Eat. Mange. Damaninke.

It wouldn’t be a ‘travel/life adventure blog’, if I didn’t reference that Julia Roberts movie that references that book, Eat. Pray. Love.  My version is more like Eat. Eat (in French). Eat (in Malinke).  I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but my life here revolves around food (even more than in the US!).  My Guinean friends and neighbors seem to have a similar mentality, as they are always commanding me with one of the above words while handing me some form of rice and sauce.  Guineans are either extremely hospitable or trying to fatten me up for a Hansel-and-Gretel style feast.  I’m fairly sure it’s the former, but they’re certainly succeeding at the later.  Additionally, friends and relatives back home are always asking what I’ve been eating, scared I might be starving in a place where food security is a legitimate issue.  Even my first host family in Dubreka asks me what I ate that day when we talk on the phone.

My 'pet' chicken that then became dinner.

            So, to appease the masses, here is what I ate for a whole week (May 2^nd-9^th).  I will qualify this by saying that this was the week after IST and the first real rainy week for me in Kankan, so I was feeling especially energized by the ability to not sweat 24/7.

Monday

BREAKFAST: Quaker Oatmeal (purchased at expat store in Kankan) with cinnamon and sugar with Nescafe instant coffee

LUNCH: Rice with soup sauce ( a broth with some onions, given to me by my host family

DINNER: potatoes and chicken, again lovingly prepared and give to me by my host family

Tuesday

BREAKFAST: beans (bought prepared across the street), spruced up with cumin, chili powder and sriracha; poor man’s mocha (instant coffee with hot chocolate mix)

LUNCH: Terriyaki Lo Mein from America (thanks mom!) with cabbage, green onions, garlic and eggs from the market

DINNER: reheated lunch (I still eat leftovers!)

Wednesday

BREAKFAST: Nutella (from the expat store) on bread; Nescafe

LUNCH: fish tacos, courtesy of CED volunteers passing through on their way back from IST

DINNER: potato leaf salad with cheese I made myself

DESSERT: yogurt and an orange Fanta from my counterpart

Thursday

BREAKFAST: Peanut butter and honey sandwich; Nescafe

LUNCH: manioc balls from the Togolese restaurant with a sweet tomato sauce

DINNER: pasta with cooked potato leaves (it’s like spinach!) and cheese

Friday

BREAKFAST: Oatmeal with honey and milk; Nescafe

2^nd BREAKFAST: fried eggs with potatoes; Green Cucumber Tea (all courtesy of Adrian)

LUNCH: mangoes and raw peanuts (the taste of these grows on you)

DINNER: hamburger balls with a boiled egg inside with fries and a beer at the Bofanta restaurant

2^nd DINNER: Rice and soup sauce; cold Coca-Cola

Saturday

BREAKFAST: beans a la Michelle; tea

LUNCH: Riz Gras (fried rice) from the Senegalese restaurant

DINNER: rice and sauce

So I forgot to write Sunday down, but I am betting it involved oatmeal and lots of rice and sauce. 

As you can all see, I am not starving in Guinea.  There’s a lot of fresh produce available and my family is always trying to force feed me.  In addition to these meals, there’s plenty of snacks available like peanuts, popcorn, fried dough balls, frozen juices, and meat kabobs.

I will take this opportunity, however, to point out that just because I’m not starving doesn’t mean food security isn’t a real problem in Guinea.  There are even some volunteers whose villages are so isolated they complain of a lack of produce at their markets (don’t worry PC parents, they’re not starving either), and those don’t come anywhere near the most isolated places. There are some parts of the year when vegetables simply cannot be harvested and even I, in the big city of Kankan, have trouble finding a nice variety.  Besides a lack of food in certain places and at certain times of the year, a lot of people simply cannot afford a well-balanced diet, especially in the protein department.

This is why PC Guinea has recently started a major focus on food security, including a Food Security Task Force and a lot more food security trainings.  Our goal is to have as many people involved in food security projects as possible, from a 5 minute lesson on hand washing or nutrition to starting a school garden.  I’m really interested in this and my work as an agroforestry volunteer fits in perfectly with this PC-wide focus, so expect to hear a lot more about it in the future.

That’s all for now.  I’m most likely off to go eat something, of course!