Bahasa Indonesia

This is the official language in Indonesia, derived from Malay but with Javanese and Dutch influences. Although I had heard English was widely spoken in Bali, we have encountered many, many people we cannot communicate with, specially outside the tourist industry. They speak either Balinese (supposedly a language quite difficult to learn) or Bahasa as they come from other parts in Indonesia. I am ashamed to admit that after living for 9 years in Malaysia, I never put too much effort to learn Malay. I took a few courses but everyone spoke to me in English and furthermore I never consciously planned to stay in Malaysia for that long (let alone to move to Indonesia!) so my Malay is pretty basic. 

This time I am determined to not repeat the same mistake and I am everyday putting a bit of time to learn Bahasa. Being quite obsessed with linguistics, I find extremely interesting the logic behind this language… These are some examples that amuse me:

• Apa kabar? 

It is used as “How are you?” but literally means something like “What are the news?” The answer is "Kabar Baik", literally “The news are good”. It makes me smile every time I here it...

• Plurales

Guess how is the plural make? Overwhelming logic…

Anak = child Anak anak = children
Buku = book Buku buku = books

• Tenses

The Indonesian tenses make anyone learning a language like Spanish depressed… Look at their simplicity…

       PRESENT:
             Saya makan ayam (= I eat chicken)

       PRESENT PERFECT: with sudah
             Saya sudah makan ayam (= I ate or have eaten chicken)

I absolutely love the use of this “sudah”… They apply it whenever they find that something must undoubtedly  happen. For example, every day I get a “Sudah kawin?” = "Are you married yet?" Or a “Sudah punya anak?” = "Do you have children yet?" . The answers consider satisfactory are amazing: you either answer “Sudah” ("Already) or “belum” ("Not yet…").

      FUTURE TENSE: with akan
            Saya akan makan ayam (= I will eat chicken)

      PRESENT CONTINUOUS: with sedang
            Saya sedang makan ayam (= I am eating chicken)

      PAST TENSE: with kemarin
            Saya makan ayam kemarin (= I ate chicken yesterday)

Verbs do not have conjugations (persons), tenses, modes... and they are still effective!

I will tell you more about Bahasa in posts to come!

The winner

Today this post is dedicated to Chee, the hero of the day. Chee is Kevin’s right hand and has been with him for 5 years, first in Malaysia and later in Singapore. He also followed us to Madrid when Kevin participated in Madrid Fusion 2011 and did a great job cooking under the pressure of being observed by some of the most famous chefs in the world.

Last year Kevin heard of the program “ICEX Training of Young Professionals in Spanish Gastronomy” (a scholarship to live in Spain for 9 months learning about Spanish foods and cuisine and working at Michelin Restaurants) and did what he could to get Chee selected to participate: he nominated him, filled up all the paperwork required, even took him to the Embassy of Spain to submit it. Kevin always thought Chee deserved this opportunity and was delighted when he got chosen to represent Singapore.

For these last 9 months Chee has studied Spanish (in Salamanca!!!) and has traveled everywhere in Spain to learn about Spanish gastronomy. Last night took place the final competition among the 11 participating young chefs from around the world in which they had to create a dish that captures the taste of Spain. Chee’s dish was called “Sobre de Mar” (Envelop of the Sea) and consisted of a whole, deboned salmorete (fish) stuffed with baby squid, almonds, pickled onions and served on a bed of ajoblanco.

Probably by now you have guessed that Chee won the competition and Kevin is now a proud mentor, smiling while reading about the judges praise for his protégé. Congratulations, Chee!

Bali

Bali is definitely a special place. I have been here many times since 2000 and every trip has made me fall deeper in love with it. I recently read that the longer one stays on the island, the more one is impressed by it and I am so ready to take it all in! From time to time I will share here with you what makes Bali magic as I discover it for myself. 

Bali is one of the 18,307 islands that comprise Indonesia and it lies 8 and 9 degrees south of the equator so it enjoys a tropical climate. It has a total area of 5,633 km² and a population of 3 million people and increasing.  Denpasar is the capital and Bali's main industries are agriculture, fishing and tourism. 

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The island presents an enriching paradox: it embraces and accepts foreign and innovative elements (brought by its many visitors) and simultaneously enjoys an ancient, traditional society that is still incredibly alive and vital. To top it all, these elements coexist in Bali blessed by an extraordinary nature. 

Bali es definitivamente un lugar sumamente especial. Lo he visitado muchas veces desde el año 2000 y en cada viaje me he enamorado más de él. He leído hace poco que cuanto más tiempo uno pasa en esta isla, más te impresiona ¡y tengo los brazos abiertos! De vez en cuando compartiré aquí con vosotros lo que hace de Bali un lugar mágico a medida que yo misma lo vaya descubriendo.

Bali es una de las 18.307 islas que componen Indonesia y se encuentra a 8 y 9 grados al sur del ecuador por lo que su clima es tropical. Tiene un área total de 5.633 km² y una población en crecimiento de 3 millones de habitantes. Denpasar es su capital y sus industrias principales la agricultura, la pesca y el turismo.

La isla presenta una enriquecedora paradoja: absorbe encantada los elementos extranjeros e innovadores importados por sus muchos visitantes y al mismo tiempo conserva una sociedad antigua y tradicional increíblemente llena de vida. Para colmo, estos elementos conviven en Bali bendecidos por una extraordinaria naturaleza.