Medan, Indonesia

Medan is both gritty and gorgeous, real and romantic. It’s as real as it gets! I had a chance to visit this charming country and finally meet Erwin’s family (yeah at last!), just in time for Chinese New Year. The city is fairly modern and has a lot of the best amenities, from modern theme parks and enormous malls to the most intricate landscapes and structures around. What make this place delightful is probably in that most basic of pleasures: FOOD! Medan boasts some of the best eateries—both posh and pedestrian—in the country, and is in fact known among Indonesians as something of a culinary mecca. This is a place where one can sample the best of Indonesian fare with the most exotic of Chinese cooking, with a dozen other cultural influences. NEVER MISS OUT on the chance to get a cup of ALPUKAT, also known as Avocada Shake. I never knew that Avocado will taste so heavenly when made with chocolate ice cream! It is cheap and it is EVERYWHERE. I have also discovered my now favorite Indonesian dessert, CENDOL. Quite comparable to Pinoy’s Halo Halo, this dessert has a distinct flavor of thick creamy Durian mixed with long strands of jelly and red beans. How I wish we have this kind in the Philippines! (Or should I better start learning how to make it on my own? Haha!)

We did visit the famous Golden Temple in Berastagi. Locals mainly go to this town for the weather. It’s like the Baguio of Medan. Nice, cold, misty when need be. Among all the building masterpieces, the Nature Park Lumbini is the most stunning! It has a magnificent structure covered by gold that makes it look luxurious. They say that this is a replica of the Shwedagon Pagoda in Burma (Myanmar).

Yes! His family was indeed very warm and hospitable in welcoming me in their home. The language might seem to hinder at first, since jitters mostly filled my usual unwavering chatty mouth. Despite of this barrier, I have seen them double their efforts in extending their wide pleasure in finally meeting me too. Uh-huh! It was sure a relief that the feeling is mutual. They made sure that I deeply enjoyed my stay in Indonesia. This gave me a thorough chain of thoughts: I am extremely overwhelmed that I have been to places where Erwin blossomed and grew. I have met the closest and dearest people in his life. I got a closer picture what really their culture is. And, I completely love to satiate and indulge myself to learning and experiencing more! Will definitely go back to Indonesia for sure.