I had a leisurely morning at the museum. Pekanbaru’s museum is named after Sang Nila Utama, the prince from the broader region that founded Singapore, changing its name from Temasek to Singapura (which the English later changed to Singapore).
It was a simple museum where I learnt new things about the familiar, things that I didn’t know and got reminders of a bygone era. I also learnt that the Sakai people who are aboriginal people in Peninsular Malaysia also exist here.
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- Sang Nila Utama Museum in Pekanbaru.
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- The wedding set-up is very familiar to the Malays in Malaysia, where the bride and groom sit on a stage as royalty for their special day.
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- Malay-style eave decorations are a familiar sight to me. I just didn’t realise that the pattern has a name. It means (and resembles) clinging bees.
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- Things that kids play with before “devices”. Three to five person land “skis”. And stilts.
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- Circumcision chair. I learnt in school that historically in Malaysia, boys sit on a banana trunk for their circumcision. But this chair seems to suggest there is a more special seat for this purpose in Pekanbaru.
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- Outside the museum on the pavement.
As it was around lunchtime when I finished, I summoned a Grab car to a restaurant called Pagi Sore. It is a posh Nasi Padang restaurant. While I had eaten at a simple shop by the same name in Padang, this one seems to have originated from Palembang and there are a number of chains in cities around Indonesia.
A variety of dishes is brought to the table and one only touches, eats the desired items. And the bill is tallied up for what one consumes. While it was good, I thought the rendang at their Palembang branch had a richer flavour.
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- more plates.
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- Nasi Padang lunch. Eat and pay only what you want.
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- Rendang sapi and buah jengkol (jering) sambal ijo.
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- Telur dadar (omelette more like fritata today), dendeng sapi sambal ijo and daun singkong (ubi kayu) masak lemak.
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- Addresses of the various branches of Pagi Sore.
In the afternoon, I had a pre-booked massage at the Senses Spa nearby. It was pre-booked at a discount through Indonesia’s world-class travel app Traveloka with a good discount code. The masseur was strong and that was good for me.
Having had rich food for lunch, I opted for a light capcai near the hotel before retiring.