Hungarians in Jogjakarta

Last night I spent time with Maté and Anna, two friends from Hungary who are currently traveling through Indonesia. Maté is an old friend whom I first met in Delft, Netherlands, where we both studied for a semester in 2007. We haven't seen each in the last seven years, and our reunion happened in Jogja of all cities.

After meeting at Fort Vredeburg, we biked to a restaurant near the Sultan's Palace and tried gudeg (1), a Jogja dish that's quickly becoming comfort food for me. After that, we stopped by J.Co for avocado dicaprio donuts, walked our bicycles through the crowds of Malioboro Street, and shared conversation at an angkringan (2) north of the Tugu train station. When we got there, one of the angkringan guys quickly ushered us to a spot on the mats to sit down, and I ordered kopi joss (3), es tape (4), sate usus (5), and pisang aroma (6).

A group of pengamen (7) came by as we were sipping on our drinks, two guys on guitar and one guy on a drum. I requested one of my favorite Indonesian rock ballads, Jogjakarta by KLA Project, a love song focused around the city in which I currently live.

The musicians did a beautiful job singing their hearts out, though I imagine the song is pretty easy to project emotion into. There's a refrain at end when the singers repeat a few heartbreaking lines in earnest, and it's hard not to feel the sentiment at that moment. While they were playing, I did my best to translate for my friends, but it became painfully clear that I still didn't understand about 80% of the lyrics.

So today, I finally made an effort to translate the song, aiming to understand the meaning behind each line. According to my co-workers, the lyrics are extremely poetic, containing words not commonly found in everyday conversation. They patiently explained the various connotations, which helped me develop the translation.

Coming home to your city,

I'm filled completely with longing.

It's still the same as long ago;

every corner is friendly, full of a thousand meanings.

I become flooded by nostalgia,

thinking of when we used to spend time

together, enjoying

the atmosphere of Jogja.

At the intersection, my feet come to a stop.

Food stalls are crowded,

selling tasty specialties,

and people sit cross-legged.

Street musicians begin to play

in rhythm to my sorrow of losing you.

Weeping in pain, alone,

my heartsickness is swallowed by the bustle of your city.

Although you haven't returned,

your city continues to remind me of your smile.

Please allow me to always come home

whenever my heart feels empty and broken.

(1) Gudeg: an iconic Jogja dish, a stew made from made from jackfruit and palm sugar, usually served with protein (tofu / tempe / chicken), egg, and the inner layer of a cow's skin.
(2) Angkringan: a general term for a street-side eatery, for which Jogja is famous. People usually sit on bamboo mats on the sidewalk, enjoying drinks and snacks while street musicians pass by. Angkringan are known for having very cheap food and drinks, so my students have sometimes referred to the food as  "makanan mahasiswa" (student food), because of how affordable it is.
(3) Kopi joss: one of the most famous drinks to be found in a Jogja angkringan, this is coffee made by dropping a burning hot piece of charcoal into the glass.
(4) Es tape: an iced drink made from fermented cassava.
(5) Sate usus: chicken intestine on a skewer.
(6) Pisang aroma: fried banana egg roll, very similar to the Filipino turon.
(7) Pengamen: street musicians.