The ASEAN Perfect City

Because summer is fast approaching, Asia's Perfect Ten brings you its newest segment which will help you on your travels this season.

Asia's Perfect Ten is proud to present the ASEAN Perfect City, a monthly travelogue segment which will feature Southeast Asian cities that are perfect for your summer getaway.

The segment starts this month. Tune in!

Lunar New Year Delicacy of Indonesia

How is Lunar New Year celebrated in your country? Today I want to share a special kind of food Chinese Indonesians have in the 15th day of Lunar New Year (Cap Go Meh). The name is "Lontong Cap Go Meh". Whatever stereotype you have for Chinese food, Lontong Cap Go Meh will surprise you because it has no typical Chinese food's characteristic. The reason is because the food is not Chinese in origin, rather, it's actually a fusion of some Indonesian cuisine combined in one.

The composition may differ according to the place. In Semarang (Central Java) for example, it is consisted of Lontong, Opor Ayam, Lodeh Terong, Telur Pindang, Satai Abing, and Sambal Docang. While Chinese Indonesians in the capital of Jakarta enjoy their Lontong with Sayur Labu/Pepaya, Telur Pindang, and sprinkles of Bubuk Kedelai on top of them.

Chinese Indonesians choose the food which have symbolic meanings of "prosperity", longevity", "safety", and/or "happiness".
Wishing you all a prosperous year!

Chen Shui-bian has a forked tongue

Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian visited the much contested Spratly Islands and then said this:

Speaking at the ceremony, Chen proposed a "Spratly Initiative" calling for a peaceful solution to the disputed claims of the group and promoting marine conservation in the region, a presidential statement said.

"Facing the complicated and sensitive territorial and sovereignty disputes in the South China Sea, Taiwan urges the countries involved to peacefully resolve the issues" according to international regulations, the statement quoted Chen as saying.

You can't sincerely call for a peaceful resolution while making a visit that provokes other claimant. Vietnam and the Philippines have criticized the visit while Malaysia and Brunei have yet to respond. Yes, the 4 ASEAN member states claim the islands in whole or in part. The other claimant is China.

I think ASEAN should come together and make a strong collective claim over Spratly. Instead of claiming on individual national basis, ASEAN could designate the Spratly Islands as an ASEAN territory that belongs to all member states.