Just English

Melaka, which was recently listed as a UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Site, was the destination for 34 ELS and Just English Centre @Highlands’ students during a weekend visit on July 11. It was an educational trip with a purpose: to help them to know more about the history of Melaka.

The multinational students were from Malaysia, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, China, Khazakstan, Saudi Arabia and Korea, and they were accompanied by four staff. They reached Melaka at noon, and the first stop was at Dataran Pahlawan Mall where they had lunch.

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The real activities started after their lunch. Besides sightseeing and having fun, the students needed to answer questions when visiting two places there: Dutch Square and St Paul's Hill Complex. There was also the additional objective of building up their team work. In the process of finding the answers, they discovered that they could achieve more and faster when there was cooperation among themselves.

One of the main places they visited was Dutch Square, which is also known as The Stadthuys. This distinctive building, made with red bricks imported from Zecland, Holland, is believed to be the oldest Dutch building in South-East Asia. It was once the centre of the Dutch administration in Melaka, and had housed the quarters of its governors and officers.

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There are three other notable items at Dutch Square: Christ Church, Tan Beng Swee Clock Tower and Queen Victoria Fountain. The clock tower, which was built in 1886, was named after a successful Chinese businessman. The fountain was built in 1904 in commemoration of Queen Victoria's 60th anniversary of coronation.

The students then moved on to St Paul's Hill Complex to answer the next set of questions. At the bottom lies the remains of the famous A Famosa fortress built by the Portuguese. On top of the hill, which was accessible via a stairway, lies the ruins of St Paul Church. It was originally a Portuguese chapel that was built in 1521. The Dutch renamed it to St Paul's Church when they took over in 1641, and turned it into a cemetery when the Christ Church was completed in 1753.

In 1952, a statue of St Francis Xavier was built to commemorate the passing of the pioneering Catholic missionary of Southeast Asia. One arm was broken off when a casuarina tree fell on it.

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From here, the students moved on to a structure that is quite modern - the Eye on Malaysia. The students were thrilled to take a 12-minute ride on this 60-meter-tall Ferris Wheel installation. From their seat, they had a panoramic view of the historical city.

The last item on their trip was a river cruise at the Malacca River. The boat ride started at a jetty near a remarkable windmill opposite the Stadhuys. The 45-minute cruise took the students past many historic bridges. They include the Chan Boon Seng Bridge that was built in 1908, which connected Kampung Pantai or Old Chinatown to Jalan Bunga Raya (New Chinatown). There were also the Old Market Bridge, Hang Tuah Bridge and Kampung Morten Bridge.

It was an enjoyable cruise for the students, who could see various historical buildings from their boats. Kampung Morten is listed as one of Melaka's historic sites by UNESCO due to the presence of well-preserved traditional Malay houses.

After the river cruise, it was time for the students to head back to KL. However, they didn't leave on an empty stomach - a KFC dinner ensured that they were in good spirits all the way back. The trip to historical Melaka was indeed unique - it was enjoyable while being educational at the same time.