Sidewalk Coffee Ladies and Michelle Obama in Jakarta
Sidewalk Coffee Ladies and Michelle Obama in Jakarta LINH DINH [Jakarta, 12/20/23] Any more excitement and I’d be dead, and you would too. Going to Filiosofi Kopi [Coffee Philosophy] this morning to write, I found it still closed, so forged further into the unknown. Seeing a lovely lady with a soothing face, I mustered enough courage to utter, “kopi hitam,” then sat down on a bus stop seat. To my left was a Grab driver just getting up. On my right was a small gas tank in a sturdy green bag, with a black hose leading to a portable stove. On top of it squatted a pot of boiling water. Overwhelmed by all this normalcy, I had to check my emotion further when the lady brought my 26 cent cup of black java. Across the street was a man selling nasi uduk [rice cooked in coconut milk] from a glass case perched on his motorbike. Without customers at 7:34AM, he busied himself by sweeping his area. The Grab driver was now lying on his back to stare at his cellphone. Nearly touching my back,