A lot of firsts the past couple weeks! First bucket shower, first motorbike burn (looks like a giant cigarette burn), first trip to the grinding mill, first time I’ve been offered a live chicken… It’s been incredibly exciting and stimulating, but also frustrating. All these firsts means I’ve had to re-learn how to do just about everything. The seemingly simple tasks such as making breakfast have become process in which each step must be deliberately thought out. Making my breakfast this morning, my host sister told me, in the nicest way possible that I was doing basically everything wrong. Putting the pan on the fire when it was too hot, not grinding the pepe (hot peppers) well enough, cutting the vegetables into pieces that were wayyyy too big are just a few of the many examples… it was a teensy bit embarrassing!
This aspect has been difficult for me as I tend to pride myself on being independent and resourceful as many of us do. However, I have come to realize quite quickly that my independence and resourcefulness are very dependent on my 21st century trappings.
I suppose I will have to persevere, to prove that, yes, I am perfectly capable of making breakfast. With time, maybe even lunch, then dinner!
On a completely different note, I haven’t been able to get this song out of my head since arriving in Ghana so I’m passing on the favour. It’s a little taste of Ghanaian history if you listen carefully!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EGghvHfI6U
Your blog is bringing back some good memories! I remember feeling like a child again, just like how you described. It gets easier, no worries :-) That's a really cool video that you posted, thanks!
ReplyDeleteawww, yes many memories of attempting to cook! I found that I always cooked nsima wrong... different people had different ways, so I'd think that I had mastered it, but then a new person would be around while I'm cooking and I'd be doing it wrong all over again, haha. I think people love to share pieces of their culture through cooking one of their typical meals; it's important to do it the "Ghanaian way...."
ReplyDeleteYou're so far north!! How far from the Burkina Faso border? Is there mixing between the two countries, ie do people speak French?
loving the posts - keep'em coming if you can~
love
QUESTIONS:
ReplyDelete1 - favourite food?
2 - worst food?
3 - weirdest food?
4 - is the food very spicy?
5 - what's your water source like?
Thanks for the update!
ReplyDeleteAnd sweet song too.. Recently I heard a song called 'the ghana rice song' (I think?) it was awesome, wish I could find it..