oleh-oleh

There is a custom in Indonesia that when you travel you should bring a gift of food or souvenir from your travels. This gift is to show gratitude and thanks for everything that you have done for the individual that gives the gift. This gift is referred to as oleh-oleh. Tonight I received a call from Pak Haryono who asked if he could come over. I wasn’t sure what to think. He came to our home with his wife and two young boys. They were bearing gifts from their kampung. They brought us Bakpia from Yogyakarta and battered fried peanuts that Haryono’s wife made. His kids and our kids overcame the language barrier and played for an hour. Then sadly it was time for Pak and his family to head home. I am deeply honored that Pak Haryono shared his family with mine and that he gave us oleh-oleh.