Fabulous Food

I don’t think I have mentioned the food yet! I was so worried before I came that I would starve, but the exact opposite is true. My guest house is attached to the dining hall, so the ladies who prepare the breakfast in the morning walk through my house to get to the kitchen! Then I walk in through the kitchen to get breakfast at 7. Everyone says a prayer before and after eating the meal, and prayer starts when any teacher at the staff table rings the bell (the place goes silent in seconds). Ever present is “papa” a staple that reminds me of white momalega (polenta) or mashed potatoes but of a more grainy consistency. We ate it once at breakfast with milk, then at lunch (2:30 pm) with sausages. Yesterday’s lunch was white rice and curry minced meat that was delicious. But I am most amazed at the way the meal ends. After the second prayer bell the kids are working hard to clear their tables, putting all the dishes and leftovers on a cart in the middle of the room, wiping their tables clean! and pushing in their chairs – and all this takes a matter of minutes. Dinner is at 5:00 which for me is too close to lunch, so I am given a Tupperware and the ladies give me enough lunch meat to feed an army plus a whole package of bread for one night’s meal. Would you believe that some people noticed I was not at dinner and knocked at my door to bring me a huge thermos of chicken soup!