A memory I will always treasure: the opportunities I've had to visit Tretes. Going to Tretes always means going on a short road trip with my best friend of 25 years. I remember listening to her describe her home to me, when we met as teenagers in Singapore, and dreaming about going there with her one day.
Indeed, we stayed friends, and I've visited. Many times. While I live ten thousand miles away now, Indonesia, especially East Java, will always have a special place in my heart.
This past weekend, we managed to get up to Tretes again. The trip was remarkably the same as every other time. Consistently delightful food and company. I am going to miss this. And everyone.
Absolutely delightful rawon, pecel and empal. Possibly one of my favorite restaurants in the world.
Sunlight trickling into the restaurant we usually stop at.
I don't know anyone who eats as much krupuk as I do. And it's the best in this part of the world.
Nasi rawon is my favorite dish in Indonesian cuisine. I can eat it a few times a day, every day. That I don't get (good versions of) it, or at all, abroad, is why I feel the need to really focus on my rawon time when I am in East Java.
Check out the view. You can't hear it, but there was also beautiful traditional / classical Javanese music streaming out of a school or home in the valley below. Culturally, this part of the world just speaks to my soul.
(All photos taken on Nikon FE, Kodak Gold 200, developed and scanned by Whampoa Colour Centre, Singapore)