Gado-gado

Sarah Batarah is concerned that the spate of bombings in Indonesia in recent year s, including the deadly Bali attack which killed more than 200 people, had tainted the image of Indonesia and its people.

"It’s not the good side of Indonesia that many, particularly Caucasians, have come to see," notes Batarah, head of the Gado-Gado Indonesian Student Association of UBC.

"We have a diverse culture and this is what we want to be out in the open," Batarah says, referring to an event which her group and the Consulate General of Indonesia will present at the Alice McKay Room of the Vancouver Public Library in downtown Vancouver on March 11. Called Taste Indonesia, the festivity will feature the best of what the country has to offer – from authentic Indonesian food, Balinese dance, Batik cloth to traditional Kolintang music.

"The focus will be on food," Batarah says. There will be four special dishes, prepared by Spice Islands Indonesian Restaurant, during the event.

Taste Indonesia is the kickoff event for this year’s explorIndonesian organized by the Indonesian Canadian communities in BC.

It is part of the program of the Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society to highlight the arts and cultural expressions of Asian Canadian communities. More info: 604-779-1616

Admission - $25.

A portion of the proceeds will go to the BC Cancer Society.

For more info: 604-797-1616, gisau.org or explorasian.org, or email TasteIndonesia@hotmail.com.