Smoking and coffee, the Acehnese way<\/p>\n
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post\/Banda Aceh<\/p>\n
A weary-eyed man sat inside his wet tent in the military complex
\nin the Mata Ie area, Banda Aceh, as his daughter cuddled beside
\nhim. Smoke billowed from his thick cigarette while he sipped
\nblack coffee.<\/p>\n
Close by, several men sit about making almost similar
\ngestures: smoking cigarettes, drinking coffee.<\/p>\n
\"This feels good. It (smoking) somehow almost feels like
\neating, you know, and coffee is the drink. During the first few
\ndays after the tsunami it was tough to get cigarettes here, but
\nfortunately, those days are over,\" 43-year-old Ilhamimi, who
\nsmokes two packs a day, told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
In many refugee settlements, men are commonly seen smoking
\nheavily.<\/p>\n
\"Yes, men here really love smoking and drinking coffee. It's
\nlike a package. But smoking is like the 'main course' because
\nthey usually drink just a couple of glasses of coffee, but smoke
\nalmost half a pack of cigarettes in just a single visit,\" said
\nRosida, whose coffee shop is located across from the Al Faidzin
\ncamp.<\/p>\n
She said she could sell three cartons of mostly clove
\ncigarettes and countless glasses of coffee every day.<\/p>\n
With most men in the camp losing virtually everything to the
\ntsunami, some nonetheless still manage to spare some of their
\nvery limited cash to buy cigarettes.<\/p>\n
\"I like smoking. And after what happened, things have become
\nso stressful for me that in fact, I get a bit of relief from
\nsmoking cigarettes and drinking coffee,\" laughed 60-year-old
\nZainun, a refugee at the Al Faidzin settlement in Lampeuneurut,
\nAceh Besar.<\/p>\n
Some refugees are quite distressed that they do not have
\nenough money to buy cigarettes.<\/p>\n
\"Is there any possibility that cigarettes be included in the
\nrelief aid?\" quipped an Acehnese, Syafiie, with nods of agreement
\nfrom those around him.<\/p>\n
As if to confirm their strong attachment to smoking, a paper
\nsign glued to a tree inside the TVRI compound now used as a
\nrefugee camp says: Perempuan butuh pembalut, pakaian dalam dan
\nrok... ok -- originally meaning \"women need sanitary napkins,
\nunderwear and skirts\". Someone, no doubt male, had added \"ok\"
\nafter the word rok, changing the word skirt (rok) to cigarette
\n(rokok).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/smoking-and-coffee-the-acehnese-way-1447893297",
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