourists from Singapore," he said at a Melaka tourism product update event here on Thursday.

Mohd Ali said that to sustain Melaka City's position as a must-visit destination, the state government was promoting it based on 12 sub-sector tourism products, namely history, culture, recreation, sports, shopping,convention, health, education, agro-tourism, food, Melaka My 2nd Home and youth tourism.

Also present at the event were Tourism Malaysia Director for Singapore Zalizam Zakaria; Melaka State Secretary Datuk Wira Omar Kaseh; Melaka Tourism, Culture and Heritage Committee Chairman Datuk Wira Latiff Tamby Chik; General Manager of the Tourism Promotion Division in the Melaka Chief Minister's Department, Abd Kadir Md Idris, and local tourism industry players.

Mohd Ali said: "Last year, we received a total of 12.2 million tourist arrivals compared to 10.3 million in 2010, an increase of 17.5 per cent, with the length of stay at 2.15 nights. Tourist expenditure increased to about RM7.5 billion compared to RM5 billion previously."

In terms of foreign markets, he said, China continued to be the market leader, with a share of 21 per cent, followed by Singapore (18.9 per cent),Indonesia (11.3 per cent), Taiwan (six per cent) and Myanmar (5.5 per cent). "Singapore continues to be the second major market for foreign touristarrivals in Melaka," he said.

The chief minister said various efforts and strategies had been developed toattract 12.5 million tourist arrivals to Melaka this year, and added that this mission was supported by the theme of "Visit Historic Melaka Means Visit Malaysia".

He also said that Melaka was being introduced to tourists as a state that was clean, beautiful, colourful and bright, as well as a shopping paradise which also had delicious and tasty food.

"I hope this visit will mark the beginning of a steady flow of tourists from Singapore to Melaka. In conjunction with the 'Melaka 750 Years' celebration,should you visit Malaysia, and specially Melaka, this year, you would be able to experience more than 120 events, including 20 mega events and festivities, that have been planned throughout the year," he said.

-- BERNAMA

Thursday, November 1, 2012

HAPPY DEEPAVALI 2012

To all Hindus around the world, we wish to extend our "Happy Deepavali" greetings.

May the festival of lights help us in overcoming our shortcomings. Let us celebrate and bathe in the Lights of Deepavali.

HAPPY DEEPAVALI

www.tourism-melaka.com