Food

It's no secret that Sudan isn't really known for its fine dining. I doubt William Sonoma will ever stock their shelves with cookbooks sharing the ins and outs of Sudanese cuisine. Will Americans ever be raving about the takeout from the new Sudanese hotspot? Uhmmm, I don't think so.

In Napep last year, the local food options included ahot (otherwise known as ugali - a sort of corn porridge), methe (corn beer), daughty (wild greens that have been boiled into a snot-like mixture) and modo (beans).

And though my new village, Nagishot, is only a mere ten miles from my former home in Napep, it seems to be the land of, 'Milk and Honey'.

Why do I say so? Well, because....
There is an actual, 'Honey Man' that comes to our compound every once in awhile to sell us golden honey that is so delicious and so fresh, I'm a little bit surprised he isn't followed by a swarm of angry bees.

Don't tell the folks from PETA, but we almost ate a rhino.
We were told that five rhinos sort of attacked a small village somewhere in the Sudanese lowlands. The villagers killed the animals, attempted to dry the rhino and came up to Nagishot, hoping to sell the excess meat. Though the meat smelled like death and was covered in maggots, Eunice bought and prepared the rhino for dinner. Fully aware of the consequences, we all agreed to eat the improperly preserved rhino. I mean, what's a little stomachache, when you can actually say that you ate a rhinoceros. In the end, the meat was so far gone, only the dogs could brag about eating an endangered species.

Dik dik is delicious! This small antelope made dry season a tasty one in Nagishot. Sorry, I don't have a single picture of a dik dik, the shepherd boys who kill them with their bows and arrows or us barbecuing the tasty little things.

Avocados grow in Nagishot. Every other week, we usually buy a bucketful from our friend, Julietta. She charges us 5 Sudanese pounds for maybe fifteen avocados, which translates to about $2.50.

Hanging out at Julietta's, under one of the avocado trees.

Julietta also grows, but doesn't drink, coffee (she only likes her coffee with 3 to 5 tablespoons of sugar, a commodity that is almost impossible to come by). So, when she learned that I LOVE a good Cup of Joe, she offered me some of hers.

Julietta's Didinga Roast is very tasty and it's pretty cool and all back-to-nature-like to pick, roast and grind your own beans.

Julietta and I picking the coffee beans.

That's me and Julietta's youngest daughter, checking on the roasted beans.

Tianne, grinding my coffee beans.