Areca nut poles put up for annual games

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.