Exploring Pasar Traditional And its people
Pasar Tradisional is a type of marketplace in Indonesia that sells various goods including seafood, fish, vegetables,spices, even household items. Pasar itself in English means market but there seems to be no exact English term for this type of market. The word “traditional '' is attached to it in order to distinguish this place from the modern marketplace. The most interesting part about this market or generally any pasar is the excitement of bargaining.
In Indonesia, many pasar tradisional is open 24 hours but some of it starts as early as 3 AM. This is where many small sellers are shopping for their kiosk or for their vendor cart. So generally, in this place things are sold in higher quantities.
Pasar is a place that I can recommend to anyone who wants to travel and actually experience Indonesia's life. You might gain some newer perspective than just lounging in the shade served by an Indonesian waitress. You will have some pictures of how their day-to-day life might look like. Afterall, Pasar is part of the culture.
And traveling doesn’t always mean to visit nice places, even humble places have their own story and interest.
I went to Pasar Tradisional with my mom as early as 6 AM. I wanted to do some shoots and learn about something called “human interest”. I want to see for myself how mundane things can actually evoke a certain emotions and story. Everyone has a story and I suppose that’s the reason there’s a human interest story perspective.
Like the pasar my mom and I went to, most pasar sell common items. But it depends on the places/region that you visited. Pasar will always have its own food signature and goods that you can only find in that place.
The first seller that we stumbled upon was a man in a truck full of coconut. These coconuts are not for drinking, rather for cooking. These coconut will be shredded and made milk out of it. The seller was busy moving the coconut from the truck to the stand, so I didn’t bother asking.
On the way to the heart of the market, I saw some cute cats enjoying their breakfast. This spot is known for having a lot of stray cats as the owner always provides cat food for the stray cats around the area.
As we walked more, I spotted a banana seller looking rather dejected. Perhaps, it was her natural expression but since she was on the road side of the street, I could not ask.
Just a few steps after the banana seller, we found a chicken seller. In this place, the seller and the buyer were asking me to take a picture of them when they noticed I had a camera in hand. They didn’t mind that I was shooting a few times of their exchange and expression. It was fun and I said thank you to them.
As I have mentioned that each place has their own unique cuisine, I finally reached a place where they sell klanting, a colored rice cake snack eaten with liquid palm sugar. This snack used to be my favorite and I hardly find them anywhere other than in pasar around east java.
While I stood waiting for my klanting, I took a picture of a spinach seller. These people with bamboo carts on their bikes are often selling things from their own garden or farm.
Finding Exotic Food
Then after I got my klanting, we went looking for a place that sells Sate Pecel. This is not your typical satay or pecel. This dish is the signature of this place. The satay is made from the innard of a cow. So, in a piece of satay you can mostly find intestines. It is given some spices with peanut sauce then grilled.
The satay is served with pecel, a dish that refers to rice and vegetables with peanut sauce. It’s definitely a hell of a breakfast, so filling and so fatty.
Since my mom forgot the exact location, we walked around a neighborhood filled with murals. One of the murals is a symbol of this city and the rest are filled with aliens and solar systems. We eventually met a local who told us the place.
“ It’s there, did you see the sign?” said a woman while pointing out to the street sign.
“ Thank you!”
We reached the place too early and the owner, a woman in her early 72’s , was chatting with us. She told us to wait and that the place opens at 7 AM. The woman was friendly and made our waiting time pleasant. She told us that a few days ago, a reporter from the city’s magazine was covering her story. From her cover story, she mentioned that she has been selling the satay since 1937. While we were at her place, she also told us that she used to sell it at the market but eventually moved home. And at her age, she still loves working because she can earn some money even if it’s not much. Having the establishment at home made it better as she doesn’t have to transport the ingredients.
I would say her type of satay color is similar to satay padang. Yet again, it differs. It’s main ingredient is from the cow's womb and the innards. Perhaps, that’s why it can’t be specified of the name and would rather have it as, than a cow's womb satay.
And to be fair, I didn't even know it was a cow’s womb.It was right after I read the cover story that I discovered what that soft-texture that I ate was.
To enjoy a plate of it, it costs 1$ for 5 pieces of mixed satay with rice, bean sprouts, spiced shredded coconut and peanut sauce. It’s quite a reasonable price to enjoy this exotic food.
Mac's Pinmapple Travel List
Don't hesitate to upvote for more content like this !
 | Mac is a jack of all trades. A typical introvert in love with literature, books, technology and philosophy. She is also so into nootropics, productivity, minimalist lifestyle, cybersecurity, and languages. Other than that, she is passionate about cooking and traveling. In her free time, she enjoys learning various things. If you like her content, don't hesitate to upvote, leave a comment or a feedback. A re-blog is also appreciated. |