I know Bahasa, really I do<\/p>\n
I can still vividly recall the words of a friend -- "Edwin, you
\nwill enjoy living here because Bahasa Indonesia is so easy" --
\ntold to me back in 1980.<\/p>\n
Since then my proud declaration of "I know Bahasa" -- meaning
\nthat I can speak the local lingo and get by in it quite nicely,
\nthank you -- has been my constant hang up and, occasionally,
\ndownfall in making my way around.<\/p>\n
We left Indonesia in 1997 and are now back on a short visit.
\nMy wife, knowing all too well my language limitations, does her
\nbest to shield me from having to actually use it.<\/p>\n
However, I had to attend alone a memorial service for a
\ndeparted friend in the Sikh temple in Pasar Baru, Central
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
My wife gingerly asked, "Shall I give directions to the
\ndriver?"<\/p>\n
Now, that's patronizing for you.<\/p>\n
"Oh, dear, you don't give up, do you? Knowing Bahasa is like
\nknowing how to swim; however long ago it was when you learned it,
\nyou still know how to do it when you jump into the water. I shall
\ndo just that. Thanks, anyway."<\/p>\n
In the car I dozed off and woke up when my driver,Pak Agus,
\nsaid triumphantly "We're here, sir".<\/p>\n
To my shock, we were in front of All Saints Church in Central
\nJakarta, nowhere near Pasar Baru. In a flash I realized that I
\nhad used gereja (church) in my briefing to Agus, symbolically to
\nmake it clear that the Sikh temple was my destination.<\/p>\n
Doubts surfaced in my mind: Was my trustworthy Bahasa really
\non the blink, or was Agus playing games?<\/p>\n
After eventually reaching the temple and paying my condolences
\nto the family, I was homeward bound by 6 p.m., presuming it would
\nbe smooth sailing. But the car crawled along and Agus fidgeted in
\nhis seat.<\/p>\n
"Cepat-cepat (quickly)," I said crisply.<\/p>\n
"We can't sir, it's three-in-one."<\/p>\n
We needed to find one more passenger to comply with the
\ntraffic regulation. Just then, as Agus almost stopped, squinting
\nand peering intently to his left, there was a gentle tap on his
\nwindow.<\/p>\n
Agus brightened and told me, "Sir, there's a jockey".<\/p>\n
The jockey slid into the car, looking like a pro on the prowl.<\/p>\n
I began rehearsing my little Indonesian exchange for him for
\nthe end of the journey. So, when the time came, I asked the
\njockey, "Harga mana?"<\/p>\n
There was palpable confusion, and I knew that I had made some
\nsort of Bahasa blunder. While I was rehearsing my speech, "harga
\nberapa? (What's the fare?)" cropped up again and again in my
\nmind, but I somehow blurted out the equivalent of "Where's the
\nfare?"<\/p>\n
With my Indonesian skills laid bare for all to hear, the
\njockey must have realized he had a sitting duck right before his
\neyes.<\/p>\n
Cockily, he replied, "Rp 50,000".<\/p>\n
How nice, I thought. The jockey and I were on the same
\nwavelength about the fare. Probably, he had enjoyed the free BMW
\nride and his fee was just icing on the cake for him.<\/p>\n
With alacrity, I took out the fiver nestling in my pocket,
\ngiving it to Agus to give to him.<\/p>\n
But no "'makasih" (thank you) was forthcoming.<\/p>\n
Instead the silence in the car was, as they say, deafening.<\/p>\n
"He said Rp 50,000, not Rp 5,000, sir," Agus said.<\/p>\n
I was shocked, took back the note from Agus and replaced it
\nwith Rp 20,000. The jockey was unmoved. He was insisting on his
\npound of flesh, a ransom of a crisp Rp 50,000 note.<\/p>\n
I got very angry, and in my state of agitation I was not even
\naware that my "I know Bahasa" had suddenly taken leave of me. In
\nrapid-fire English, I told Agus, "Go to Jl. Ragunan Raya. We will
\nsettle his fare over there."<\/p>\n
English unnerved the jockey for English has power, no matter
\nwho speaks it. The jockey, less bull-headed than Shylock, grabbed
\na wad of money offered by Agus, jumped out and melted into the
\ndarkness.<\/p>\n
On reaching home, as I was about to get out of the car, Agus
\nsaid he had paid the jockey Rp 30,000 instead of the Rp 50,000 he
\ndemanded. He now asked for his Rp 10,000, which I grumpily paid.<\/p>\n
I was sure I had been robbed. Whether by one or two people was
\nimmaterial. But I had no regrets. Rp 30,000 was a small price for
\nan engaging and enjoyable evening when I got to show my "I know
\nBahasa" skills one more time -- and learn a language lesson.<\/p>\n
-- G.S. Edwin<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/i-know-bahasa-really-i-do-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }