Mr. Coca Cola
My name is Tony, and I’m a Coke addict. (They say admitting the problem is the first step.) I’ve known for some time that many around me believe that I drink too much Coca Cola. When friends Lisa and Garrett came to visit, they reported to my family on my troubling addiction, recounting that I would hit the bottle for breakfast. But I continued to deny my problems… until Alor.
When I stopped to grab a quick drink and a bag of chips at the local shop, the owner gave me the normal Indonesian afternoon greeting with one rather unique touch: “Selamat siang, Mr. Coca Cola.” He had my Coke waiting for me, but I had to request a bag of chips.
That was odd, I thought to myself as I left. Mr. Coca Cola?
I strolled down the main thoroughfare in Kalabahi killing time before I headed down to the bay, and a friendly local waved to me from across the street and yelled, “Hello, hello, Mr. Coca Cola, hello, hello.”
Hmmm. My denial was starting to fade.
Later that evening, as I was riding my motorbike back from the bay, another bike shot by flashing its lights and I heard, “Sooooreeee, Coca Colaaaaaa!” Evening, Coca Cola.
Clearly, I have a problem.
That is a expensive addiction in Indonesia.
You can say that again! The Coca Cola prices in Indonesia are some of the highest in Asia. The prices make no sense in the context of Indonesian salaries, and yet I have seen many locals drinking Cokes – go figure.
By the way, some people might be thinking that I was exaggerating in this post. It is, unfortunately, totally true.
I had no suspicion whatsoever that you were exaggerating this post. 🙂
I LOVE this new nickname and plan to use it next time I see you.
Although, to be fair, when I talk about your coca cola habit, I pair your coke with oreos. I swear, you can go an entire day of hiking and temple scouting on coca cola and oreos. But maybe oreos aren’t as easy to find in Indonesia as chips are.
Now, I want to make this very clear. Thomas is the one who is addicted to Oreos. I don’t need my good name besmirched on this blog.