Muar's old town is a loose grid of pre-war shophouses, coffee shops, small traders, and murals around the centre. It is not preserved as a heritage district in the way Melaka is, which is partly why it feels more ordinary and more alive.
Walk the streets around Jalan Ali and the older commercial blocks without rushing. The reward is in details: tiled five-foot ways, painted signs, kopitiam breakfasts, and walls brightened by newer street art.