Traditional Market

When I still lived in Holland, one of many things I missed about Indonesia was its traditional markets. A traditional market is a building in which people rent or own a counter for their stuff. Those who have less money and cannot afford to pay the rent, they are still allowed to sell paying just a little to the authority. The spot is outside the building, they put their stuff on the ground covered with the mat. Mostly they just stay through morning until noon, then they had to go. They have limited time to sell than other vendors inside the building.


I grew up in a time when supermarkets were rare and just for rich people since the price is higher than in traditional markets. Of course, it’s because they have to pay the price for the convenience as well which is included in the items sold while in traditional markets, the price is not fixed, you can bargain. It is the main reason why my mom prefers to shop at the traditional market until today. I remember when I was little, about 6 or 7 years old, my mom took me there. She talked to many people, buyers and vendors, she seemed to know everyone. The worst thing for me was when she had to buy fish or meat. The meat section was actually ok but it was close to the fish section which was very smelly. I always felt the need to throw up every time I was there. To avoid the problem with the people around especially the vendors, my mom let me wait at the vegetable area or other counters, then she went alone to buy meat or fish and came back to pick me up.

Then the tradition goes on. Once I took my daughter, Pelangi, to a traditional market. When we were just at the entrance, she was about to throw up. A couple of years later, my helper took my two kids also to a traditional market. It was the first time for Anugerah, my son. Do you know what happened? Yes, the smell of the market made him wanting to throw up as well. Like daughter, like son, like mother. Fruits indeed never fall far away from its tree.


Now we live In Indonesia, I still like to go to the traditional markets. Most of the stuff is cheaper and fresher but most of all, I like is the atmosphere. In such a market where many people sell same stuffs, it is easy to buy things from the same vendors. In two traditional markets in Malang, Pasar Besar (Big market) and Oro Oro Dowo, I also know some vendors and they know which day I usually come. If I come at different day or time they will say, “I miss you yesterday” or “Oh, you’re late!” They see a lot of people but they still recognize me and they also know what kind of stuff I mostly buy from them. It amazes me, they have that attention while their stuffs are still left many yet no buyers. They have to race with the time because they cannot sell the same items for the next day. The later the day the less people come.

There is one thing that I found so amused. In Pasar Besar there are some ladies from whom I often buy vegetables and chicken, who call me “dear”. They might also say it to all of their clients I guess, but it is always comforting to me every time they call me this way but of course I don’t expect the same way from the salesmen. I remember one day I went there with so many things in my mind. At the market I heard them calling me dear. They were happy to see me. It really made my day. I knew they expect me to buy a lot from them, but I also knew that they don’t just think about money, I can prove it to you.

One day I was in hurry to go there, I haven’t had my breakfast yet. It was windy and I wore a shirt and sweater. Inside the market was hot and humid. I wasn’t feeling well. I began to sweat and felt the pain in my whole body. I felt dizzy and hard to walk. One of the vegetable ladies whom I know looked worried to see me and said that I looked pale. I couldn’t stand any longer so she gave me a place to sit. I felt worse. She ordered a glass of warm tea with a lot of sugar for me and she started to massage my head. After a while I felt a little better and decided to just go back home. The lady helped me bring my basket to my car. What a trait! She preferred to bring my stuffs rather than watching her own stuffs. She might miss the buyers, but again other vendors would help her to keep an eye on them.

In the car, being too weak to drive, I called a good friend to send her driver to drive my car back home.

Since then my respect for those sales ladies in the market was growing. They might look ordinary but their heart is extra ordinary. I always think about them every time I see a traditional market. I believe that they are the angels in disguise.
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Home Sweet Home

Since we were married, we moved every two years. I don’t know why but it seems it was the step we had to go through. Within 15 years we had moved to 8 different houses, 2 of them were our own, one in Holland (now it has been sold) and another one is where I and my two kids are living now, in Malang, Indonesia.

I remember when my husband asked for my opinion if we could buy a house in Malang although we were not sure we would stay there for a long time. He said, it’s better than renting a house because no matter what you do with the rented house, it will never be yours. I agreed. So that was the topic of the day for a year. We started to visit housing complex, compare developers, ask prices, quality of the materials, etc. A ready house is easy to find and gives much less headache but often you are not satisfied with the lay-out and the quality of the materials, etc. Finally we decided to buy the lot and build the house instead of buying a ready one.

From some big housing complexes we were interested in Villa Puncak Tidar. A nice area, wide streets and still has lots of open spaces. The gardens and streets are well taken care of. They also have 24 hour-security that keeps your privacy. We bought the lot not on the main street so it’s quiet. It is at the end of the street and next to it is a vacant lot used as someone’s garden whose house is not too far from it, so the possibility to have a new development in that lot is slim. The lot on the back side of our house is owned by a catholic church. They have a boarding house for nuns and a big nice garden often used as a retreat spot.

Then we had to find an architect to design the house and a contractor to build it. After asking some people and friends we finally managed to find one contractor who is well-known in Malang. We have visited some houses he had built and we were pleased to see them. The other good news was he also designed houses. We then made an appointment to meet and discuss and tell him what kind of house we love to have. We really clicked. Being a Dutch and loving the heritage, my husband, Jan, likes the type of an old Dutch house. Maybe he wanted to feel the way Jan Pieter Zoon Coen lived in Dutch Indie.

I don’t have any objection with the style of old Dutch house. In Malang there are still many houses like that and they are indeed beautiful. They built the houses adjusted to the climate for sure. Since Indonesia is a tropical place, most houses have high ceiling and many windows to let the air circulate well and you feel cool inside the house while the outside is hot. We talked about the lay out. We wanted a simple one, open, good air circulation and have enough light. We wanted just 3 bedrooms and 1 room for a helper.

When we saw the drawing the builder made, we just fell in love with it at once. Yes, we loved it. We had some months before we began to build. It gave us a good time to arrange our budget to go to this house.

It was just a plain land and didn’t change except the grass which grew higher, but my husband liked to spend his time there every day. Mostly after dinner we visited the area and took a walk around. We already had a “we-belong-here” feeling. When they started to build, we still went there every day, the building looked nicer and nicer since we saw the changes every time we came. It became clearer and clearer. We told the kids where their sleeping rooms would be and the bathroom, kitchen, garage, etc. We also took some pictures of them.

It took one year to build this house. In July 2007, few days before our son’s 6th birthday, we moved to the house. There were still works to do but we were able to sleep and cook. It gave a nice feeling to live in your own house. Like a baby which grows into a toddler, we experienced the same thing with this house. The room has an open lay out concept where dining and sitting room located. It is very big, so big that the kids could play badminton there.

We were satisfied with the contractor. The material is good and strong, you can see it directly. We also have a big garden at the front, at the back and at one side of the house. In the back yard we made a fishpond with waterfall. Our son is crazy about fish and other water animals but lucky me that a blue whale cannot fit in it. Other than that, we like the sound of the water, it soothes your nerves and emotions, makes you calm and serene.

The side yard has been made into a tropical garden with lots of plants. We have a big terrace and a bale-bale (big bench) where you can lie down on your lazy days and enjoy reading your favorite books or magazine or just take a rest and with the breeze blows tenderly on your face, I bet you’d fall asleep. Even my lovely dog, Browny, loves to get relax there, so relax that he often forgets his role to guard the house instead of taking a nap all day long :)

Sadly to say, in January last year my beloved husband passed away. After living for 2 years in this house, he is now in his final home and we, me and the kids, must go on. Our job in this world is not finished yet. First we thought we’d stay in this house for good as it has full of memories about him. But after a while we feel the house is too big and empty for 3 of us. To us, it sounds strange. It’s just one person gone and he also traveled abroad so frequently, he wasn’t home most of the time, so logically we are used to it, right? But how come we feel so empty now? That one person is a part of us. When he is gone, a part of our life is also gone. That’s why we feel the emptiness, sometimes we feel as strangers in our own house. Apart from that, a big house needs maintenance and it costs money. Since I don’t have a stable job to earn the living for almost one year now, I cannot afford it. I don’t even have time to enjoy the terrace as I used to do, so the decision has been made … sell this house. It is time to move again. I pray that the person who would buy this house or who would live here will love and enjoy this house as much as we do.

My husband and I have thought to give this house a name like other old Dutch houses but we did not have time to do that. We have thought of naming it “Ora et Labora”, but now I think I would call it “Liefde” (means love in Dutch).

More photo's of the house:

If you are interested in this house, please contact me at my email address.

UPDATE JANUARY 2012
More info about this 1 floor house
Area: 553m2 (Length: about 24m and width: about 23m), Building: 290m2, Electricity: 440Watt, Telephone: 2 lines, Electric Water heater.
1 master room (4.575x4.250m) with bathroom (1.966x4.000m) and 2 closets, 2 bedrooms (3.500x4.250m), 1 bathroom, 1 toilet, 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom for helper, garage: (4.250x4.950m)

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