A Tiny Boy Enjoys South Indian Food in Melaka

We've just arrived in the Portuguese explorer city of Melaka, on Malaysia's west coast. This city is famous for the Straits of Mallaca, where pirates lurk, and for being a UNESCO World Heritage Sight.

I remember being here in 2006; we even stayed in the same hotel, which is called Hotel Puri. It's located on a narrow side street right next to the winding river, and two streets over is the night market, which brings Chinese and Indian traders out until 11 pm selling all kinds of wares.

I remember I bought red batik a shirt there for Cindy and she still wears it, that's a nice feeling. When we first arrived here, I made my way to this open air courtyard, where I remember there was wireless, and ahah! once I got a password from a gent sitting by his suitcase, I was back in business. The small courtyard is full of giant bamboo trees and waterfalls, and is a pleasant place to have a cigarette or to write a blog.

Before we got here, we had to stop for roti canai, one of our favorite snacks here in Malaysia. It's grilled chewy naan bread with coconut fish curry and lental dahl dips. It's served on a metal plate and you don't use a fork, just wrap the naan around the dips and bite. When we first entered the restaurant, we watched a man with a big smile on his face grill the naan with a flourish. We sat down and dug in, and had teh tarik, (chai tea) to go along with it. Once again, we were eating fine for about $.85 apiece.

A little tiny boy sat with his parents in the back of the restaurant, so small he barely took up the whole chair. This little guy was irrestible, so we had to do the papparazzi thing and snap his photo, after asking Mom and Dad who seemed amused by our fascination with the tiny lad.