This month, ETA Jillian Castoro’s monthly highlight was eating mie bakso with her students. Mie bakso is a traditional Indonesian dish. It features a soup containing noodles, fish meatballs and sometimes vegetables.

While at the restaurant, the students practiced English while Jillian practiced her Bahasa Minang. They told Jillian about how mie bakso is one of the most popular street foods across all of Indonesia, despite originating from Chinese cuisine. It is often found in street carts, but they went to eat it at one of the most popular mie bakso spots in Bukittinggi. Each said that eating mie bakso is something that they do often with their families because it is a simple and delicious way to eat.

While Jillian often eats Mie Bakso with her students, this month she took the time to really appreciate this experience and ask them about personal memories, the history, and tradition of mie bakso.

Jillian Castoro is currently teaching at SMAN 2 Bukittinggi, West Sumatra.