Visit Malaysia Year Haiku - Dining By The Tomb - Bukit China (State Of Malacca) Poem by john tiong chunghoo

at this unesco city Malaccca
you can dine
with ghosts

bukit china
as we dine
the forlorness of the tombs

bukit china
two ends of the world
we dine with tombs at our feet

Bukit China
we breakfast with
old Chinese ghosts

Bukit China
as we dig breakfast
the tombs just another feast for the eyes

bukit china
our hot coffee
the coldness of the tombs

Bukit China is the famous hill in Malacca town where for several hundred years, Malaysian Chinese have used to bury their dead. There are tombs by the foothills which is near to the busy traffic of the historical town. One hawker stall at the foothills sells mixed rice and coffee. They never fail to attract customers despite the old tombs around. Bukit China or Chinese Hill is said to the oldest and largest hill cemetey outside China. Chinese have been residing in Malacca since the Malacca Empire in the 14th Century. They first came as traders. A Ming Princess Hang Li Poh married a Malacca Sultan which cemented the relationship between China and the Malacca Empire then.