Kaliyem's eyes gleamed with delight as she talked about her chance to get a free kilogram of cow or goat meat from the Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Central Jakarta to celebrate the Islamic Day of Sacrifice.
The middle-aged woman planned to take a bajaj (three wheeled vehicle) from her house in a slum area in Senen with her old mother in-law and two neighbors. She estimated that it would cost Rp 2,000 per person to reach the mosque.
"After getting the meat, I usually cook several dishes, like semur *meat stewed with spices* and rendang *meat stewed with thick coconut milk and spices*," she said Friday.
Kaliyem said she did not want to arrive late in the morning and spoil the once-a-year opportunity as the best delicacy her family could usually afford was fish.
Every year, thousands of people from low-income families lined up in front of mosques to get the free sacrificial meat during the Islamic Day of Sacrifice.
The bigger the mosque, the heavier the meat distributed per person, and the longer the queue.
In Istiqlal, the mosque management usually distributes one kilogram of meat per person. This year they would distribute 6,000 meat packages.
In Kampung Bali subdistrict, Central Jakarta, where hundreds of makeshift houses were built in Ciliwung riverbank, mosques distributed fewer meat packages that were lighter in weight, although the anticipation was no less gleeful.
Yuni, 52, stood in front of a small mosque while watching men chopped sacrificed cattle. She said meat dishes were a luxury for her.
"Only during the Idul Adha or when I'm visiting my relatives, can I eat meat," said the widowed mother of five who sells cooking ingredients.
She said that last year she was lucky to get a half kilogram of meat.
Yuni, who can usually only afford salted fish, said three of her children and two grandchildren would visit her to enjoy the once-a-year delight.
"My two daughters are also widows so they will also bring some meat. We will make rendang together," she said.
The dinner, she said, would be served in her 2-square-meter residence on the Ciliwung riverbank.
Tumirah, Yuni's neighbor who was waiting for the meat distribution, said she could not remember the last time she had eaten meat.
"I only get a pension fund of Rp 70,000 every month while a quarter kilogram of meat costs Rp 15,000. How can I afford to buy it?" said Tumirah, a former city street sweeper, who lives with her two grandsons.
"I do not like to eat meat so my grandsons will be the ones who enjoy the dish."
Tumirah expected that the meat would be sufficient for three days' worth of meals.
To cook the meat, she has prepared a small gas stove with a pan in the neighborhood's public kitchen.
"My daughter lives nearby and she will be the one to cook the meat." (mrs)
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