"We were expecting to see houses and buildings dot the shore, as well as the hawkers who'd typically crowd around piers in Indonesia with food and wares to sell. There was none of that. It was just a pier next to a tiny village. After disembarking, we set off walking and within 100 metres ran out of houses, surrounded only by rice paddies and farmland. There was nothing to do and nowhere to go, and not even a tree to seek shade under."
"She took us in, sat us down and then returned with a tray of gloriously refreshing cold drinks. We noticed she wasn't partaking and when we asked why, she explained it was Ramadan and she's not supposed to be eating or drinking until sunset. We felt uncomfortable drinking when she couldn't, but she assured us it was OK. She then invited her two brothers, both of whom were studying engineering, to come and speak with us."
In 1996 a couple travelled around Indonesia and took a ferry from Surabaya to Madura expecting a small town atmosphere. The ferry landing revealed only a pier and a tiny village surrounded by rice paddies and farmland, with no shade or services. While waiting on a bench in the heat, a young woman in a kebaya and sarong invited them to her family home and offered cold drinks. The woman did not drink because it was Ramadan, yet she encouraged them to drink and introduced them to her two engineering-student brothers. The group spent hours conversing about life and aspirations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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