Woke up early. Quickly cobbled together breakfast in the room. Later in town, we’ll have something to eat, first to Pudu Wet Market.

It seems that the Grab driver only manages to find the place after crossing some backstreets. Pudu Market is a so-called wet market. That means it sells fresh produce—fresh fruits and vegetables—but also fresh animals. That means they are brought in alive whenever possible and turned into products on the spot.

I walk through the covered section first. It is a bit stuffy, and there is little light. I attach the flash to my camera. The people are terribly nice. This could certainly be because I am really the only Westerner in that whole market. I walk around with a camera on my belly. Hardly anyone refuses when I ask if I can take a picture. In fact, they often pose with thumbs up and V signs.

There is mostly fish and shellfish, both live and dead. The fish that are not yet dead are killed and cleaned upon request. I see a barrel of large frogs.

At a stand in the corner, live chickens are processed into the bare bodies we know from our store. The chicken is lifted from a crate, and its throat is cut. The dead chicken is thrown into a barrel and a little later, at the follow-up stage, into a container of hot water. This stainless steel barrel is somewhat reminiscent of a centrifuge. It also spins around, but more slowly. So the chicken is put through the hot water for about a minute and then thrown into the plucking machine.

A creepy process to the Westerner, for whom a slaughtered chicken is as sterile a thing as whole wheat bread.