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Cake day: July 4th, 2023

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  • I found this story googling.

    I met Barack Obama at a State Department reception early in his presidency. A colleague who wanted to test his skills at Indonesian asked him, “Mr. President, did you know that in Indonesia they still call you ‘anak Menteng’?”

    “Anak” means “child of” and Menteng is a neighborhood in the capital of Jakarta where many of the country’s elite live.

    President Obama quickly answered. “Oh, saya bukan anak Menteng. Saya anak Menteng Dalam.” (Oh, I’m not a Menteng kid. I’m a kid from Inner Menteng.”)

    In Indonesia, this roughly means “I’m from the back streets where the workers and servants live.” The US equivalent might be “I’m not from Park Avenue. I’m from the alley behind Park Avenue.

    https://www.quora.com/Could-Obama-speak-Indonesian I know Quora is not a primary source, but I’m just googling.