3/12
Today was Namibian cultural day. I woke up wicked early and was at the training center by 6:30am to prepare for the day. Once we got to the training center, we started to get all the food out and tables and chairs set up for the day. Groups were set up by language so I was going to be cooking with my Otjiherero language group. Our group was making bread in a cast iron pot over the fire, fat cakes (similar to fried dough), porridge (like cream of rice) and beef & onions. Sooo, lots of carbs. It was really interesting to see all the other language groups preparing their food too. One of the rites of passage if you will for some of the groups was to kill some chickens for their meal. That was unbelievably hard to watch. It seemed like the chickens pretty much knew what was coming because after being startled out of their cardboard boxes, they just sat on the ground and waited. And this is what would make me a vegetarian. I understand that when you don’t know where your next meal will come from, you’re happy for any food or animal that comes your way---but it’s still hard to process. Another staple at some of the tables was fried worms. Surprisingly, they weren’t too bad. The worms had a fishy/meaty kind of taste with some crunch and grit to it. I probably won’t be polishing off a bag of worms in the near future, but hey, I can say that I’ve had worms now!
After the fat cakes were made, worms were fried, and the feathers on the chickens were plucked, it was time to eat. It was really great that we were able to try all these foods from various cultures and tribes in Namibia. Although they all had different flavors and dishes at each group’s table, the predominant food was still meat and carbs. And luckily for everyone, the rain didn’t start until the food was all eaten and the day was ending.
Since I had gotten up at 5:15am that morning, I was definitely ready for a nap after. Since being in Namibia, I haven’t had a lot of “me time”, so it was really nice to just read a book and relax the rest of the afternoon. I know that when I get to my permanent site, I’m going to be overwhelmed by all the silence, but for now, it’s very welcoming :)
Today was Namibian cultural day. I woke up wicked early and was at the training center by 6:30am to prepare for the day. Once we got to the training center, we started to get all the food out and tables and chairs set up for the day. Groups were set up by language so I was going to be cooking with my Otjiherero language group. Our group was making bread in a cast iron pot over the fire, fat cakes (similar to fried dough), porridge (like cream of rice) and beef & onions. Sooo, lots of carbs. It was really interesting to see all the other language groups preparing their food too. One of the rites of passage if you will for some of the groups was to kill some chickens for their meal. That was unbelievably hard to watch. It seemed like the chickens pretty much knew what was coming because after being startled out of their cardboard boxes, they just sat on the ground and waited. And this is what would make me a vegetarian. I understand that when you don’t know where your next meal will come from, you’re happy for any food or animal that comes your way---but it’s still hard to process. Another staple at some of the tables was fried worms. Surprisingly, they weren’t too bad. The worms had a fishy/meaty kind of taste with some crunch and grit to it. I probably won’t be polishing off a bag of worms in the near future, but hey, I can say that I’ve had worms now!
After the fat cakes were made, worms were fried, and the feathers on the chickens were plucked, it was time to eat. It was really great that we were able to try all these foods from various cultures and tribes in Namibia. Although they all had different flavors and dishes at each group’s table, the predominant food was still meat and carbs. And luckily for everyone, the rain didn’t start until the food was all eaten and the day was ending.
Since I had gotten up at 5:15am that morning, I was definitely ready for a nap after. Since being in Namibia, I haven’t had a lot of “me time”, so it was really nice to just read a book and relax the rest of the afternoon. I know that when I get to my permanent site, I’m going to be overwhelmed by all the silence, but for now, it’s very welcoming :)
Ok so note to self: DO NOT READ during lunch. Luckily, I wasn't eating chicken! :)
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