Followers

Thursday, January 17, 2019

...and so it goes....

Thursday, January 19, 2019

...and so it goes....



Let's walk in a different direction....

Thursday, January 17, 2019

Today, I walked in a different direction from Kundayo.  It's on the main highway that goes to the airport and then on to Moshi. These are just photos for you to enjoy.  Do you wish you were having adventures with me?

The place to catch a dali dali or a picki picki (aka boda boda)

A dress shop
A pharmacy
General household goods
Oil and stuff...Sundries....toys
"Marry" Boutique & Beauty Shop
Butcher Shop (Notice the meat hanging inside)
A pub
A baked goods shop
Childrens Stuff
Another Butcher Shop
Another clothes shop
General Street Shops
Another pub
Another dress shop

...just another day in the neighborhood.


A Story About Lentils


Thursday, January 17, 2019

A Story About Lentils

A couple of days ago, Mama Kundayo came over to visit.  Janet, John and I were outside in front of our apartments.  She speaks only a few words of English so when she wants to have a conversation, she sends for Beatrice or Emmanuel to translate.  Emmanuel wasn’t found at first, so John, who speaks a little Swahili, was doing most of the talking.  They/we started talking about food.  Janet had made lentil soup from some yellow
lentils that she had bought from a lady in a grain shop down the street. After 4 hours of cooking them in a soup, they weren’t done and Janet wanted Mama K’s thoughts on what went wrong. After struggling with the language for a short time, Emmanuel (general concierge), and Jackie (one of the cooks), were called over to check out the lentils.  Here’s what follows (with literary license):
 Janet: I made this lentil soup but the lentils aren’t cooked.  Why do you think they didn’t cook? Maybe they aren’t real lentils.

Mama K: She cooked them for FOUR hours!

Emmanuel & Jackie: FOUR hours!  What’s wrong with them? Let’s call over the chief cook and ask him about the lentils.

(Chief Cook is called over. Spoons are brought out and a lentil soup tasting proceeds.)
Mama K: See what I mean? They aren’t cooked.

Jackie: Oh, my.  How can this be??

Chief Cook: Are you sure these are lentils? What did you do to them?

Janet: I just cooked them for FOUR hours! (She bangs her head against the table thinking “Why me!”)

(The conversation continues...)
Mama K: What do you think happened?

Chief Cook: They look like lentils but…..

Emmanuel: What do you think went wrong? And what should Janet do with the soup?

(Suggestions are made.)
Chief Cook: Well maybe you should….. (cook them longer? just add more spices? buy different lentils? forget it?)
 Emmanuel, Jackie, Chief Cook: Mama K, what do you think we should do about the lentils?

Mama K: I have it!!! Let’s puree the whole thing in the blender and see what happens.

(So Jackie takes the pot into the kitchen.  We hear whirring and mixing and whirring and gurgling and whirring. Jackie brings the pot back out. Bowls are brought out and everyone tastes the new concoction.)

Emmanuel: Hey Janet.  This has possibilities.

Jackie: Yes, I think we hit upon a new recipe.

(The Chief Cook tasted the blended soup.)


Chief Cook: Hmmmm. Maybe I can use this in one of my recipes.

Mama K: Yes, blending it was a good idea.

Janet: Well…. I’m glad we got that problem solved.

(Everyone leaves. The soup remains.)


Janet: Now, what do I do with this?