YOGYAKARTA (KU) – The concern for the survivors of Mt. Merapi eruption is not only shown by the community from within and outside of Yogyakarta. The same concern is also given by foreign students of UGM. They garner support by participating in GamaFest International Food Bazaar held on Saturday (30/10) afternoon in the yard of the Center for Population and Policy Studies. Cuisine and international food festival was attended by foreign students from 24 countries: South Korea, Yemen, Papua New Guinea, Netherlands, Germany, Australia, Japan, India, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and Africa.
Uniquely, every visitor who came was able to enjoy typical food directly from various countries cheaply for each portion, ranging from 2,000 rupiah, 3000 rupiah to 5,000 rupiah. The money will be collected and distributed directly to Merapi survivors.
Each booth provided a box for visitors to put in coins that will donated to the survivors. At the entrance of the exhibition, the committee also provided two large piggy banks inscribed ‘donate your coins here’. "We want to persuade visitors to care for our brothers in Merapi," said Wiwit, one of committee members.
Quang, one of the foreign students from Vietnam studying in the Department of Geology, Faculty of Engineering, introduced two typical foods of the country, namely Che Trou uoc and Cha Gio. Together with his compatriot, Sulaiman, both of them did not hesitate to promote their homemade dishes to every visitor in their booth. "Come, please try, only costs 3,000 rupiah. The money goes to Merapi survivors," he promoted.
Pio, a student from Laos introduced one of the Laotian breakfast menus consisting of rice, vegetables, chili, and sliced meat rolled up into small pieces. "We also introduce Laotian typical pudding with pandan flavor," said Pio who was accompanied by two friends.
To reporters, Pio admitted his delight to introduce his country’s cuisine. He also had the opportunity to become acquainted with other foreign students at UGM. "I had been here for two months. I major in Indonesian language at UGM. Sorry, my Indonesian is not fluent," he said, slightly embarrassed.
Pio and Quang are among the hundreds of foreign students studying at UGM. They were invited to participate in introducing their cuisine and culture.
Head of the Office of International Affairs UGM, Dr. Rachmat Sriwijaya, explained this activity is routinely held every year to introduce each country’s cuisine. "They can introduce the culture through food that can be enjoyed by people of Yogya and among foreign students," he said.
Rachmat said that all foreign students at UGM were involved in this activity. His office provided the venue, initiation funding for foreign students to make their dishes. "All foreign students are involved here. We want those who are studying at UGM feel like staying at their own home," he said.