I’ve been to Serikin a couple of times before but never bothered to take pictures. This time, I went with a purpose. I came with a mission to capture the most sought after treasure of Sarawak. Or shall I say gem of Borneo because it is also accustom to our neighbouring Kalimantan Dayaks.

Our journey started at 9am-ish from Kuching and we reached Serikin approx. an hour and a half later. The crowd had started to make a beeline to this sleepy town. I noticed there are more stalls than before. Bigger crowds as well especially tourists from West Malaysia, I see mostly hunting for the same treasure that I was seeking.

Serikin is almost identical if compared to Bukit Kayu Hitam or Sg. Golok border markets. The big difference if you notice is that the traders are Kalimantan Indonesians from neighbouring villages, who cross the border on a Friday night and leaves on a Sunday afternoon. Hence that also categorised Serikin as a weekend market. I heard news that this market soon will be closed down and moved into Kalimantan as what had happened to the Tebedu-Entikong border market. I can’t confirmed the validity of this rumour and when exactly will it happen but I suspect this is a decision based on security and economic sanity.

Let’s see what Serikin has to offer apart from clothes and raw textiles. All sorts of local kerepek (crisps), local kuihs (cakes), preserved seafood such as dried shrimps and dried squid. However, mouth to mouth gossips had it for years that thou shalt not be tempted to buy the preserved seafood and meat. It is believed that these products were preserved using embalming chemicals to keep it long-lasting. General tips from the street is not to buy the products if you don’t see flies or any other insects landing on these foods. As the saying goes, curiosity kills the cat, I stood in front one of the stalls selling preserved products for about 20 minutes. To my astonishment, not a single fly or insect did infest these foods. Again, I’d rather have my curiosity kills the cat than having the curiosity of my taste bud getting me poisoned. It’s wise to avoid buying these items.

There are also merchandises such as sun glasses, ladies handbags and accessories, cooking utensils, musical instruments and electrical goods for sale.

Non of these merchandises attracted or tempted me because I find them common everywhere. However, there’s one thing which really grabbed my attention. Remember our RM1 gold coin? These old coins are melted to make “gold-plated” rings. The proprietor sells them RM10 a piece or exchangeable with 4 x RM1 coins. He claimed that these rings won’t fade or discolor in the long run. I didn’t buy it in the end because I know I won’t wear it.  I don’t even wear my Diamond & Platinum wedding ring what more to say an RM10 fake jewel. Not that I’m a snob but I don’t like to wear jewelries or accessories. From a safety and security aspect considering I’m a heavy traveller, I am concerned that I might lose my wedding ring at the hotel or airport during security check. Or, I might even get mugged one unlucky day in one of the trips. Touch wood!

My hunting around  the market was succesfull with the discovery of my treasure. A 10 x 12 feet rattan mat that we Bidayuh called amak kirasu or kasah as people of Sarawak called it or more recogniseable as tikar rotan Sarawak among West Malaysians. It was sold for RM250 but I managed to close the deal at RM200. It weighs less than 10 kg and the trader is happy to fold-pack it in a gunny sack if you intend to courier it across the South China Sea or wherever you’re flying to. As these rattan mat becomes very commercialised, I am quite disappointed that the quality has deteriorated against its price. These Indonesian traders are reaping blind benefits from the growing demands of these mats. What’s used to be our Dayak heritage is now slowly dying as the new generations (my generations included) have no interest to learn how to make these mats. During our grandfathers’ day when these mats were not highly valued and sought after, the craftsmanship was highly superior and yet our grandfathers use them to dry their harvested paddy out in the sun.

What shall we do about it before tikar Sarawak eventually becomes tikar Kalimantan?