Ada bule Jerman

One afternoon, two guests walked into the café. They had backpacks and maps. Ratri smiled. She had practiced her English all morning. “I will speak only English,” she told herself. But then — they started talking to each other in German. Ratri froze. “Oh no,” she thought. “Aku gugup…”

But then, one of them turned to her and said in perfect English, “Hello! Can we see the menu, please?” Ratri relaxed. She gave them the menu and said, “We have local food today.”

The man pointed to two items. “What is lumpia?” he asked. “It’s like spring roll,” Ratri explained. “Filled with vegetables. Very tasty!” “And pukis?” “It’s sweet pancake. Made from coconut and banana.” “And this? Es cendol dawet?” “It’s cold drink,” she said. “Green jelly, coconut milk, and palm sugar. Very sweet. Very good.”

The guests laughed. “We will try all three!”

Ratri was happy. She could take care of them well. She didn’t make a mistake in her order. When she brought the food, the woman said, “This looks amazing!”

Then, the man asked something unexpected. “Can you teach us some Indonesian words?” Ratri smiled. “Tentu!” He said, “How do you say turn left?” Ratri said, “Belok kiri.” “And how do you ask how much is this?” “In harganya berapa?” “And can the spicy sauce be not spicy?” “Bolehkah sambelnya tidak pedas?”

They repeated the phrases, laughing. “Belok kiri! In harganya berapa? Sambelnya tidak pedas!”

Ratri tried to keep up with their questions. She didn’t give up when she felt shy. She wanted to help them out. She could make small talk easily now.

The guests said, “You are very kind.” Ratri felt proud. She didn’t feel nervous anymore. She could deal with foreign guests. She even started to feel more confident.

One guest said, “We love local food.” Ratri said, “Yes! You should try something new when you travel.” They nodded. “And we will get used to Indonesian words soon!”

When they left, they said, “Thank you very much! You were great!” Ratri waved. “You’re welcome! Come again!”

Back at the counter, she smiled. “Ini menyenangkan,” she whispered.