8 May 2009: Kuala Lumpur - Melaka

When I told the guy in charge of the hotel that we wanted to check out at 4.30am, he was surprised. "Where are you guys going at that time?"

"Melaka." I replied. He smiled and wished us good luck.

We took the Jalan Pudu - Jalan Cheras route out of Kuala Lumpur. At 4.30am in the morning, the roads were largely clear of traffic and we breezed through the empty streets, taking up a lane. Even on the Lebuhraya Cheras - Kajang, traffic was minimal and when we missed an exit and found ourselves on the Lebuhraya Utara - Seletan, we could easily cross to the other side and back-track. Federal Road 1 led us to Seremban where we had breakfast at a hawker centre.

For RM3.80, one could get a generous, large serving of wanton noodles. I opted for sotong bee hoon (RM4) which tasted unique, something different from the usual kind of noodles found in Singapore. The serving was generous indeed and the dark gravy that went along was tasty. I also tried the "sui jiao" soup which they sold at RM0.60 per dumpling. It was quite nice; the dumplings were definitely bigger than the ones you find in Singapore.

At 9.45am, we reluctantly continued our journey to Melaka. By then, the sun was up and the intense heat made the going tough. We hit headwind at certain spots and it slowed me by quite a bit but luckily we changed direction soon after. We stopped at a petrol station and grocery store in Rembau at about 11am. At that point, my water bag was almost empty and we could use some isotonic drinks. They didn't come very cheap (RM3.50 for a 1.5l bottle of 100 Plus) but it was a splendid opportunity to boost our energy. I pumped my tires up to 80psi at the petrol kiosk and the difference in performance was quite obvious.

A Malay uncle on a bike came over to chat with us. It was an old Raleigh (those pre/post-war bicycles) but the headbadge seemed to be some sort of sticker hence we couldn't tell if it was genuine. I tried to ask him about his bike but he wasn't too sure.

He was very amicable and when he learnt that we are Singaporeans, told us he had been in Singapore before. He described Geylang and Joo Chiat and how he had gone there to visit his relatives. That was back in 1950. He was born in 1941. He asked how long we had been in Malaysia and said we should spend at least a week there. Learn more about the culture and make more friends, he said. He even recommended us a mountain in the area. A lot of people climb that, he said, much to our horror. I think we have had enough of mountains. As we chatted with him, a middle aged man on a scooter joined in. Soon, we parted ways, waving goodbye to them.

As we neared Melaka, we had to cross a hilly region. I thought it was some sort of joke, except that it was not funny at all. It was a rather taxing climb but fortunately, we were rewarded with a few kilometres of downslopes. What an entrance into Melaka.

The best was yet to come. More and more motorists started to acknowledge our presence, waving and shouting their cheers. As we compacted into a small group and moved down a lane, the motorists were more than willing to give way, even when we had to filter lanes. No horns, no nothing. The first question they always seem to ask was where we were headed. Then they would ask, race? We would laugh it off. No...just a holiday.

As we sped past schools, the children would cheer. We were a distraction, and their teachers were teaching when they spotted us! To the teachers, sorry for interrupting your lessons.

When Melaka Sentral loomed within sight, I was so glad. We had done it once again. According to Pan, we were doing an average 30km/h for that 150km which was pretty solid, considering our backpacks of clothes and equipment to last us four days.

Deciding that we have had enough adventure over the past couple of days, we decided to check the availability of bus tickets home. It was not easy to get tickets to Larkin but luck was on our side. When we enquired at the Malacca - Singapore Express booth, the bus driver took us to his bus to check if all the bikes could fit in. They could. He then told us to meet back at the same spot (parking bay) at 2.30pm to load our bikes.

We changed to a fresh set of clothes, grabbed a couple of drinks and assembled at the parking bay. Since we couldn't find the driver, we asked at the counter but the lady knew nuts. Clever Pan realised what was going on and when we returned to the parking bay, the driver was on the bus. We loaded all the bikes in and slept onboard till 4pm (the driver said he had been delayed to 4pm).

To cut the story short, only two passengers with tickets boarded the bus and we left for Singapore. One was a Malaysian visiting his brother, a Singapore PR, in Tanjong Katong while the other was a German who had spent just one day in Melaka before returning to Singapore. He had spent ten days in Singapore, some time in Bintan and was due to fly home soon. He did find Melaka intriguing.

With some help from the driver (we paid RM25 per pax), we cleared both customs with ease and unloaded the bicycles at Woodlands. Waiting for his two passengers, the driver naturally struck up a conversation with us and he suggested we visit Port Dickson (luckily we did not, if not, it would be around 190km from KL - Melaka). When the two passengers arrived, we bid them farewell and off the bus went. We had a little explaining to do when we passed the final police booth at the end of the bus lane but we got through.

Dinner at Woodlands was a welcome relief. The duck rice was okay; what stood out was the ice kachang. As good as before.

On the way home, we tested out the theory that Malaysian drivers were much more courteous as compared to their Singaporean counterparts. We rode in a tight group of four, taking up a lane. As expected, in the short span of 10km from Woodlands to Sembawang, we got honked at rudely twice.

What a holiday!

Total distance: 160km
Money spent: RM255~ (total 3D2N)
Participants: LSH, Pan, Gerald, Daniel