I think we noticed the smell of the main market well before we reached it! July is durian season in Malaysia and there were plenty of the King of Fruits to be seen and smelt. There were plenty of smaller stalls surrounding the central covered market, and our task was to find Hanis!
We were distracted by the stalls selling beautiful Batik clothe and clothes in stunning colours which you rarely see in Johor Bahru. I think these outfits are reserved for special occasions so are not normally seen by outsiders.
I did my bit for domestic tourism and also bought some cloth to turn into a tablecloth when I return to colourless England. I chose a turquoise colour but the vendor wanted me to buy the brown version, or the purple version, anything but the version I had chosen.
Walking round the market was hot work so I has happy to see a stall selling cendol and somewhere to sit down too! The guys in the gold shop opposite us pointed out that we needed to stir our cendol to mix up all the sweet delicious ingredients. Although we knew to do this, if we were tourists this would have been very helpful advice. I did try to chat with these stall holders, as they cleary had no customers, but my lack of Malay and their limited English did not get us very far. Still, it was a pleasant exchange.
Back in the market we walked past piles and piles of dried food stuffs, so bought a few snacks for the road.
When the young guy below saw my camera, he immediatedly posed for a photo.
When we finally met up with Hanis and made plans for the rest of the day, we exited the market only to come across more fruit and vegetable stalls……. We spent an hour here and could easily have spent much longer, but we had other places to visit today.
Markets are always interesting and fun places to visit. In Malaysia, you never know if people can speak English until you speak to them, so do not be afraid to try for a conversation. Malaysians seem to welcome foreigners and love to know what you think of their country.
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