Aceh, the City of Thousand Coffee Shop.

Executive summary by Darmansjah Godjali

Ngang ... nging ... ngung.... Rumble that sounds like a bunch of wasps. No stopping in the morning, noon and night. They were in and out of turns. Although noisy, they kept coming. The rooms are quite spacious it is always full. This is the atmosphere in the Coffee Shop Coffee Service Solong aka Father in Ulee Kareng, Banda Aceh, in the City of Thousand Coffee Shop.

The owner of a coffee shop, H Nawawi, was busy serving the guests. Employees back and forth carrying glasses of coffee and cake. The crowd was no less busy. They find a place to sit. I was so full, sometimes they do not easily get a seat. There, sitting for hours, but there is also a sitting just a few minutes, just drinking coffee kept going.

"This business was started by my father in 1974. I continue, "said Nawawi early to tell the coffee shop. Current events Daddy is a coffee shop services that are categorized as elderly. This kind of coffee shop belonging to a traditional coffee shop in Banda Aceh and surrounding areas.

Traditional coffee shop in question ranging from the way of making coffee drinks that are boiled and use the filter when they want presented, the facility no more than a desk and chair, the type of drink, and also the types of people who come to that place. When we use the term traditional stalls, of course there are other types of stalls.

"Now many new coffee shops grew in Banda Aceh and in other cities, such as Lhokseumawe and Takengon. Traditional coffee shops such as Coffee Shop Services can be classified as first-generation father. The second generation was developed with a coffee shop franchise. The third generation is a coffee shop that provides facilities not only drinks and food, but also music, satellite television, to access the Internet, "said anthropologist Teuku Kemal Fasya.

Post-tsunami

After the tsunami and the Helsinki peace agreement in Banda Aceh and other towns on the east coast of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) grew a lot of seating and a place to drink it, whether that still call the coffee shop or cafe. The exact number of coffee shops is not known, but we could see the streets of Banda Aceh and other cities filled with coffee shops. One was on the ring road which had recently opened and now there are at least about 10 coffee shops or cafes.

Fasya said the mushrooming of coffee shops or cafes associated with the arrival of volunteers and workers, both from within and outside the country, to NAD. They need a place to sit and drink and to relax and meet relatives. Other changes will see the opening hours of coffee shop that originally did not until now has appeared 24 hours coffee shop is open 24 hours.

"The settlers also feel the need for a comfortable public space. The development of a modern coffee shop or cafe called lately because of the economic opportunities associated with public space it needs. Acehnese people catch the opportunity, "said Fasya.

Coffee drinking habits of existing and entrenched in the community in Banda Aceh and surrounding areas become more developed when the volunteers and workers were enjoying a coffee shop atmosphere. The roots of the tradition of drinking coffee and sitting in a coffee shop may be spelled out long enough. Seeing the historical facts about the intense communication between the Sultanate of Aceh and the Ottoman Empire which is now located in Turkey, probably a habit to visit a coffee shop has long existed among the people of Aceh.

"After the morning prayer until the evening we can meet people from various circles in the coffee shop. Chat anything there in the cafe, from politics, economics, arts until affairs there, "said LK Ara culture. He says, sometimes people sit for hours in a coffee shop.

In the eyes of Ara, can not be denied there are people who laze on the spot, so sometimes there who criticize the coffee shop where laze. However, according to him, many people in the cafe because it is also a place to explore ideas or add information.

"From the coffee shop and then into the workplace. In the workplace they can develop ideas drawn from a coffee shop, "said Ara said, calling reporters and also Egyptian literary Nobel Prize winner who got the ideas in the coffee shop before leaving for work.

Fasya say, people with diverse backgrounds profession often meet in a coffee shop. Although no clear distinctions, he mentions among student activists and political parties prefer a traditional coffee shop. However, among teenagers and young people choose a new cafes are popping up with internet, watch together, to music.

Another distinction is also evident is the manner of payment calculation drinks. In the traditional coffee shop often count only coffee shop employee from memory. When we ask the amount to be paid, the employees of the coffee shop immediately say certain numbers. Conversely in a coffee shop or cafe, the owner provides proof of payment of accurate and detailed.

"Sometimes we come to a traditional coffee shop at different times, different price to be paid even though drinks and cakes that we buy the same," said Fasya exemplifies these little things that turned out to be observed by visitors to the coffee shop.

Identity

There are interesting from the rise of coffee shop in NAD. When the rehabilitation project about to expire and the Agency for Aceh Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction will be closed in early 2009, many people suspect NAD economy will drop because the flow of funds will be reduced a lot. Automatic, coffee shop business is expected to collapse because the newcomers are also reduced. However, the weird from a coffee shop, visitors still growing and does not change even though immigrants are reduced.

Some have surmised, in the tradition of coffee drinking is deeply embedded among the people of Aceh. These habits may be at a reduced mass, but will reappear in the next period. Currently, the passion that culminated again. On the other hand, the development of modern cafes attracting young people to enter public space. Just like in the big city, the cafe became the identity of young children. Crowds of young children easily found in those places.

So, although many projects have been completed and followed by migrants who return home, coffee shop still growing. Coffee and coffee shop's presence could become a new symbol and the top point mark for the NAD.

"A lot of identity and symbols associated with Aceh. Some say the Veranda of Mecca, Soil Rencong, and also the World Cakra. Aceh is now getting new identity linked to the coffee shop, "said Fasya. Some artists and cultural experts in the NAD also has much to mention Aceh as an Interior Thousand Coffee Shop. An identity that can be used to drive tourism. One moment could have been contrived Coffee Festival.
(ANDREAS Maryoto / MAHDI MUHAMMAD)