WHILE its wet market section on the ground floor is already a hive of activity as any wet market should be, Pasar Chowrasta in George Town, Penang, takes on a different character on its first floor.
That floor of the city's oldest community market is primarily dominated by clothes and footwear outlets. Despite selling nearly the same tourist-centric things as the stalls lining the length of Jalan Penang, these outlets enjoy greater flexibility when it comes to giving discounts.
Secondhand bookshops located slightly at the rear section are probably the most enduring tenants on the floor. Once the most popular go-to place for secondary school students looking for affordable text and revision books, these key Pasar Chowrasta establishments are now fighting a losing battle after the Internet gave students easy access to free resources to learn.
Changing their business strategy to remain afloat, these book vendors reinvented themselves by concentrating on old books, magazines and comics that appeal to collectors who come from as far as Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru.
Some of the much sought-after copies are of Hikayat Hang Tuah, Majalah Filem and Gila-Gila magazines.
RICH HISTORY
One of Penang's star attractions, Pasar Chowrasta has been standing on the same location — bordered by Jalan Penang, Jalan Chowrasta, Jalan Kuala Kangsar Road and Lebuh Tamil — since commerce began thriving at the area in the mid-19th century.
Its Hindi-derived name, meaning "the intersection of roads", serves as a reminder that this area used to be a settlement for Indian ethnic groups hailing from south India's Kadayanallur region during those early days.
Starting off as an open-air street market, the Chowrasta's rapid rise to prominence prompted the George Town Municipal Council to recognise its importance by building a permanent structure in 1890.
Although long demolished, that initial edifice is said to be similar in appearance to the recently restored Victorian-era Sia Boey market building near Komtar.
When completed in the 1960s, the state-of-the-art building was one of the very few in Penang that had escalators and service lifts. Fortunately, both of these features were refurbished and enhanced when Pasar Chowrasta underwent its most recent facelift in 2012.
As the years passed, the area became more cosmopolitan as Malay and Chinese traders moved in to further diversify available products and services.
Despite this progression, the market's predominantly Hokkien customer base continued to call it Kalinga Ban San, or South Indian Market, well into the 20th century.
MODERN MAKEOVER
Completed some five years ago, the newly unveiled building was a picture of modern concepts and facilities while successfully retaining its much loved traditional undertones.
Praises go to the spacious multi-storey car park that helps solve parking woes and the street-front makeovers that encourage seamless business activity between the wet market area and the shops in the surrounding streets.
Designed to be a daylong shopping destination, a different segment of customers descend on Pasar Chowrasta as wet market activity gradually crescendos as the morning drags on.
Tourists, fresh from their hotel buffet breakfast line, start appearing when Pasar Chowrasta shops facing Jalan Penang begin rolling back their shutters at around 10 am.
High on their shopping lists are the wide variety of preserves including those made from nutmeg, mango, papaya and plum. As food sampling is allowed, it pays to try out the products before making purchases.
Apart from other nutmeg derived products like nutmeg biscuit, balm and medicated oil, tourists also make a beeline at shops selling dodol, belacan, shrimp paste and prawn crackers.
On the way out, most people stop by at the nearby cluster of pushcart stalls selling ice kacang and cendol desserts as well as aromatic freshly roasted chestnuts.
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