It's #MarketFriday!
So, let me take you on a little tour of a Malaysian market, not just any market but one in the town of Miri which is situated in Sarawak, North Borneo. I was stationed there for about a month and unlike other work trips where I only saw the hotel and the work place, I actually had time to drop by the local market.
One of the first things you would notice when you arrive at our local market would be the smells - of fish, for example. Not raw fish, but dried and salted ones. The smell is definitely distinguishable! This is our first stop.
Piles of various grade and size ‘ikan bilis’ or anchovies are on sale together with salted fish (seen in foreground). ‘Ikan bilis’ feature in a lot of Malaysian dishes, one of which is the well-known ‘nasi lemak’ . Some also sell ready peeled and cleaned ‘ikan bilis’ which are priced higher. The ‘ikan bilis’ are sold by weight (kg)
Most of the stalls here are small family-owned and sell on a small-scale. One typical stall would be as seen below.
Here, you see a stall selling local vegetables - mostly ferns...
A compilation of the various vegetables on sale here is seen below
A general shot of the market
Ahaaaa... The highlight of the Miri market was this one stall or it was just table actually, with little raised plastic tubs... I couldn't see what was in them from afar, and had to move closer to take a look. Something was moving inside...
Here is a close-up, specially for your benefit!
Sago worms!
Sago worms are a local delicacy and (get ready for this...) are eaten raw, as is, wriggly and alive! Grab one by the head - the dark bit on one end, and bite the rest off! And chew... before swallowing!! Or you may try it fried - seems it tastes kinda buttery... Lol, not that I tried... I'm too chicken for that! Haha...
After that 'highlight', I walked on to the other side where they had some gongs for sale and the traditional costumes to go with it.
So that was my visit to the Miri market. I didn't have enough time to cover everything else - I'm sure I would have found more delightful displays... Hope you enjoyed this visit. And if you have a visit to a market of your own that you would like to show us, we'll be most happy to come along.
How to Participate:
- Go to a market! Any market will do! Food, Clothing, Plant or Animal, if you wish.
- Take pictures! Be creative (or not)
- Tell us a little bit about the market, what brought you here?
- Post the picture(s)
- Don’t forget to hashtag it! #MarketFridayChallenge by
It is always interesting to see the different markets around the globe!