Picking up the Pieces

DOZENS of dried black fish pieces were spread on plastic trays in a souvenir shop in Banda Aceh in early December. The shop's owner, Fauziah, picked them up one at a time and carefully and inserted them into cardboard packages branded Cap Kapal Tsunami (Tsunami Boat Brand).

Fauziah, 46, explained that keumamah or wood fish is an Acehnese delicacy consisting of thinly sliced tuna that has been dried without preservatives. True to their name, these pieces of dried tuna look like blackened flakes of wood. Fauziah said the fish had become an obligatory souvenir to bring back from Banda Aceh, the provincial capital, and Aceh Besar regency.

She employs dozens of female neighbors who escaped death when the tsunami struck Aceh on December 26, 2004. She too is a survivor. Her husband was killed by the waves. Fortunately, her five children sought refuge in a two-story building, and they all made it out alive.

December 23, 2014