A yellow Kurta in Africa
Hello everyone. How are you all? Enjoying Summer or Winter depending on where you are?
I am enjoying a nice Monsoon now in Pune. I just got back from a six weeks vacation in Senegal, my home country. And I am back with several posts about my stay just to make up for my month long silence on the blog. First up: a story about going back to manual mode in Senegal. Read on!
It is only week two of our stay in Dakar, Senegal. Usually around this time we are already thinking about going back in our other home but since we are staying six weeks, we are taking things slow.
I have been cooking a storm because of Ramadan. It has been a pleasant but stressful experience because our kitchen here is not as equipped as the one in India. I do not have my oven, my mixer or smoothie maker. I do everything manually. Last week I went looking for a can opener in our neighborhood shops (to open cans we purchased earlier) only to be told that in here we open cans with a knife. Mind you, I already knew that and tried it once. I almost cut my hand off. It is so dangerous but the norm here. So I had to oblige. The hubby helped a bit and we finally opened the can. But, the following day we bought one. I also clean fishes and chicken all by myself like a big girl. When you are living abroad you are used to buy meat already cleaned and India is no different. Even if I buy it at the market I can get it cleaned and cut for no extra charge. But in Senegal, you have to pay a little extra.
It is actually a good thing to go back to manual mode because we never know where we will end up. The ultimate goal is to go back home permanently. And in that case we will have to do things the Senegalese way if we want to survive and thrive. It means cooking sometimes without electricity, waking up without running water, and using a knife to open cans
We could also live like kings and Queens but simple life here is already expensive as it is so imagine trying to live the high life. We would be ruined in a month or two.
But I am not complaining much. I have found a new fondness for myself. I realized that I am stronger than I thought. Take yesterday, I had to clean a chicken. I usually "chicken out" (pun intended) at the idea because seeing chicken legs and the broken necks scare me to death. I always imagine the chicken coming back to life to haunt me. When I was younger I was so scared that I would cry and my mother would dismiss me saying :"I bet you will find them less scary when they are cooked! ". So I was fearing the task yesterday but I just covered the legs with a napkin so I would not see them and went on carving. I think I deserve a pat on the shoulder for that. Hahaha!
Anyway, today was a sunny and hot day and I decided to wear this sunny thing to run errands. I did bring a lot of dressy clothes but I never really wear them. I usually wear my traditional clothes when I visit parents and in laws and jeans to run errands. Maybe I will wear my western dressier clothes to visit friends once I make the time. I really like this Kurta because of the embroidery but also the color. I would have preferred it to be a tad longer but apart for that it was breezy enough for this heat.
Stay tune for more on my long stay in Senegal.
I am enjoying a nice Monsoon now in Pune. I just got back from a six weeks vacation in Senegal, my home country. And I am back with several posts about my stay just to make up for my month long silence on the blog. First up: a story about going back to manual mode in Senegal. Read on!
It is only week two of our stay in Dakar, Senegal. Usually around this time we are already thinking about going back in our other home but since we are staying six weeks, we are taking things slow.
I have been cooking a storm because of Ramadan. It has been a pleasant but stressful experience because our kitchen here is not as equipped as the one in India. I do not have my oven, my mixer or smoothie maker. I do everything manually. Last week I went looking for a can opener in our neighborhood shops (to open cans we purchased earlier) only to be told that in here we open cans with a knife. Mind you, I already knew that and tried it once. I almost cut my hand off. It is so dangerous but the norm here. So I had to oblige. The hubby helped a bit and we finally opened the can. But, the following day we bought one. I also clean fishes and chicken all by myself like a big girl. When you are living abroad you are used to buy meat already cleaned and India is no different. Even if I buy it at the market I can get it cleaned and cut for no extra charge. But in Senegal, you have to pay a little extra.
Scarf and sunnies - M. G. Road
Kurta - Clover Center
Jeans - Gift
Sandals - Westside
Bag - Carrefour Dubai
Earrings - Mariplex week end market
Some streets in Dakar are not paved so one gets dusty shoes and feet while walking!
Making hamburgers using a mortar and pillar
It is actually a good thing to go back to manual mode because we never know where we will end up. The ultimate goal is to go back home permanently. And in that case we will have to do things the Senegalese way if we want to survive and thrive. It means cooking sometimes without electricity, waking up without running water, and using a knife to open cans
We could also live like kings and Queens but simple life here is already expensive as it is so imagine trying to live the high life. We would be ruined in a month or two.
But I am not complaining much. I have found a new fondness for myself. I realized that I am stronger than I thought. Take yesterday, I had to clean a chicken. I usually "chicken out" (pun intended) at the idea because seeing chicken legs and the broken necks scare me to death. I always imagine the chicken coming back to life to haunt me. When I was younger I was so scared that I would cry and my mother would dismiss me saying :"I bet you will find them less scary when they are cooked! ". So I was fearing the task yesterday but I just covered the legs with a napkin so I would not see them and went on carving. I think I deserve a pat on the shoulder for that. Hahaha!
Anyway, today was a sunny and hot day and I decided to wear this sunny thing to run errands. I did bring a lot of dressy clothes but I never really wear them. I usually wear my traditional clothes when I visit parents and in laws and jeans to run errands. Maybe I will wear my western dressier clothes to visit friends once I make the time. I really like this Kurta because of the embroidery but also the color. I would have preferred it to be a tad longer but apart for that it was breezy enough for this heat.
Stay tune for more on my long stay in Senegal.
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