Instant Indonesian. Stuart RobsonЧитать онлайн книгу.
Sudah. Yes, I am.
Sudah soré. It’s late (in the afternoon).
Sudah malam. It’s late (in the evening).
Verbs in Indonesian are not modified to indicate tense. Instead, there are words such as sudah that indicate whether an action or state has been completed. Sudah can sometimes be translated to mean “already;” it serves to indicate that something is completed, or already in a certain condition, and can often be translated into the English perfect tense, “has/have …-ed.” Another such word is belum “not yet”:
Sudah makan? Have you eaten?
Belum. Not yet.
You will find belum very useful as a tag to end questions with:
Pak Hasan sudah datang, (atau) belum? Has Hasan arrived, or not?
Sudah makan, belum? Have you eaten yet, or not?
| 10 | MINTA to ask for |
Minta tolong, Pak. May I have some help? (to a male)
Literally, “I am asking for help.”
Minta informasi, Pak. I am seeking information. (to a male)
The word minta usually means “to ask for,” but it also means “could you give me,” or “I want.” It is useful for making requests politely.
Eating and Drinking
Most people love Indonesian food. But be careful of the chillis! The tiny green chillis are the hottest of all—pedas sekali (“very hot!”). You’ll find the red chilli sauce (sambal) in a little jar—help yourself to just a little, to brighten things up.
What will you order? At a restaurant (rumah makan, or restoran for slightly classier establishments) you’ll find a menu (daftar makanan), but probably not at a food-stall (warung). (The former are likely to be cleaner.) Anything with goréng is “fried,” e.g. nasi goréng “fried rice.”
The word nasi refers to rice in its cooked (i.e. steamed) form; it is the basic food of Indonesia. Almost all other dishes are usually eaten with nasi. Some Indonesians say that if they haven’t eaten rice in a particular day, they haven’t eaten! So ask for nasi putih “plain (literally, white) rice” with whatever you order, except with noodles and fried rice. Your fried rice will contain all sorts of tasty things, such as pieces of chicken, and should be eaten hot.
Some good tips:
á If there is saté, ask for about ten sticks. The meat may be chicken (ayam) or goat (kambing), but never pork (babi) in Muslim areas. Any meat of the pig is unlikely to be served, because the pig (like the dog) is considered unclean. In Bali, however, pork is often eaten.
á I would recommend the gado-gado, mixed par-boiled vegetables such as cabbage, carrot and bean sprouts, with a tasty peanut sauce—énak sekali (“very nice!”).
á If there is nasi goréng istiméwa (special fried rice), this usually means that a whole fried egg will be added.
What will you drink? If unsure, go for something that has been boiled. Standard is téh manis “sweet tea,” which comes in a glass, with a neat coaster and lid. Tea may be served with sugar already in it; so if you want tea without sugar, you should ask for téh pahit (literally, “bitter tea”). If you want orange juice, ask for air jeruk. If you just want plain water, ask for air putih.
By the way, the Indonesians are very proud of their fruits. Wherever you go, they will ask, “Have you tried the…?,” referring to their local variety. So try to remember the name, and give it a go, and you’ll find some are really delicious (even maybe the strong-smelling durian).
The way to order and pay for food is generally the same everywhere, with one exception, the rumah makan Padang (Padang restaurant). In this style of restaurant, which serves characteristic, spicy food from West Sumatra, you may find the waiter piling many dishes on the table without being asked. You take food directly from the dishes, and at the end of the meal, the waiter will tally up the price of what you have eaten.
And so, Selamat makan! Go ahead, enjoy your meal …
PART 2 Words 11–20
| 11 | MAAF (pronounced ma-af) sorry |
The word maaf is useful for excusing yourself if there is any danger that you might have done the wrong thing.
Maaf, Pak! Sorry! (to a man)
Maaf, Ibu! Sorry! (to a woman)
Maaf, belum jelas. Sorry, I still don’t understand. Literally, “not yet clear.”
Maaf, Pak, ini apa? Excuse me, what’s this? (to a man)
Maaf, Ibu, sekali lagi? Excuse me, can you repeat that? (to a woman)
Literally, “once again.”
Maaf, siapa nama Bapak? Excuse me, but what’s your name? (to a man)
When you are asking for someone’s name, apa should not be used. Instead, use siapa “who,” as in the preceding example.
| 12 | PERMISI excuse me |
Permisi, Pak, boléh léwat? Excuse me, Pak, may I get past?
| 13 | SILAKAN, SILAHKANplease, come on, go ahead |
This word is usually accompanied by a hand gesture, as in the English used when the English phrase “after you” is uttered.
Silakan. Please do; Go ahead.
Silakan duduk! Please sit down!
Silakan masuk! Please come in!
Silakan makan! Please eat!
In situations in which we would merely say “please” in English, we may need to use one of a number of Indonesian words. If we need help, or are asking for something for our own benefit, we use tolong (literally, “help”) or minta (literally, “request”). But when we are inviting someone to do something for their benefit, not for ours, we must use silakan, as in the above examples.
| 14 | DI in/at/on (+ place word) |
Di Jakarta. In Jakarta.
Di Jalan Asem. In Asem Street.
Di kantor. In the office.
Di depan kantor. In front of the office.
Di lantai tiga. On the third floor.
These three little place words below and beginning with s form a set:
sini means “this place, here;”
sana means “there (a place out of sight);” and
situ means “there (a place within sight).”
Di sini. Here.
Di sana. There.
Kita makan di sini. We will eat here.
Pak Hasan masih di sana. Hasan is still there.
| 15 | MANA? where? |
Di mana? Where?
Kita makan di mana? Where will we eat?
Tinggal di mana? Where do you live?
Mau ke mana? Where are you going?
This is a common form of greeting in Indonesia, like “How are you?” in English. The intention is to make social contact, rather than obtain information, so feel free to give a vague answer such as jalan-jalan “just taking a walk” or makan angin “just getting out and about.”
Anda berasal dari mana? Where do you come from?
| 16 | TIDAK no, not |
If