The pleasures of Spring in the City of Spring, Kunming, Yunnan Province, China. Along with the rain storms and bright sun has arrived an incredible variety of fruits and vegetables, from sweet little cherries and seas of watermelon to crunchy legumes and volumous leafy greens. Not to mention the multitude of meats and soy products, grilled, baked, fried, steamed, boiled, and prepared in other ways that don't have english translations, like lu de.

It strikes me that I ought to be ashamed about the indulgence of this webpage - nothing more than the self-gratifying movement from one culinary delight to another. How is this helping to make the world a better place, I wonder? Can I truly live with this hypocrosy?

I think I'll have to ponder that one over one more cup of amazing caphe, kopi vietnam, the amazing, buttery brew that is as intoxicating as it is thick.

It is worth noting how caffeine, in its many forms, plays a part in every culture that I have lived in and travelled through. And yet, each place does it in a unique way, with a unique taste and serving a unique social purpose. Like in Aceh, Indonesia, the cafe (which, in Hanoi, seems to grace every other street corner) serves as a gathering place, a place for social interaction.

In the Indonesian province of Aceh, Kopi, or coffee, is the drink of choice. The preparation, taste, and role of the drink within the culture are like no where else on earth. The ubiquitous kedai kopi, or coffee shop, finds men gathered around the thick, perhaps intoxicating beverage 24 hours a day. There is a saying in this region that is recovering from 30 years of war and the devastating tsunami of 2004, which, translated, says that the taste of the coffee in Aceh depends on the political situation. If the politics are uncertain or tenuous, the coffee is hot. If the political situation is stable and all is calm in Aceh, the coffee is delicious and sweet.

The magical clairvoyant powers of Aceh’s coffee may be, however, because it seems to be striking different tongues in different ways recently, here in the western most province of huge Indonesia. Two years after the end of fighting between the GAM (Free Aceh Movement) separatists and the Indonesian military and only weeks after the region’s first general elections in over 30 years, many people are saying that the coffee is more delicious than it has been for a long time. Irwandy, a candidate running for governor as a member of the GAM political party, won the general election and is scheduled to take control of the government in the near future. The elections took place peacefully and successfully, the economy in Aceh seems to be growing at a steady pace, and a majority of people seem to re-assuming a life that is more normal and more certain than what they have known for a long time. The Federal government has allowed the province to adopt Islamic Sharia law as part of the peace deal, something that is normally prohibited under the constitution. The regional government and religious institutions now seem to be firmly and independently in control with the region, without intervention from Jakarta. This was one of the main sticking points when efforts were made to end the conflict in the past.

The December 24 tsunami that killed two hundred thousand people here in the capitol city of Banda Aceh alone is two years past, and new building and homecomings are visible in many places. Thoughts of the tsunami these days for many turn to mourning those that were lost, families and friends.

Others, however, ask for more sugar after the first sip, saying the coffee is too bitter, and too hot. At one kedai kopi, a young man smoked a clove cigarette, leaning over his cup, and talked about how Aceh and Jakarta, the seat of the Indonesian national government, can never have peaceful or mutually beneficial relations. Almost every man in the shop nodded – that particular café was indeed a gathering place for members of GAM, whose military was active before the Memorandum of Understanding that was signed in August 2005. Even though the new governor of Aceh, Irwandy, is a former member of the movement, they are not convinced that Jakarta is going to give the people what they want. Full independence, they say, is the only possible result for the people of Aceh. Also, for many, the physical effects of the tsunami are still all too clear and present. Thousands of people are still living in temporary barracks, awaiting recovery funds and reconstruction projects that have been promised by the government. In fact, The BRR or Aceh Reconstruction Agency’s office was stormed by a group of protesters a few months ago, its director held hostage for a day, by a demonstration of Acehnese who have still not received the aid to rebuild their homes that they were promised.

There is currently no consensus on the coffee’s wisdom, but the people of Aceh continue to drink it, gathering in the many kedai kopi, watching and waiting. Will tomorrow’s cup be sweet and delicious, or will it boil over, burning the tongue?

Gado-gado, the spice of my life, my sole source of peanut butter in Indonesia, and one of the things that I will miss the most when I fly away from Java tomorrow afternoon. Maybe I'll have time for one more helping... probably not. Good thing I made Suroto's mom sit down with me and teach me how to make it when I was visiting his family in the kampung.
Made differently at every place, by every person, its flavor changes by region, and the name even changes as you move through the country and different ethnicities (or even neighborhood in Jakarta). Lotek in Jogyakarta, rojek for some.
Manis-pedas, sweet and spicy, is something that is not fully appreciated in Minnesota - hopefully someday we shall see the light, there in the Midwest. Perhaps I will open the restaurant that I have always dreamed of: "Nasi Gila."

One of my goals in life is to document the beauty of coffee, kopi, kaafei in this world. It bridges cultures, continents, and can be found in almost every country, yet is different in every home. Hey, who doesn't love a caffeine high?
Kopi Hitam Pait, the way I like it, thick and bitter. Indonesian coffee is unique in that the bubuk, or ground coffee, now a powder, is mixed directly in the glass with the hot water. Let it sit for a while, all the grounds settle to the bottom. I like it hitam, black, and pait, without sugar - which drives Indonesians crazy everytime I order. Often they add sugar, simply out of habit, and have to redo it. It's just, well, weird, to drink coffee that is not ultra sweet, especially out East in Jogyakarta.
And of course, once in a while I have to indulge and spend too much money on good old western style coffee.

One of my favorites. Karedok. Like Gado-gado, but different. Lalap. Pedas. Yum.

If you wanted a glass of freshly blended alvocado and melon juice at any place in Minneapolis, if you can actually find a place that serves it, you are going to double the cost of any meal, guarenteed. I love the tropical Indonesia for that reason, if the rainy season has its downsides. Nearly a meal in itself. Your options are quite expansive - mango, star fruit, banana, apples and oranges, alvocado and pineapple, passion fruit and strawberries and jambu oh my! Some places specialize in the fine art of juice making, offering a wide selection.