You might say that the average Indonesian is obsessed with sugar (gula), in much the same way that Americans are. But instead seeing of the deadly sodas that we are surrounded by at home, or the super addictive candy that all school children fight over, you might be surprised by how actively most people here add sugar to their otherwise very light and aromatic drinks. Whether it is in a simple tea (teh) or coffee (kopi which is prepared by pouring extremely finely ground coffee into boiling water), spoonfuls of sugar are just casually added into drinks here. It's very common to find yourself drinking full sugar granules that weren't able to dissolve because of all the sugar that is saturated (or concentrated) in the water. After that, sweet condensed milk is poured in your drink if you ask for it with milk, or paket susu. It surprises people here when I ask for no sugar in my drinks, to the point where sometimes I still find sugar in my drink.
Nonetheless, I can't complain about how amazing the specialty juices are in my community. In Indonesia, you will find juice stalls with the words aneka jus, or assorted juices. A person with a smile greets you over the stall where you will find fruits like avocado, pineapple, pears, apples, and oranges hanging off the ceiling or banner, or displayed behind a glass screen to the side. You order your fruit, or a combination of it, and the juice artist blends the fruit with ice and a little bit of condensed milk. You then have yourself a very fresh and soothing smoothie made in under a minute.
