Preserving Tradition

The culture of Indonesia is as vast and diverse as the archipelago itself. Each specific region has it's own traditions when it comes to food, dance, dress, language, and ceremonies. The Indonesian people are very proud of their culture- traditional dance and songs are incorporated into most events, traditional clothes are worn every Friday in my school, traditional food pervades every aspect of life here, most people speak several languages (bahasa Indonesia plus their hometown dialect) and the majority of weddings and other ceremonies follow the traditional customs. The traditional culture of Pekanbaru is Melayu; however, this is highly influenced by the traditions of the Minang people of West Sumatra. To try and describe the intricacies of such a culture would be doing a disservice to the people and their traditions- so hopefully photos and videos will give you a better understanding.

This video shows a traditional Malayu dance performed by my students. Click on this link to view it.

Examples of traditional Malayu clothing- obviously not adapted to tropical weather.

Brian and I both hate Melayu Fridays for obvious reasons...

Traditional Padang food is from West Sumatra. At Padang restaurants all the food is prepared in the morning and then  is kept in bowls behind glass all day. They bring out a small dish of everything they have- usually an assortment of meat, fish and vegetables curried, grilled, and fried along with a big bowl of rice and you pay for what you eat. As is customary you wash your right hand in a small bowl of water on the table and eat with your hands. 

When you order food dibungkus (to go) it is usually packaged in wax paper or some kind of banana leaf and newspaper. Gado-gado (above) is my favorite Indonesian dish- steamed green beans, cabbage and bean sprouts, lettuce, tofu, and lontong (rice that has been boiled for several hours in a banana leaf so it is condensed) covered in a spicy peanut sauce. On top are crupuk or Indonesian chips- flour disks that are fried until crunchy and provide texture to almost any dish. Pretty much flavorless, they come in an assortment of colors.