You’re never far away from good food in Indonesia, especially in cities where there are eateries on almost every street. Even the streets devoid of food during the day can be enveloped in cooking aromas by nightfall, as makeshift kitchens are set up in car parks and on footpaths. And then there are the roving vendors beckoning from the street and bringing delicious food to your doorstep.
Delicious indonesia's food
To eat and drink in Indonesia is a never-ending adventure. Hungry or not you’ll be tempted by strange foods, waylaid by exotic aromas and entranced by new flavours. And then there are the people, all 200 million of them, delighted to see you venturing beyond the world of bread and milk. “You can eat spicy food”, they’ll say surprised. “You like durian”, they’ll say amazed. “You’re ordering another avocado juice”, they’ll say perplexed. As it is everywhere, food here is a conversation starter. Dining out on Indonesian streets is a social affair and you’ll share bench space with families, soldiers, students and solicitors all bound in the hunt for good food.
Bakul (Streetside Traders)
Let’s start with the basics. There may be no place to sit, no kitchen in sight, yet a full meal appears in front of you like an epiphany. This scenario is played out every day across Indonesia as the nation’s cooks take to the streets looking for stomachs to fill. In early morning Central Java you’ll see old women in sarongs selling regional dishes like pecel (peanut sauce with spinach and beansprouts) to office workers and becak drivers. Once beckoned she’ll spread out her bundled goods on a bamboo tray and put together a meal from her collection of small bags and baskets. Her food is cheap – she doesn’t pay rent or wages – and is most often a taste of the region.
Pikulan (Stick Sellers)
Now here’s where the stereotypes really come to life. You know the classic image of someone carrying goods in two bundles connected by a stick over their shoulders? Well, that’s a pikulan and in Indonesia they’re used to carry food to sell. The pikulancan be an impressive contraption with a gas stove and wok on one side and ready-to-fry ingredients on the other. Some sell bakso (meatball soup), with stock on the boil at one end, ingredients and bowls at the other.
Kaki-Lima (Roving Vendors)
Kaki-lima are an essential part of the Indonesian culinary landscape; roving vendors; their carts usually consist of a work bench, a portable stove and a glass display cabinet for ingredients and for advertising their speciality dish or drink. Kaki-lima means ‘five legs’, for the three wheels on the cart and the two legs on the vendor. You’ll find any and every type of dish, drink and snack sold from a kaki-lima, but two favourites are sate and bakso. Some kaki-lima have a permanent location that they set up at every day until their stocks are depleted. Others roam the streets, tempting the hungry from their homes or places of work.
Warung (Food Stalls)
Although restaurants call themselves warung (similar to restaurants in the west calling themselves ‘the home-bake pantry cottage’), we define a warung as any eatery that offers a place to eat and shelter, but is disassembled after closure. As a result some of the best food will not be there when you want it, nevertheless a warung usually has a set time when it’s open for business. The classic warung consists of a long table sheltered by a tarpaulin roof and a screen hung to separate the diners from the streetside cacophony. Written on the screen is what is sold within – often no more than one or two dishes, so a warung will become famous for a specific dish. Although there’ll be a warung around at anytime of the day, they really come to life at night when more are set up along streets and in vacant lots to cater to the post-work hungry. Indonesia’s warung sell everything from regional dishes like Yogyakarta’s gudeg (jackfruit curry) to national favourites such as pecel lele (fried catfish).
Warteg
One exception to the warung impermanency rule is the warteg (short for warung Tegal), which is a simple yet permanent restaurant that sells a wide range of dishes at cheap prices. Tegal is a town in Java and, although the owner will probably be from there, the food available isn’t necessarily specific to the region. The warteg eateries are a good bet for vegetarians because meatless dishes, especially ones that are tofu or tempe based, are in abundance.
Warteg
Lesehan
Lesehan refers more to seating arrangements than food. If you’re eating while sitting on a grass mat then you’re eating at a lesehan. The most famous place for lesehan are in Yogyakarta, where they are set up along Jalan Malioboro to cater to evening crowds (some open all day). Some restaurants have lesehan-style areas set up with low tables and mats for you to sloth on after stuffing your face.
Rumah Makan (Restaurants)
Sometimes the only difference between street stall and restaurant is that one closes for business by locking the door and the other folds up the roof. The most common restaurant meal, often called nasi campur or nasi rames (both meaning ‘mixed rice’), is the one you make with plain rice and a selection of other dishes. Where there’s food set out for all to see, you can be certain you’ll be choosing a selection yourself. This also gives you the chance to peruse the selection before committing yourself. The fact that the food is sitting out may send your hygiene warning system haywire, but this is how much restaurant and home-cooked Indonesian food is prepared, to be eaten that day at room temperature.
For truly authentic flavours, try to find restaurants that serve dishes from the region you are in. This will be easy in Padang, as Padang restaurants are everywhere, but you may only get a chance to try Banjar food in Banjarmasin. Nevertheless in bigger towns there’ll be a smattering of eateries serving food from other areas, so you won’t have to go to Manado to try North Sulawesi cuisine.
Rumah Makan Padang (Padang Restaurants)
There’s at least one Padang restaurant, serving West Sumatran cuisine in every town in Indonesia. For a first-timer, a meal at a Padang restaurant can be a confusing affair. Firstly, all that food left in the window can’t be good for hygiene, and some of the dishes look like they were cooked with a blowtorch. Indeed Padang cuisine isn’t very photogenic, but it’s cooked to withstand a refrigerator-less environment. In fact some dishes, such as rendang (beef or buffalo coconut curry) are said to improve with age. The next stumbling block for the Padang virgin will be the fact that there isn’t a menu in sight. In a Padang restaurant they cut out the task of going through the ordering process – take a seat at any table and before you can say ‘I’ll have a side order of hokey-pokey ice cream’ one of the fellas will have scurried over and piled up your table with a selection of umpteen small dishes and rice. No need to shout ‘Waiter! I can’t eat this much!’ as here at a Padang restaurant you pay for what you eat. If you don’t touch the ikan bakar (grilled fish) you won’t pay for it, it’ll go back into the window display. Even if you taste the sauce that the gulai ayam (chicken in coconut curry) is served in and decide that it’s too spicy, it won’t be on the bill.
The Sundanese are the second-largest ethnic group in Indonesia. There is a complex history behind their rich cultural traditions. This history can be traced back to the fifth century AD and the Tarumanagara dynasty, which established trade links extending as far as China. A succession of Sundanese kingdoms was followed by 350 years of Dutch colonization. During this time Sundanese lands became an important source of spices, coffee, quinine, rubber, and tea for export.
In the twentieth century, the Sundanese joined in the struggle for an independent, united Indonesian nation, which was established on August 17, 1945. Even after independence, however, some Sundanese worked to establish a separate, autonomous (self-ruled) territory. These efforts were suppressed by Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno (1901–70). By the late-1950s, “Sunda-land” had been fully integrated into Indonesia. Called West Java, it is one of the nation’s richest provinces.
2 • LOCATION
The Sundanese number more than thirty million people. The vast majority live on the island of Java. Java is a small island, but it is the administrative and economic center of the Indonesian archipelago (chain of islands). The larger Javanese ethnic group forms the majority in Java’s central and eastern provinces. The Sundanese constitute a majority in West Java. West Java spreads over an area of 16,670 square miles (43,177 square kilometers), about half the size of greater metropolitan Los Angeles, California. The northern coast is flat, and the southern coast is hilly. The central area is mountainous and is marked by some spectacular volcanoes.
3 • LANGUAGE
Like other Indonesians, most Sundanese are bilingual. They speak both their native tongue, Sundanese, and the Indonesian national language. Generally, Sundanese is the language of choice among family members and friends, while in the public sphere, Indonesian is used. Both languages are part of the Austronesian language family.
Sundanese is extremely diverse, with various regional dialects. However, all are divided into different levels of formality depending on the social status of the person being addressed. Thus, the words one uses when talking to one’s father differ from those used when talking to a friend or to one’s younger sister. Most people use only two levels, or sometimes three. However, some older people make use of four.
Sundanese naming practices are extremely varied. Some people have only a single name, while others have a first name and a last name. Women do not legally change their names after marriage but are frequently called “Mrs. [name of husband].”
4 • FOLKLORE
Myths and heroic stories are an extremely important part of Sundanese culture. Such stories are told through films, puppet shows, oral poetry, novels, and even comic books. Some are regional in character. They explain the history of a local kingdom, or the mythical origin of a lake or mountain. Others, like the Ramayana, are Hindu in origin.
One myth the Sundanese think of as distinctly their own is the legend of Nyi Loro Kidul, the Queen of the South Seas. As the story goes, in the fourteenth century there was a princess in the Pajajaran kingdom whose thirst for power was so great that her father placed a curse on her. The curse gave her more power than he himself had, but allowed her to wield it only over the South Seas. The princess was then reincarnated as the exquisitely beautiful Nyi Loro Kidul. Said to live off West Java’s south coast to this day, she is more powerful than all the spirits. She is said to have received nighttime visits from Javanese kings and Muslim saints in her palace beneath the waves. Men who swim or fish off the south coast are warned not to wear green, for those who do are often spirited away by Nyi Loro Kidul and never return.
5 • RELIGION
The overwhelming majority of Sundanese are orthodox Muslim, although some are Catholic or Protestant. Many Muslims pray five times a day, travel to Mecca at some point in their life, and fast during the holy month of Ramadan. In towns and cities, there is a mosque in every neighborhood. Each day the calls to prayer are broadcast over loudspeakers for everyone to hear. There are still many non-Islamic elements in Sundanese ceremonies and rituals, particularly those surrounding the growing of rice. They probably come from the Hindu religion that preceded the spread of Islam, or from pre-Hindu Sundanese culture.
6 • MAJOR HOLIDAYS
The Sundanese have no special holidays of their own. They follow the calendar of Indonesian national holidays. It includes both secular holidays and those of the nation’s official religions.
7 • RITES OF PASSAGE
When a Sundanese child is born, a paraji (midwife) is usually present to provide advice. The paraji also prays to help the mother and the newborn get through the ordeal safely. Once the baby is born, its umbilical cord is cut with a special instrument called a hanis. The placenta is buried beneath a window at the rear of the house. A ritual party is held, attended by family and neighbors.
At the age of seven or eight years, boys undergo a circumcision ritual to usher them into adulthood. Before the circumcision takes place, the boy is bathed and dressed in a sarung (a skirtlike garment). The entire ceremony takes place at the boy’s home. Frequently it is accompanied by a party.
Marriage is the most elaborate Sundanese rite of passage. Formally, it involves nine stages, from the initial visit between both sets of parents to the sharing of food and gifts on the day of the wedding. The groom’s family brings gifts and money to the family of the bride. A few days before the wedding, the groom is “given” to the bride, along with clothing, jewelry, and money. On the day of the wedding, the groom is picked up at his home and taken to the bride’s house, where he presents her with an agreed-upon amount of gold. The parents of the couple ceremonially feed them the last bites they will receive from their parents’ hands. One week after the wedding, a gathering is held at the groom’s house for his family and friends to meet the bride.
After a death, friends and relatives immediately gather at the house of the deceased. They bring gifts of money and rice for the family. Flowers are soaked in water, which is used for washing the body of the deceased. A religious leader (kiai) reads a prayer over the body before it is carried in a procession to the cemetery. The death is later marked by ritual gatherings on the third, seventh, fortieth, one-hundredth, and one-thousandth days after the person has passed away.
8 • RELATIONSHIPS
The Sundanese place great value on showing people respect by following an unwritten code of behavior. Formal greetings are made by bowing the head and upper body. The hands are held together in front of the chest with fingers outstretched, and the fingertips touch the tips of the other person’s fingers. In business settings, handshaking is acceptable. It is done with the right hand. When one lets go, the heart should be touched briefly with the same hand.
Social visits are governed by rules of etiquette for both guests and host. When the visitor is ready to go, she or he should always announce the intention to leave. The host will reply that the visitor is leaving too soon and has not even eaten yet (even if the visitor has been there for hours and the host had hoped to be doing something else).
A man must treat the woman he asks on a date with respect. This means he must pick her up at home, make small talk with her family, and pay for any food and entertainment. It would be considered humiliating for a woman to openly take the initiative in dating. However, Sundanese women have all sorts of tricks that allow them to do so while appearing to remain passive.
9 • LIVING CONDITIONS
Living conditions in West Java are extremely diverse. Some people live in luxurious tropical mansions, while others live in squatter settlements with no running water or electricity. Most people live somewhere between these two extremes.
The growth of consumerism is apparent at all levels of society. The greatest objects of consumerism are cars, televisions, jewelry, and clothing.
10 • FAMILY LIFE
Kinship among the Sundanese is bilateral, meaning that descent lines are traced through both the mother and the father. In principle, all the descendants of a seventh-generation ancestor are members of one extended family. The smallest kin group is the nuclear family of parents and their children. Members of a nuclear family usually live in their own house. However, it is not uncommon for relatives of either the husband or the wife to stay with them for a time.
Although marriages are sometimes arranged by parents in the traditional nine-step ritual, urbanization has made such matches increasingly rare. Couples often meet at school or in the workplace rather than at family or neighborhood gatherings. The parents of a woman often try to prevent her from seeing someone they do not approve of, in the hope that she will find someone more to their liking. The preferred marriage partner should come from the same neighborhood and be a descendant of a common ancestor. Such a marriage is called perkawinan gulangkep .
Sundanese society draws a clear line between male and female gender roles. In rural areas, women participate in subsistence agriculture and are thus quite powerful. But in cities, women are economically dependent on their husbands. To combat this dependence, many have taken on careers or part-time jobs to help earn additional cash.
11 • CLOTHING
Traditional Sundanese clothing for women consists of a kebaya and a sarung (a skirt-like garment). The kebaya is a long-sleeved, fitted lace blouse that is worn over another layer of clothing. The sarung is a length of cloth that is wrapped around the waist and hangs down to the ankles. Men also wear a sarung, but instead of a kebaya, they wear a long-sleeved batik shirt or a fitted, embroidered jacket.
Increasingly, such traditional clothing is worn only on formal occasions such as weddings. Everyday dress follows either Western or Islamic styles.
12 • FOOD
The Sundanese like to say, “If you have not eaten rice, then you have not eaten.” Rice is prepared in hundreds of different ways. However, it is simple boiled rice that serves as the centerpiece of all meals. Side dishes of vegetables, fish, or meat are added to provide variety. These side dishes are spiced with any combination of garlic, galingale (a plant of the ginger family), turmeric, coriander, ginger, and lemon grass. Usually the food itself is not too spicy, but it is served with a very hot sauce made by grinding chili peppers and garlic together.
On the coast, saltwater fish are common; in the mountains, fish tend to be either pond-raised carp or goldfish. The Sundanese, being Muslim, do not eat pork. They eat the meat of goats, sheep, water buffalo, and cows. Preferred fowl include chickens, ducks, geese, and pigeons. A well-known Sundanese dish is lalapan, which consists only of raw vegetables, such as papaya leaves, cucumber, eggplant, and bitter melon. It is said to be the only Indonesian dish that features raw vegetables. Thus it often gives rise to jokes comparing Sundanese people to goats.
13 • EDUCATION
The Sundanese follow Indonesia’s national education system. Six years of compulsory primary school may be followed by three years of middle school, three years of high school, four years of college, and then studies toward a graduate degree.
West Java has been a center of education since colonial times. Education is valued very highly among the Sundanese. Parents will sacrifice a great deal to pay for their children’s education. This is reflected in the fact that West Java has higher literacy rates than other areas of Indonesia.
14 • CULTURAL HERITAGE
The Sundanese have an extremely rich cultural heritage. Many of Indonesia’s most famous pop stars are Sundanese. Local music is sometimes set to the beat of “house music.” One of the more traditional varieties is called degung. It is performed by a simplified gamelan orchestra blending soft-sounding percussion instruments with the melancholy sounds of a flute. Another type of orchestra is made up of an instrument called angklung (consisting of suspended bamboo tubes in different lengths that make a musical sound when shaken).
One of the oldest forms of Sundanese literature still in existence is the pantun cerita. It is a kind of traditional poetry, in which each verse consists of two couplets. It tells of Sundanese heroes from ancient times. More modern forms of literature, such as the novel, have also emerged among the Sundanese. Sundanese novels are strictly popular, rather than “high brow.”
15 • EMPLOYMENT
Unemployment is not as great a problem as is underemployment in West Java. Most people have some way of generating income, but they still have a hard time making ends meet. Even the new generation of college-educated youth is having a hard time finding work. When a job does open up, it is often for very low pay at one of the new factories that produce sneakers, televisions, clothing, or furniture. Such positions are usually filled by young women and uneducated men. Many jobs are filled by migrants from Central Java who are more willing to work long hours without vacations than are the family-oriented Sundanese.
16 • SPORTS
The most popular sports in West Java are soccer, volleyball, badminton, and a martial art called pencat silat. Most neighborhoods have a small field in which children play volleyball and soccer. Badminton is played in neighborhood front yards or in courts at a community center. Soccer pulls in large crowds of local supporters. Pencat silat is a martial art that blurs the line between dance and self-defense. It is usually taught to groups of children at Islamic boarding schools (pesantren).
17 • RECREATION
The central form of entertainment in West Java is called sore, or “evening.” People go out to movies, take strolls, eat in open-air cafes, and watch public performances. It is a way to “see and be seen.” People get a chance to put on their best clothes and show off their cars.
Cinemas in West Java show a mixture of Indonesian and foreign movies. Movie theaters in the city are air-conditioned and have plush seats. Poorer rural areas sometimes have open-air cinemas, which are like driveins without the cars. For those who prefer live performances, there is music and theater. One performance that always draws a crowd is sinten, in which magicians exhibit their powers. One can see, for example, people turned into birds, eggs cooked on someone’s head, and people who are not hurt by the stab of a sword. Another is wayang golek, a type of puppet show, accompanied by singing and gamelan music.
At home, there is always television. Broadcasts include a peculiar blend of Indian movies, Latin American soap operas, American dramas, and Indonesian shows of all types. Television is sometimes considered a background entertainment like radio, with people going about their business while watching. It provides entertainment while people do their chores, and the soap operas provide a popular topic for discussion.
18 • CRAFTS AND HOBBIES
Like the neighboring Javanese, the Sundanese are known for the art of batik. This is a technique that uses beeswax to create patterns on textiles. Originally, batik was made by painting the wax on by hand and then bathing the whole cloth in a dye. Using this process it could take up to six months to complete one sarong . Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, however, an industrial technique of stamping the cloth with wax was developed. This allowed for mass production, and today batik can be found in American and European stores.
So
that was who and what is SUNDANESE… hatur nuhun pamiarsa kangge waktos na ngabaca blogg simkuring… Dedee Santana(putra SUKABUMI)
below are some things that I needed to get used to when first living here.
They are small things…but they just drive me crazzzyyyy !
1. Throwing litter from your car window
The floods in Jakarta are often associated with people not throwing away litter properly. These people are usually ill-educated because they lack the money to go to proper schools.
But it just furiates me when I see someone throwing litter from the window of his Rp. 300 million car. I often see this in particular at the toll booth or parking booth in the mall. They would just throw away the ticket to the ground.
Hellooo…there’s a trashcan right under the toll booth window. Or even, you can buy a small trashcan for your car.
Yeah…you don’t mind spending hundreds for foreign branded clothing, but buying a trashcan is impossible for you to do!
2. Queuing in public toilets
It always makes me uneasy about the way Indonesians queue at public toilets.
If there are many stalls, they would queue up for each toilet stall, which leaves you at the mercy of the person inside the stall you’re waiting on.
This is different compared to when I was living in Europe. There you queue before the stalls (just 1 line), so that when one of them opens, the first person that was queuing will automatically be the first to go.
It annoys me when I have been waiting long, but then someone after me goes earlier because the stall she is waiting on finished quicker.
But then again, it is nice if I am the one that can go earlier because I luckily picked a faster queue 😛
3. Hold the door please
OK, western foreigners are often not associated with friendliness, but I think that they have a certain politeness that Indonesians lack.
When I was abroad, it was custom to hold the door until the person behinds you can take it. Here…they just slam it in your face!
I sometimes hold the door (out of habit), but what do I get? The person behind me would just walk through….& leave me there still holding the damn door.
I’m not a bellboy! I’m still holding the door open so that you can take the handle from me without having it slam in you face!!
Pendakian Gunung Salak via desa GIRI JAYA. jalur ini dapat didaki dari beberapa jalur diantaranya jalur yang umum sering dipakai adalah jalur dari Wana Wisata Cangkuang Kecamatan Cidahu Kabupaten Sukabumi, dari Cangkuang ini ada dua jalur yakni jalur lama yang menuju puncak Gunung Salak 1 dan jalur baru yang menuju Kawah Ratu. Jalur yang penuh dengan nuansa mistik untuk berjiarah adalah jalur dari Wana Wisata Curug Pilung, Desa Giri Jaya, Kecamatan Cidahu, Kabupaten Sukabumi.
Gunung salak memiliki 9 puncak, dimana setiap puncaknya melewati jalur yang berbeda-beda. Puncak tertinggi gunung ini dinamakan puncak 1 dengan ketinggian 2211 mdpl. Kali ini saya akan menceritakan perjalanan saya ke puncak salak 1 melalui jalur giri jaya. Jalur ini saya pilih karena jalurnya paling pendek dapat ditempuh sekitar (3-5 jam). Desa girijaya terletak di kecamatan cidahu kabupaten sukabumi. Kami bertiga: Nanda,Harir,dan saya (Dede) tiba didesa giri jaya pukul 3 sore, kami memutuskan untuk melakukan pendakian besok pagi, karena dari kami belm ada yang tau jalannya. Disana kami menginap dirumah orang tua saya Bpk. Santana. Bpk satu ini orangnya baik hati sekali, ramah dan suka menolong(hehee orang ayah saya sendiri toh). Disini tidak ada pos pendakian yang ada para pendaki harus melaporkan diri ke ketua RT setempat untuk pendataan. Disana kami diceritakan bahwa 3 bulan berturut-turut ditemukan 3 mayat yang tanpa busana di jalur pendakian ini, ketua RT setempat menghimbau kami agar berhati-hati dan mengasih wejangan “gunung salak memang mistis, tapi bagi mereka yang sombong” begitulah ujarnya. Pagi pun tiba kami bertiga memulai menapakan kaki untuk menuju puncak salak. pertama-tama kami melewati tugu masuk ke jalur pendakian.
setelah sekitar 5 menit berjalan disebelah kanan kalian akan menemui rumah atau bangunan makam Eyang Santri. Disini Pendaki bisa mengambil Air didalam kolam penampungan air, akan tetapi di atas masih ada sumber air. perjalanan saya lanjutkan kembali. Dari makam Eyang santri perjalanan sudah mulai melewati hutan. Setelah 15 menit kita akan menjumpai makam kembali yang dinamakan Pondok Gusti. Disini terdapat 3 kolam air. Pada musim kemarau kolam ini sebagai sumber air terakhir. jadi pendaki sebaiknya mengambil air dari sini saja.
Info wood
dari Pondok gusti jalur sudah mulai melewati hutan dimana kanan kiri semak semak belukar serta duru-duri yang tajam, sehingga apabila tidak berhati-hati dapat tersayat durinya. Serta pohon tumbang dan licinya medan membuat perjalanan semakin berat. perjalanan dari pondok Gusti ke Puncak tugu sekitar 2 jam perjalanan. Sebelum Puncak Tugu ada pertigaan jalur kebawah dan naik, untuk jalur pendakian ambil arah kiri(naik) apabila Pendaki ambil kanan maka akan bertemu saung(mushola) serta rumah warga.
kami beristirahat sejenak didalam rumah di puncak tugu, didalamnya terdapat makam. Akan tetapi sebenarnya makam tersebut bohongan, itu dibikin untuk bertawashul atau berdzikr akar khusyuk. Jalan kami lanjutkan dengan melewati jalan sebelah kiri rumah, dari sini sampai puncak membutuhkan waktu kurang lebih 90 menit sampai 120 menit. Perjanalan mulai menanjak dengan medan yang sulit serta terjal. Sebelum sampai puncak kita akan melewati pertigaan dari jalur cangkuang pada HM 46. Perjalanan kurang 400 meter lagi karena puncak berada pada HM 50. Jalan dari HM 46 sampai puncak sudah mulai agak datar sudah tidak terjal lagi. Dipuncak terdapat makam mbah Salak yang disampingnya terdapat shelter yang bisa digunakan untuk berteduh.
oh ya, puncak salak dulunya lebat dengan pohon-pohon, akibat adanya kejadian shukoi jatuh maka pohon ditebang untuk evakuasi korban, Dari puncak salak lurus anda bisa melihat bekas jatuhnya pesawat dengan menuruni jalan, kami disarankan warga untuk tidak kesana karena medan sangat sulit. Karena berada tepat pada perut gunung salak yang curam sekali. setelah foto2 cukup. kami lanjutkan untuk turun ke rumah Bpk Santana untuk kembali ke kontrakan kami yang dibandung. sekian semoga bisa bermanfat. salam saya DEDE SANTANA
Dia bertemu dengan gadis itu di sebuah pesta, gadis yang menakjubkan. Banyak pria berusaha mendekatinya. Sedangkan dia sendiri hanya seorang laki² biasa. Tak ada yang begitu
menghiraukannya. Saat pesta telah usai, dia mengundang gadis itu untuk minum kopi bersamanya. Walaupun terkejut dengan undangan yang mendadak, si gadis tidak mau mengecewakannya.
Mereka berdua duduk di sebuah kedai kopi yang nyaman. Si laki² begitu gugup untuk mengatakan sesuatu, sedangkan sang gadis merasa sangat tidak nyaman. “Ayolah, cepat. Aku ingin segera pulang”, kata sang gadis dalam hatinya. Tiba² si laki² berkata pada pelayan, “Tolong ambilkan saya garam. Saya ingin membubuhkan dalam kopi saya.” Semua orang memandang dan melihat aneh padanya. Mukanya kontan menjadi merah, tapi ia tetap mengambil dan membubuhkan garam dalam kopi serta meminum kopinya.
Sang gadis bertanya dengan penuh rasa ingin tahu kepadanya,”Kebiasaanmu kok sangat aneh?”. “Saat aku masih kecil, aku tinggal di dekat laut. Aku sangat suka ber-main² di laut, di mana aku bisa merasakan laut… asin dan pahit. Sama seperti rasa kopi ini”,jawab si laki². “Sekarang, tiap kali aku minum kopi asin, aku jadi teringat akan masa kecilku, tanah kelahiranku. Aku sangat merindukan kampung halamanku, rindu kedua orangtuaku yang masih tinggal di sana”, lanjutnya dengan mata berlinang. Sang gadis begitu terenyuh. Itu adalah hal sangat menyentuh hati. Perasaan yang begitu dalam dari seorang laki² yang mengungkapkan kerinduan akan kampung halamannya. Ia pasti seorang yang mencintai dan begitu peduli akan rumah dan keluarganya. Ia pasti mempunyai rasa tanggung jawab akan tempat tinggalnya. Kemudian sang gadis memulai pembicaraan, mulai bercerita tentang tempat tinggalnya yang jauh, masa kecilnya, keluarganya… Pembicaraan yang sangat menarik bagi mereka berdua. Dan itu juga merupakan awal yang indah dari kisah cinta mereka. Mereka terus menjalin hubungan. Sang gadis menyadari bahwa ia adalah laki² idaman baginya. Ia begitu toleran, baik hati, hangat, penuh perhatian… pokoknya ia adalah pria baik yang hampir saja diabaikan begitu saja. Untung saja ada kopi asin !
Cerita berlanjut seperti tiap kisah cinta yang indah: sang putri menikah dengan sang pangeran, dan mereka hidup bahagia… Dan, tiap ia membuatkan suaminya secangkir kopi, ia membubuhkan sedikit garam didalamnya, karena ia tahu itulah kesukaan suaminya.
Setelah 40 tahun berlalu, si laki² meninggal dunia. Ia meninggalkan sepucuk surat bagi istrinya:”Sayangku, maafkanlah aku. Maafkan kebohongan yang telah aku buat sepanjang hidupku. Ini adalah satu²nya kebohonganku padamu—tentang kopi asin. Kamu ingat kan saat kita pertama kali berkencan? Aku sangat gugup waktu itu. Sebenarnya aku menginginkan sedikit gula. Tapi aku malah mengatakan garam. Waktu itu aku ingin membatalkannya, tapi aku tak sanggup, maka aku biarkan saja semuanya. Aku tak pernah mengira kalau hal itu malah menjadi awal pembicaraan kita. Aku telah mencoba untuk mengatakan yang sebenarnya kepadamu. Aku telah mencobanya beberapa kali dalam hidupku, tapi aku begitu takut untuk melakukannya, karena aku telah berjanji untuk tidak menyembunyikan apapun darimu… Sekarang aku sedang sekarat. Tidak ada lagi yang dapat aku khawatirkan, maka aku akan mengatakan ini padamu: Aku tidak menyukai kopi yang asin. Tapi sejak aku mengenalmu, aku selalu minum kopi yang rasanya asin sepanjang hidupku. Aku tidak pernah menyesal atas semua yang telah aku lakukan. Aku tidak pernah menyesali semuanya. Dapat berada disampingmu adalah kebahagiaan terbesar dalam hidupku. Jika aku punya kesempatan untuk menjalani hidup sekali lagi, aku tetap akan berusaha mengenalmu dan menjadikanmu istriku walaupun aku harus minum kopi asin lagi.”
Sambil membaca, airmatanya membasahi surat itu. Suatu hari seseorang menanyainya, “Bagaimana rasa kopi asin?”, ia menjawab, “Rasanya manis.”
santanadee 