sama sama means you’re welcome

While living in Australia I was struck how much their version of “you’re welcome” - “no worries” reflects the country’s friendly, laid back sentiments. Most of the time, the Aussies literally have no worries and sincerely mean it when they show gratitude for thanks in this way.

Sama sama is bahasa for “you’re welcome.” Literally translated it means “same same.” At first this seemed like a rather odd reply for giving thanks, but upon spending a little time in Indonesia it clicked for me. This is why I spent some more time thinking about why sama sama was so important to the Indonesia people. A little role play to demonstrate..

Andrea says: Terima kasih (Thank you)

X replies: Sama sama

What I hear in my head: NO, same same, thank YOU for your company

It’s as if they want to return the thanks to you, more so than with a “my pleasure” reply. It represents a stronger display of gratitude that reflects a deep rooted, caring nature of the people here.

It’s hard for me to point to one simple anecdote that’s led me to this little rant. Perhaps it’s the waiters who respond to my broken bahasa, attempting their broken English so I can actually understand what I’m ordering. Or the kindness all of our new friends display in helping us navigate the landscape here. Maybe its also the MANY simple activities that I could take care of myself (buying a few small items from the grocery store in Pacitan, for example) which have turned into full on group activities. Admittedly, being a ferociously independent person capable of doing most things on my own, this drove me crazy at first. Now that I understand (or at least I think I do!) the roots behind these overly friendly behaviors, I am trying to give up the caring and just accept the extra company!


Yes, people riding on top of train. This is a regular occurrence. Perhaps they are waving to thank me for taking their picture?


Dude selling eels at a market in Jakarta. Also, I imagine he's thanking me for taking his picture.. doubtful many people want to remember those eels.

Food from the field

And on to the food we’ve had all week. First, everyone seems to have the exact same dishes and cups and cup covers for the tea. Everyone. This is a close up shot, along with the remnants of my peanut snacking. You’ll notice these little cup covers in the background of basically every other picture I’ve taken here.. Must be a good business for whoever is makin em.



Slightly unrelated but in many homes I’ve observed random cultural icons that sneak their way into things: Garfield sheets, Little Mermaid Tupperware, Mickey Mouse T-shirts. These paired with the fact that 100% of the male farmers have full, thick mustaches and the time period that I’m in becomes highly unclear.

Snacks every day ranged from donuts to fried peanuts coated in flour (probably ate my weight’s worth of these) to bananas chips to sweet tea. Tea continues to be a must.

White rice ALWAYS comes with lunch. Other staples are tempe, tofu, noodles, vegetable soups in chicken broth or coconut milk, level of spices varied. Rahmi, Icha and Galih would always pre-warn me if something was too spicey for my non-Native tastes. Eggplant is included a few days in the vegetables and every time I go nuts. Fried bananas coated in flour were pretty common and they taste so much freaking better than anything I will ever be able to buy in the US. One day was also given quite possibly the most fabulous papaya ever, I think I embarrassed myself by how much I ate of it, if I did I really don’t care. Another day we had a fantastic fried fritter like object from corn, or at least I think it was corn.. either was it was delicious.

The women really fussed over me and made me feel like I was right at home in Maria’s kitchen being forced to eat until I’m full. One of the afternoons, after I finished my second helping of lunch, the mother of the house, grabbed my dish and without asking me filled it again with rice and noodles. I saw no other option than to finish my plate yet again. Good thing I like to eat.



In our final day of interviews,snacks were banana chips, peanuts, cassava chips and sweet tea. Finally by the end of the week I started exhibiting self-control with the snacking, striking a balance between being a polite guest and stuffing my face. That was UNTIL I tried the homemade cassava chips. They were spicy (chile) and sweet (coconut sugar) and put any potato chip I’ve ever had to shame. Lunch was extra delicious vegetable soup, coconut milk with green beans and eggplant (terong, which I again make a big fuss about) and fantastic tempe. I will learn how to make tempe before I come home.



Mrs. Narti (third from the left above) made the cassava chips and in addition to this out of this world skill, from her interview I can tell she is smart, resourceful and progressive- she uses climate forecasts and reports 3X the yields of her neighbors on the same amount of land. She also told me that her daughter saw me running one morning before she went to school and apparently waited for me in the afternoon! I’m flattered and demand a picture.



I think after my first week running around here people accepted that the American girl is crazy. So by the end of my stay here, EVERYONE honks and yells, sometimes in English, sometimes in Bahasa, sometimes in Javanese, or sometimes a blend of all: Good morning! Hello! Run run! Even with the tough hills and heat I keep a big smile on my face, as this greeting is universal.

There is something simple and honest and equally universal about breaking bread with folks that I just couldn’t get enough of this week.

More thoughts from the field

I’ve spent the last week listening to the final round of surveys with the farmers in the tiny Pringkuku village of rural East Java. Most of my days were spent at the homes of various farmer groups across the village, which of course entailed a smorgasbord of lunches and snacks. More on my favorites in the next post, but first a few shots of what the average day looked like.




Note: all the men are chain smoking.



I finally started to get some consistent answers from the people I spoke with, maybe this means I’m getting closer to the truth? For example, it’s been a struggle just to figure out where the rainfall data comes from, what department/agency reports it where, and who has the longest/most accurate records. This in itself was no small task and may be the most important work I’m able to complete here.

In terms of consistent answers from the dozens of farmers we’ve spoken to, it is difficult to propose ONE solution that would help every single person. We meet people with highly varied struggles and levels of sophistication, from those who simply start planting when their neighbors do, to those who know the sound of every single insect and what that means for the rains, to those who report that the climate forecasts are accurate 80% of the time.

After many more questions, patterns started to become slightly clearer. It’s become incredibly apparent to me here how closely many people’s livelihoods are tied to rainfall. For example, in years when rainfall is low, late or unreasonably intermittent and crop production suffers, farmers report many different and equally upsetting coping strategies: they sell their livestock, take loans from various places, get second jobs. Most are too afraid to deviate (read: unwilling to task risks that might be more profitable) from their usual cropping patterns or using different varieties because they have zero savings should their experiments fail. These are some of the responses that I’ve read numerous times in reports or journals. However the message really resonates when you sit face to face with a friendly Indonesian father and he tells you that his biggest worry is just to be able to afford education costs for his children, which are constantly increasing. Or when a woman tells you that she doesn’t qualify for health insurance so she is always concerned about how she would pay for health coverage if her daughters ever have an accident.

These confessions of concern remind me not only how similar the worries of people are across the globe- but also how important it is to try to find solutions to these struggles. I think I have a few answers for helping cope with climate difficulties, and plan to work hard over the final weeks of my internship to articulate those ideas so that perhaps someone will listen.