Food Challenge!

Adventures in Africa

Published Tuesday, July 12, 2005 by orange you glad | E-mail this post

I have eaten live grubs before. I’ve eaten pickled herring and stinky Danish eszron cheese on too many occasions to count. Yet there are still food-related challenges that strike fear into my heart. And I faced not one, but two of them on my first day of work. And I survived!!! (What a trooper!)

Work was great. The people are all really nice and I even have a nice, brand-new computer to work on. So in the morning, Stella the receptionist made tea for everyone. Kenyan-style tea with condensed milk and sugar. Firstly, I have a slight lactose problem but other than some stomach pains and some burping, it doesn’t really concern me. The main thing was that milk in my tea usually makes me gag. It’s so gross. But that was the easy one. I imagine that won’t be the last cup of sweet milky tea I’ll be drinking.

Next was lunch with Nyaga and Tijara. They took me to the market to pick up a traditional (and very very common) Kenyan dish - nyama choma served with ugali and spinach. Ugali is maize meal bread - very mushy - kind of like very sticky porridge. Nyama choma is roast meat. STEAK! Some of you know that I haven’t eaten beef in almost 8 years - since high school. I mean, I knew that if I had just a few bites I would be ok but what would eating a whole pile of the stuff do to my stomach? While at work? And with the bathroom off the director’s office and she would be in important meetings all afternoon!?! Gar. But, like the good little former Rotary Exchange Student that I am, I ate the meat. It was ok. My stomach made some pretty nasty noises all afternoon but everything stayed intact if you know what I mean. Ugh. I’m sure I’ll be having more than one portion of nyama choma too. But I don’t think it will make me want to go back to eating beef once I’m back from this little culinary adventure. Sorry Alberta beef farmers!!

Two side notes. Firstly, the drivers here are absolutely CRAZY! It can take me up to 10 minutes to cross the street. Seriously. And secondly, as if to balance out the first note, the computers here are soooo sloooooowwwwww! I don't remember dial-up being this slow.