History of Jonker Street 📸🎡🛍️
Commonly known as Jonker Walk, Jalan Hang Jebat is situated in the heart of Melaka. Due to Chinese influences, it’s also referred to as the China Town of Melaka. Whatever the name is, Jonker Street really appears to be a living museum and is a must-visit place for anyone visiting Melaka.
The story of Jonker Walk goes to the Dutch Period of Melaka. The servants and subordinates of Dutch masters used to live at nearby Heeren Street. However, as soon as the Dutch left, it became a noblemen’s street! Rich Baba Nonyas (also known as Peranakans) started to live and did business within the street area, giving the street a deep-rooted ethnic and cultural flavour.
Today, the street houses many shops selling antiques, textiles, handicrafts, and souvenirs (similar to what you can find at Central Market in Kuala Lumpur). On the weekends, starting Friday night at 6 pm, the road is closed off to traffic and turns into a very crowded night market.
Due to the availability of collectible items dating back to medieval times at many shops, it is also referred to as Antique Street. It is also known worldwide among serious antique collectors as one of the best places to hunt and bargain for antiques. The antique shops here are featuring artifacts from different periods of colonial rule: the Portuguese, Dutch, and British period.
Architecture 🌇
The road starts from across the Melaka River near the Stadthuys. The long narrow five hundred-meter street road is flanked by historical houses along its left and right sides dating back to the 17th century. It also has shops selling antiques, textiles, foods, handicrafts, and souvenirs. It was merely a row of shacks when it started on the Western bank of Melaka RIver.
Opening Hours Jonker Walk Night Market 🌃
🕑 Friday to Sunday (6 -12 midnight)
Fun Things To Do in Jonker Street: Try Out Chicken Rice Balls & Jonker Walk Night Market
Try Out The Chicken Rice Balls
There are several stories that attempt to explain the shape of this meal, and all three of them are stories of necessary ingenuity. Of the most famous is of a young woman’s struggle to earn enough money to feed her children after her fisherman husband had been detained for fishing in international waters. As her main customers were men tasked with loading and unloading the boats who barely had time to sit down for a meal, she thought of a way to make her food convenient to handle.
And thus, chicken ball rice was born. Portable and easy to eat, they became a hit. So much so that when the husband managed to leave jail, he left behind the seafaring life in order to join his wife’s booming business! Nowadays, the main consumers of famous chicken rice stalls can expect a more leisurely dining experience… though in the more popular, local favorite restaurants, you definitely will have to expect a wait!
Jonker Walk Night Market
One of the main nightlife attractions in Melaka is its night market. The Jonker Walk Night Market in the Chinatown area closes Jalan Hang Lekir to traffic and when the sun goes down, this area will be flooded with people – as it becomes a mini street party with tables oozing beyond the sidewalks and a mix of live music coursing throughout the area.
The best part of Jonker Street is that; the night market sells everything from tasty treats to cheap keepsakes. There are lots of exciting things here! Spend your weekend night bustling over an open-air market, with an array of food & souvenirs, plus entertainment!
Fun Things To Do in Jonker Street: Jonker Street Library & Harmony Street
Jonker Street Library - for Book Worm
Are you someone that always brings books in your hands? Even though you are out exploring places, you’re still addicted to finding books all over the place, where you can find any? You don’t have to ignore your intuition. Reading helps you in many ways beyond just being able to read and know certain knowledge. Being an enthusiastic reader helps you become a better speller. Head on over to Jonker Street’s library to fulfill your desire for reading while travelling. Maybe the most underrated fascination in the area, The Jonker Street Library is decked-out with conventional Chinese furnishings and has a great assortment of Buddhist writing and sacred writings.
The library’s roomy perusing territories are additionally lit up with regular lighting, making it the
ideal spot for individuals who need a transitory break from the clamouring hordes of Jonker Street. This library also has numerous artifacts placed around which adds a certain charm and character to the already historically rich shop house. Remaining consistent with the conventional Chinese social customs, guests should forgo utilizing their cell phones and talking boisteruously when they enter the place.
Walk Through the "Harmony Street"
It’s not difficult to see why this historically and culturally important place is dubbed “Harmony Street”. A number of places of worship abound in the area, and they belong to different religions – the major religions in Malaysia. They are the Kampung Kling Mosque (Islam), Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi Temple (Hinduism), Cheng Hoon Teng Temple (Taoism, Buddhism Confucianism), and Xiang Lin Si Temple (Buddhism). Harmony Street is a gigantic testament to religious pluralism in Malacca, which is absolutely admirable.
