Areca nut poles put up for annual games

JP/8/PINANG

Leo Wahyudi S The Jakarta Post Jakarta

One of the many popular traditional games that people take part in to mark the commemoration of Independence Day is the areca nut tree climbing contest or panjat pinang.

During the event, participants compete against one another to climb a smooth trunk, slathered in oil, to reach the reward placed on top. Rewards vary from simple things, such as cigarettes, books and shirts to more expensive items, like transistor radios, electric fans or even a small bike.

The pole is strong enough for a human to climb; it is straight and can reach up to 12 meters.

It has long been a part of festivities here because of the amusement it generates among players as well as spectators.

It's no wonder then that a week or two before the big event hits vendors who sell seasonal pinang trunks are bustling with business.

One such vendor is Omang, who claims to have been in the business for almost 15 years as he could make more money selling pinang trunks than as a vegetable trader at a traditional market.

He bought the trunks, measuring between eight to 12 metres long, in Sukabumi, West Java, for Rp 50,000 a piece. Along with several other vendors, he bought some 80 trunks, and rented a large truck at Rp 1 million to bring the trunks to Jakarta.

"I can sell a ready-to-use pinang trunk for Rp 200,000," said Omang, who runs his trade off of Jl. Penjernihan in Central Jakarta.

He said he could pocket an average profit of Rp 50,000 for each trunk he sold.

He employs two assistants to sand down the areca nut trunk to a smooth pole and to construct a bamboo shelf to encircle the top of the pole, which serves as the place to hold the reward.

One of the employees, Atim, who comes from Pandeglang, West Java, said he had been doing the seasonal job since 1991.

"I can sand down at least six a day," Atim said.

When he is not selling or preparing pinang, he helps his handicapped brother by carrying him on his back so he can beg for coins at intersections.

Atim did not mention how much he would earn from his boss once the Aug. 17 celebration was over.

"It is all up to my boss on how much he'll pay for this job if it runs more than two weeks," he said.

Omang said he would pay between Rp 150,000 and Rp 250,000 to his workers, depending on how many he sold.

In Jakarta, there are several other places where pinang poles are available, including along Jl. Iskandar Muda and in Manggarai, South Jakarta.

Tija, 60, usually sells fish at the Pasar Rumput traditional market, but he said that as a fish vendor he could take home between Rp 50,000 and Rp 100,000 in profit a day. He said he expects to earn more cash this year with the 40 pinang trunks he will sell.

Like Omang, he also bought his stock from Sukabumi.

He said he also expects to sell out this year, just as he did the year before.