Pasar Pagi — the morning market — is Samarinda's main central market and the most vivid place to understand the city's role as a trading hub for the Mahakam interior. Stalls sell fresh river fish, jungle produce, rattan goods, Dayak handicrafts, spices, and the everyday provisions of urban Kalimantan life.
The market is busiest in the early morning hours, when fishing boats from upriver are unloading their catch and the fish section is at its most aromatic and energetic. Look for ulat sagu — sago grubs, a Dayak delicacy — and unusual forest fruits that don't make it far outside Kalimantan. Weaving, basketry, and carved wooden goods from communities upriver are sold alongside Chinese ceramics and imported goods. It is noisy, crowded, and completely absorbing.