This Sunday, as we were driving to Tasik Bera (Bera Lake), the largest freshwater swamp in Peninsular Malaysia, distanced roughly 200km from Kuala Lumpur, we made a halt at Temerloh, about 130km from K.L. and the second largest city in Pahang State. The purpose of halt? Shopping!!!
Most of the shopkeepers are of Malay origin and the market completely captures out the authenticity of a typical 'Kampung'. One MUST visit here.
The journey begins
That's me.
Camera-shy vendors
Across the Pahang river
Haggle away
The oldies of Pekan Sehari
Prospective customers
I warned my mother not to keep her hopes too high as the town seemed quite dull and lifeless. When we enquired about the location of the Temerloh market, people either didn't have a clue or they misled us to the wrong locations. Now I understand why. We had asked directions for the 'Pasar' (market) and not the 'Pekan Sehari' (one-day market). Anyway, we finally reached and had to park about half a mile away from the market since there were hundred other cars parked. When we first entered, we immediately understood our whole objective of having sojourned there. Do not ask me what was available there. Ask me what wasn't.
The Pekan Sehari in Temerloh is the longest one-day market (about 3km) in Malaysia. Mostly all vendors travel by boat across the Pahang river and every Sunday, at around 7AM the stalls are reconstructed. The party stays till 2PM but usually the shopkeepers start wrapping up after sale from 10AM. The otherwise comatose town comes to life each Sunday and what could bring up the 'Sunday-feeling' more than a never-ending wet market. From motorised toys to shoes, bags and garments, you'll find them here. From Iranian dates to herbal soaps and potions, from foot-mats to blankets, from coloured popcorn and candy-floss to wooden oars, you'll find them all here. The vegetable and fruit vendors too have an enormous variety of goods, both of the usual (potato, tomato, onion, chillies etc. among veggies & banana, mangoes, pears among fruits) and unusual kind (banana flower, lotus flower among veggies & lanzones and Rambutans among fruits). The fishes seem extremely fresh - the speciality among them being the Patin (catfish) and the lobsters, mostly caught from the Pahang river. The meat section is pretty busy too, with prospective buyers scrounging for beef, chicken, lamb or pigeon meat like they're digging for gold. Has shopping famished you? There are a number of Satay stalls and other stalls selling pancakes and a lot of undecipherable fried stuff and varied-flavoured drinks and small restaurants etc. where you can fill your stomach.
Most of the shopkeepers are of Malay origin and the market completely captures out the authenticity of a typical 'Kampung'. One MUST visit here.
Items on sale.
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