Blogger Indonesia of the Week (64): Evi Meinar
Evi Meinar Kanada An Indonesian Chef in Canada
There are many ways for Indonesian expats to heal the “wound” of being far away from their homecountry. And there are even more various ways to express their love and sometimes “unconscious” patriotism to it. One thing for sure, that “nothing like home” is not a hollow word. This is especially true in the case of Indonesian abroad in particular.
There is a Javanese saying which I think represent the psyche of Indonesian in general and it should explain why not so many Indonesians enjoy staying abroad, unlike Indian or Chinese, for example. It says: Mangan ora mangan sing penting ngumpul, meaning that it’s better off staying at home despite starving than making a good life abroad.
So, going abroad for making a better living or better career opportunities is an uncommon phenomenon. Those few Indonesians who are having a good career abroad or in some cases are following their foreign wives/husbands are those who have successfully “reform” themselves from the not-so-good old tradition of “mangan ora mangan sing penting kumpul” kind of thing.That’s said, it’s understandable if they are every now and then missing their homecountry. To some cases, this kind of feeling motivate them to do something which will remind them of their homeland. In the case of Evi Meinar, for example, as she puts it rightly: “There is always a way to make ourselves feel at home. My way is by cooking Indonesian food.”
Cooking Indonesian food is the right way for herself to feel at home. Writing constantly in her blog whatever she cooks will benefit other Indonesian expats who sometimes are facing difficulties to find Indonesian recipes abroad. And by blogging in English makes her cullinary blog benefits not only those who are interested in Indonesian dishes but also helps her country to be more known to the outside world. Dewi Fortuna Anwar when she spoke to us in New Delhi recently rightly said that all Indonesian should be an unofficial “diplomat” for their country. Of course, by their own ways.
And for that only Evi Meinar deserves our high appreciation and gratitude.