流连于中国街头饮食的印尼女孩

　　当我还是个孩子的时候,非常熟悉一句老话:“不管怎样,女人都不应该拥有远大的梦想,因为她们生来就是应该待在厨房里的。”

　　在印尼的文化中,男性在生活中应居于支配地位的思想根深蒂固。“女人就应该待在厨房里,男人才要去工作”或者“女人就应该在家里照顾好孩子,而男人才应该去挣钱”。因为这种偏见,我决定挑战一下自己。我是一个拥有远大梦想的女孩,十九岁,离家4000多英里,独自身居异国,经济上稳定,打破了在我国人们看待女性的陈规旧俗。

　　父亲在我13岁的时候就去世了。因为青少年时期缺少父亲的教导,所以我只能从单身母亲身上了解生活。我的母亲是一个独立的人,对我们很有耐心。我的妈妈是一位单亲母亲,她一个人担负着生活所有的负担,这让我从她身上学到了很多东西。因此,从13岁起,我就开始自己赚零用钱,我做过英语家教,也在街头卖过食品。然而,在印尼,这种工作常常被视为廉价劳动力,即使你并不是为了钱而工作。

　　去年我来到了常州,常州是江苏省一个发达的城市。我在这边学酒店管理专业。来中国之前,在我脑海中仍然有这样的刻板印象:在亚洲文化中男人总是享有特权,但是来到常州后我发现自己错了。

　　在常州的每一个行业我几乎都能看到女性的身影。比如,公交车司机,清洁服务人员,建筑师,办公室的工作人员,教师,在这些行业她们都是和男人一样工作并享有平等的待遇。夏天的时候,常州的温度高达40摄氏度,女性可以自由得穿各种各样漂亮的衣服,即使因为这边的天气很热要穿短点的衣服。但是在我的国家,我们害怕大众异样的目光或者遭受男性的性侵害。在中国,有些时候,即使我很晚从别的城市赶回常州,我仍会选择从学校附近的高铁站步行回到宿舍,这就是这个国家这座城市带给我的安全感。今年的妇女节,校园附近的一些水果店给每位过路的女性送了一份礼物,因为这是女性的节日!这里的人们庆祝妇女节,这让我非常高兴。淘宝和一些网上商城也在为庆祝妇女节而搞各种打折活动。因为这样一些小事,我感觉到了作为一名女生而受到周围人尊重的感觉。走路的时候,我看到男人们总是把他们女朋友或妻子的包包放在他们的肩膀上,这真是一件非常有爱的事情,每次远远得看到我都会笑。男人这样做是因为他们尊重女生,而不是因为女生无力自己拿包。

　　在中国,我感到被尊重,我感到自由,我享有了作为女性应该有的权利。我可以穿任何我想穿的衣服,不论什么颜色什么款式,因为你有穿它的权利。在常州大街小巷漫步是非常安全的,你可以去任何你想去的地方。我也能感受到每个商店的热情服务,即使你是一个再普通不过的女性。

　　在常州生活了一年以后,我才意识到我已经真正变成了一个独立的女生,一个勇敢的女生,学会爱自己的女生。我想学习更多新的文化,在常州过上新的生活。

　　作者:乔颖(印度尼西亚)

　　译文

ENLIGH TENED

Chatya Kurnia Ramadhyanti Putri(Indonesia)

When I still kid, I was really familiar with an old saying "women shouldn't dream big because they born to placed in kitchen, no matter what"

In my country, the dominance in paternal side or man's domination in every sections of live still exist as one of our culture. "Woman should be in kitchen, Men should go to work" or "woman should be at home take care of children, while men ought to get money" because of this stereotypes, I'm challenging myself, a girl with big dream, 4000 miles away from home, as a teenager, living abroad alone and financially stable. Break the stereotypes of how people typically see a woman in my country.

My dad was passed away when I still 13, because the lack of father's guiding in my teenage time, I learn to know life by my single mother, she is an independent womanand patient to her children even sometimes gets angry easily. The burden of being a single mother and being a woman makes me learn a lot from her, so does the reason why I decide to went far away from her.From the age of 13, I already learnto bear my own pocket money such aswork as anEnglish private tutor, selling foods, or working in street food vendors. Yet as well, in my country this kind of works are often seeing as a cheap labour even you're not work for money.

Last year I arrived in Changzhou, one of most developed city in Jiangsu Province. I’mpursuing my bachelor in Hotel Management. Before came to China, I still have thestereotypes of Asian culturewhichprivileged men. But there's another case when I arrive in Changzhou. I see women working in almost every sector of place, I saw them as a public transportation driver, cleaning services, doing the construction, go to office, teaching students and they work in the same place with men.I feel like they are placed equally like men. In summer where Changzhou's temperature would reach more than 40 degree celcius, every women are freely to use any kind of cute dress that they want to show up, its all because the temperature was too hot and wearing mini dress are acceptable. Meanwhile in my country we are afraid of being publicly judged or having sexual abuse by the men around. Some nights I feel really safe to walk alone from the nearest train station after 10 pm if I was come back late from leaving town. Blame me for coming back late, but how safe Changzhou just reminds me of my home. This year of Women's Day, some nearby fruit shops around my campus were gave every passerby women a gift cause its our day!It makes me really happy cause they celebrate Women's Day. Even Taobao and some online marketplace are celebrating Women's Day by giving discount for women. I feel respected, because they appreciate the small thing like this. Another day when I walk, I often seeing the guys always take theirs girlfriend or wives bags and put them in their shoulders, such a really cute thing ever and could make me smile even just saw them far away. The guys do it because he respects the girls, not because the girls are weak to take her own bags.

I feel respected, I feel a freedom, and I get the right of human being just as a woman. I feel free to wear anything I want no matter what colour or shapes because it’s your right to wear it. I feel safe to walking and have a city tour in Changzhou alone because you are just want to go. I feel respected with the warmest smile from every single shop around cause you're also a human.

And then, after a year of living in Changzhou, I've just realized I've changed to be a very independent person, a brave one, and unconditionally love myself. Just by learning new culture, and living a new life in Changzhou.