Last-minute Gawai shopping brings back life to Sibu town
SIBU: It was a bustling sight at major markets and shops across town yesterday, as hundreds of people went to do their lastminute shopping ahead of Gawai Dayak.
The main stretches here were filled with car, lorries and motorcycles, but the traffic flow was still manageable – thanks to the traffic police and also members of Sibu Municipal Council's enforcement unit who worked together in making sure that motorists would always abide by traffic regulations and thus, avoid any massive jam.
Meanwhile, shoppers thronged
Sibu Central Market looking for a variety of items, mainly food.
The Hajijah Kek Lapis Sarawak stall was among the crowd- pullers, where shoppers picked their favourite varieties of the traditional layer cakes.
Some rushed over to the jungle produce section to grab the freshly- cut bamboos, which they would use to cook the ‘Ayam Pansuh' (Chicken in Bamboo).
However, the major shopping malls here seemed so much quieter than the markets.
The Sibu Express Boat Terminal was ‘ near empty' – a far cry from the times before the Covid-19 pandemic, where every year the terminal would be filled with people wanting to return back to their home villages and longhouses for the Gawai Dayak celebration.
Now, those wanting to make inter- district travelling must obtain police permit, be it via air, land or river transportation.
The express boat operation servicing the Sibu- Kapit sector resumed on Thursday, after Sibu was declared a green zone on Wednesday – having recorded no new positive Covid19 case in the past two weeks.