Breaking the fast on the street<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
There is nothing more pleasurable than breaking the fast at
\nhome surrounded by family. Everyone rushes to the table when the
\nadzan (call to prayer) is heard in the gathering dusk. Water or
\nhot sweet tea is passed around, then tajil (snacks to break the
\nfast) are enjoyed.<\/p>\n
After the snacks, people either pray or immediately sit down
\nto a big meal of delicious food specially prepared for Ramadhan.
\nEither way, it is fun to be together with the people you love
\nduring the holy month.<\/p>\n
That is why Indra, 29, always tries to break the fast at home
\nwith his wife and son, even though it takes over an hour to get
\nfrom his office in West Jakarta to his house in Tangerang.<\/p>\n
\"By the time I get home it's already time to break the fast.
\nSo I usually buy water and sweets at the office before I leave
\nfor home,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Though it is sometimes a battle to make it home to be with his
\nfamily, Indra is luckier than thousands of others who are forced
\nby circumstance to break the fast on the street.<\/p>\n
A lot of it is to do with the cost of modern living. Some
\npeople work night shift or take a class after work, while others
\nget caught in traffic jams or, simply live too far away from
\ntheir offices.<\/p>\n
They go to the food courts at local malls or restaurants,
\nwhile the more affluent gather at hotels that offer sumptuous
\nbuffets at prices up to Rp 100,000.<\/p>\n
But thousands of others choose to break the fast at the
\nsidewalk stalls found across the city. Some must break their fast
\nduring the journey home, either with meals they prepared
\nthemselves or with snacks purchased from the hawkers who swarm
\nthe streets as dusk approaches.<\/p>\n
\"Well, of course it's cheaper than eating at the mall. Imagine
\nhow much I'd have to spend if I had to break the fast at the mall
\nevery day,\" said Reni as she broke the fast in the Blok M area.<\/p>\n
The employee of a company in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, also
\nsaid that sidewalk stalls offered a wide variety of food to
\nchoose from.<\/p>\n
Drive around Bendungan Hilir, Cikini or Blok M and you will be
\namazed by the number of vendors, selling everything from fried
\nchicken and satay to nasi padang and seafood.<\/p>\n
Some vendors have a stall or a cart, others simply lay out
\ntheir food on a table, usually snacks like kolak (fruit stewed in
\na coconut milk and palm sugar) and cendol (a sweet drink), which
\nare sold in plastic bags.<\/p>\n
Many vendors open in the morning, while others do not open
\nuntil it is almost time to break the fast and the number of
\ncustomers peaks.<\/p>\n
Parlini, a vendor in the Bendungan Hilir market, opens her
\nstall at 4 p.m. during Ramadhan, while the rest of the year he
\nopens for business at lunchtime.<\/p>\n
\"It's usually crowded at the time of breaking the fast to
\naround 7 p.m. I usually go home about 8 p.m. because there are no
\nmore customers,\" she explained, while preparing food for a
\ncustomer.<\/p>\n
For some people, however, it is not merely the low prices that
\ndraw them to a sidewalk stall to break their fast.<\/p>\n
\"I just like the atmosphere. It's crowded and hectic with
\neveryone wanting to break the fast ... it's lively,\" said Evita,
\na postgraduate student who was breaking the fast at a stall in
\nFatmawati, South Jakarta.<\/p>\n
At Bendungan Hilir, for example, there is a small trickle of
\ncustomers at about 4 p.m. and everything is relatively quiet.<\/p>\n
But about 5 p.m., people start to arrive in droves. Most of
\nthem have just finished work, and come either alone or with a
\ngroup of colleagues.<\/p>\n
\"I usually break the fast at home, but we had a lot of work to
\ndo at the office. So we decided to break the fast together here,\"
\nsaid Winjun, who works at the nearby Supreme Audit Body.<\/p>\n
At about 5:30 p.m., Winjun and his friends started to order
\nsome dishes at the seafood stall they were seated at. Soon, large
\nplates of shrimp, clams, crabs and fish were placed in front of
\nthem.<\/p>\n
Half an hour later, the adzan was heard and the market was
\ngalvanized into action. Customers broke the fast and waiters
\nserved the food. And when they could grab a moment, the waiters
\ntook their turn to break the fast, sitting near stoves with stray
\ncats waiting to pounce on fallen morsels.<\/p>\n
But as soon as more customers arrived, the waiters quickly
\nstood up to serve them before later continuing their own meals.
\nIt was Ramadhan, after all, a once-a-year business opportunity
\nthat must not be passed up.<\/p>",
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