Walaupun saya sedikit mual, saya tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

Walaupun means although / even though. It introduces a contrast:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual = Although I feel a little nauseous
• saya tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan = I still drank/drink warm water slowly

Other common words with a similar meaning are meskipun and walau. In everyday Indonesian, all three are common, though walaupun sounds a bit fuller and slightly more formal than walau.

Indonesian often repeats the subject in both clauses for clarity:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, saya tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

Literally:
Although I am a little nauseous, I still drink/drank warm water slowly.

The second saya is not required in every situation, but it is very natural. You could also say:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

However, that version sounds less complete on its own and could feel like the subject is being dropped because it is already understood. Repeating saya is clearer and very normal.

Sedikit means a little / slightly, and mual means nauseous or nausea-like / queasy.

So sedikit mual means:

• a little nauseous
• slightly queasy
• feeling a bit sick

A helpful thing to notice is that Indonesian often does not need a verb like feel here. English says I feel a little nauseous, but Indonesian can simply say:

• saya sedikit mual

This is completely natural.

In this sentence, mual works like a condition word, similar to an adjective in English: nauseous.

So:

• Saya mual = I’m nauseous / I feel nauseous

Indonesian does not always divide words into parts of speech in exactly the same way English does. Many words that describe states can be used directly after the subject without needing a linking verb like am / is / are.

Tetap means still, nevertheless, or all the same.

It shows that the action in the main clause happens despite the condition in the first clause:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, saya tetap minum...
• Although I was a little nauseous, I still drank...

Without tetap, the sentence is still grammatical:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, saya minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

But tetap makes the contrast clearer and stronger.

Because Indonesian often expresses physical or emotional states more directly than English does.

English:

• I feel nauseous
• I feel tired
• I feel sad

Indonesian often simply says:

• Saya mual
• Saya lelah
• Saya sedih

If you want, you can use merasa (to feel):

• Saya merasa sedikit mual

But in many everyday situations, Saya sedikit mual sounds more natural and less heavy.

By itself, minum does not mark tense. Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for past, present, or future.

So minum could mean:

• drink
• am drinking
• drank
• was drinking
• will drink

The exact time depends on context.

If you want to make time clearer, Indonesian usually adds time words or aspect markers, for example:

• Saya tadi minum air hangat = I drank warm water earlier
• Saya sedang minum air hangat = I am drinking warm water
• Saya akan minum air hangat = I will drink warm water

Air hangat means warm water.

• air = water
• hangat = warm

In Indonesian, the noun usually comes first and the describing word follows it:

• air hangat = warm water
• teh panas = hot tea
• rumah besar = big house

Also note:

• hangat = warm
• panas = hot

So air hangat is specifically warm water, not hot water.

This is reduplication, which is very common in Indonesian.

Pelan means slow or soft/gentle, and pelan-pelan means:

• slowly
• gently
• little by little, depending on context

In this sentence, pelan-pelan describes how the person drinks the warm water: slowly.

Reduplication often gives a more natural adverbial meaning in Indonesian. Compare:

• pelan = slow
• pelan-pelan = slowly / gently

Yes. Perlahan-lahan also means slowly.

So you could say:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, saya tetap minum air hangat perlahan-lahan.

This is also natural. The difference is mostly in tone:

• pelan-pelan feels a bit more everyday and conversational
• perlahan-lahan can sound a little more formal or careful

Both are correct here.

Because it modifies the verb phrase minum air hangat and tells us how the action is done.

A very common Indonesian pattern is:

• Subject + verb + object + adverb

So:

• saya = subject
• minum = verb
• air hangat = object
• pelan-pelan = adverb of manner

That said, Indonesian word order is somewhat flexible, and you may also hear:

• Saya tetap pelan-pelan minum air hangat

But the original version sounds very natural and straightforward.

The comma is recommended because the sentence begins with a subordinate clause:

• Walaupun saya sedikit mual, ...

This works much like English:

• Although I felt a little nauseous, I still drank warm water slowly.

In casual writing, people may omit commas, but with this structure, using the comma is clearer and standard.

Yes, but the meaning would change.

If you say:

• Saya sedikit mual, tetapi saya tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

That means:

• I was a little nauseous, but I still drank warm water slowly.

This is very similar in meaning.
The difference is structural:

• walaupun = although / even though
• tetapi / tapi = but

Both can express contrast, but walaupun introduces a dependent clause, while tetapi links two more equal clauses.

Yes, you can, if the subject is already clear from context.

For example:

• Walaupun sedikit mual, saya tetap minum air hangat pelan-pelan.

This means the same thing and sounds natural. It is common in Indonesian to omit information that is understood. However, including saya makes the sentence more explicit, which is often helpful for learners and in standalone sentences.