Pontianak's Chinese quarter stretches along Jalan Diponegoro and the lanes behind Pasar Flamboyan, a dense concentration of shophouses, temples, and market stalls reflecting the city's large Hakka and Teochew Chinese population. Many of the families here have been in Pontianak for five or six generations — they came as traders and miners in the 18th and 19th centuries and never left.
The covered market at Pasar Flamboyan is at its best in the early morning when the produce is freshest. The shophouses along Jalan Diponegoro have the characteristic five-foot walkway of South Chinese colonial architecture. Several small Chinese temples are scattered through the neighbourhood; the largest is the Vihara Bodhisattvaya. The area is best explored on foot at your own pace.