Secret Asian Man- Finding Rocket Man

Time ticks by and we start forming lists. Lists of things to pack. Lists of things to buy.  Lists of places we want to see before we go.  Lists of the things we’ll miss. 

Missing things like the melon.  Oh my god!  The melon! First, buttery and savory, with a cool sweet finish. I will have crack-dreams for years over this melon.

Or missing things like falafel. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to eat falafel anywhere else.  Or shwarma. Same thing.  They’re simple, delicious and darn near free. Paying 7 bucks or more back in the US seems obscene.  

Out with the Mrs. for a spring evening stroll to obtain such sandwiches. The start of the dwindling number, I’m sure. Trying to get our fill.

We came across a new place that had opened a couple months back.  It was bright and clean with decor a step above.  And they were cooking something new. It was like shwarma meat cooked on a large shield-like pan. A little oil, a little lemon juice, some secret spices.  They press some pita down on top of the stew that’s created sopping up any extra juice then they wrap it all up with some tomatoes, pickles and hot peppers and squirt on some lemon juice to finish.  Served with fries.

It looked like a shwarma, but different. I thought I’d give it a try, so I walked up to the counter and picked up the menu.  

“That is all in arabic, but don’t worry, I will explain to you everything.” said the purveyor.

In near perfect English, he explained that this was a Turkish sandwich called a Tantuni. He talked a bit about it and how long they were here.  He and all the cooks there were Jordanian, but they had a Turkish chef who was on holiday.

Chicken or beef, I opted for chicken and placed my order.

I called Mrs. S.A.M. in from her Pokemon hunting. He explained the whole process again. She exclaimed, “That looks amazing, but I’m a vegetarian. That looks like it would be great with tofu!”

The man considers this and tells us that he used to own an Italian restaurant in Guanzhou, China. He said he never had tofu until he went there and grew to love it.

“Ah, I will make a vegetarian sandwich for you that is not on the menu!”  And he proceeds to bark out orders to the guy behind the counter who responded and made some suggestions of his own.  

He throws down a pita, smears on some yogurt, takes some Arugula and tears off only the tender parts.  Seriously, at a fast food street vendor, he tore the stems out of 12-15 individual leaves of arugula and laid them out strategically for maximum coverage.  Some tomatoes, pickles, etc.

“I love arugula”, he says. “I put it anywhere I can!”

We told him the sandwich should have a name.  “I don’t know, I guess a rocket sandwich?! Ha ha!”

I offer to pay for the extra creativity, but he waves me off.  “It is my compliments!” and then after we’re sitting outside he brings out two cold yogurt drinks with froth on top.  He called it Airon(sp?) and said it is a popular dish in Turkey.  “You will drink more Airon than water there.”

Sipping our icee cold, spoiled milk, we wondered together about this man’s story. Here’s a guy with a salad-greens fetish, speaking perfect English, who’s owned an Italian restaurant in China, now importing a Turkish sandwich concept to Jordan. How does that happen?  

We figured that it must be family that drew him back. This country is full of people with postponed dreams. Men or women who went away and did interesting things, but came back to care for mom or dad or in-laws and work the family business or on the side driving Uber or guiding tours.

When I started this entry, I was going to say that people were the other thing I’d miss. Their pride and kindness and stories like these.

But then I realized there are stories and people like this everywhere. I could go to the State Fair this summer and find a fried food vendor and if I stood and listened for long enough, I’d probably find an equally kind and proud person, who just might give me extra chocolate sauce for my deep fried twinkie.

                                                   

One Papaya Leaf and Counting.....

It’s the end of Ramadan in Jakarta.  The perfect time to be here. The city has emptied out. Some 80% of Jakartans have gone elsewhere for the week.  Electricity usage is down by 70% compared with a week ago. The air is clean. The streets are quiet. This holiday has given us, in the words of that guy on Ally McBeal, “a fresh bowl”

And winding down my time here in Indonesia, I’ve taken the time to reflect on all the things I’ll miss about Jakarta when I leave here. I’m sure the list is greater, but here are 6 things.

1. Fauna: in a city with near zero green space and 20 million people, you think it be limited, but it is everywhere you look. The geckos who welcomed us so abruptly when we arrived have become
   
   our friends.  Yes, they scare the bejeezus out of me when the scurry away when I open a cabinet door, but they cause us no harm and eat the mosquitos.

The myriad of butterflies that grace us daily in our own front yard.

The flying lizards. Flying lizards? You ask.  Damn straight.  We’d heard from our staff that the

lizards fly and we totally disregarded them, until one day we watched one climb a tree in our yard and soar across the lawn into another tree.  It was the darndest thing.  And now we see it all the time.

Even rats, considered horrid when we arrived, are rather quaint.  We look up and see one running across the rafters of our new favourite smoothie bar and it doesn’t faze us. They’re part of life here.  Except when you step on a dead one.  Then, they’re still pretty horrid.

2. The dozens of sights I’ve seen and the millions of sights I haven’t.  I’ll miss the beauty, the uniqueness and the history of this place.  Once could spend a lifetime here and see something new every day, I’m sure. And that is all rapidly changing whether by neglect or progress. It won’t be the same again forever.

3. The people, who are generally kind and considerate.  They are also seriously proud maybe to their detriment. Insisting on doing things their way even when solutions lie in front of them. Take, for instance, the Uber drivers who, despite the power of a GPS on their dash and turn-by-turn directions in a native language, insist on orbiting my neighborhood in ever shrinking circles until they find my house!

But they are endlessly resourceful and their solutions to problems work and sometimes are even better than conventional.  I’m also convinced there is some sort of magic among them..  I hear stories of magic here.  Stories of people mysteriously gaining power or influence. Or after months of seemingly nothing happening, there is suddenly instantaneous progress. And being here now, I start to wonder if time may be more fluid here. May all the real work is being done in some other dimension.  

I also think that a large portion of their communication is telepathic.  Watching them communicate in a loud, crowded places, they never seem to yell or slow their speech and yet, the message always gets through.  Mostly though, I’ll miss the easy smiles of the Indonesian people.

5. Motorbikes. Though a scourge upon the traffic scene with their blatant disregard for laws and
   
   sidewalks and their platelet-like way of clotting routes for the rest of us, I marvel and the efficiency of all that can be done/carried on the back of one. Texting, sleeping, even breastfeeding an infant.  Balloons, live goats, hundreds of pounds of ice, small furniture.  All can be carried with some seat space and some raffia twine to lash it. It is still a source of entertainment. 

5. The hustle.  Just the sheer hustle of people here. You don’t need a lot to survive here. Food is cheap. Clothing can be cheap. Shelter is as little as a tarp and a bench. It may not be easy, but you can survive if you hustle for that  last little bit. From the parking hawkers, to the Momma Jockeys, to the rag pickers, to the street musicians. They’ll take a handout if it’s offered, (They may even take your hand),  but few are looking for a handout. Everyone is constantly hustling. It can often be frustrating, maddening at times, but they're all trying to make their way in the world.

6. My papaya tree. Planted from a seed,to a pot, to our yard, I’ve watched it grow daily. It’s still quite small and I’ll never see fruit. This papaya tree only ever has 12  or 13 broad green leaves at a time.  A new one sprouts out the top, and the lowest one yellows and falls off. Losing one leaf perhaps once or twice a week.  In an age where things move in a flash and lives change in an instant, I think there is a good value in measuring time by the leaves of a papaya tree.

I’m told if you stay in a place long enough, you’ll grow to love it. Warts and all, Jakarta has definitely gotten under my skin. And so, with just one papaya leaf remaining of my time here, those are some of the things I’ll miss the most.

Keep an eye out for Secret Asian Man's continuing ventures in Jordan.