zelf koken

Wednesdayevening we were bored, so we went to take a look at the girlz house next door. The night before we heard a lot of noise outside from students, so we were very curious. When we were at the firstyears house, Ramma was cooking. Ramma is like a big momma, Binta introduced us to her. She is also a freshmen year. We said that we wanted to learn how to cook fish. So she was showing us and invited us into her room. When she was finished, we got the impression that we had to eat from their food. It was for like 5 persons and it wasn’t that much. So we said to each other that we wanted eat from their food, but when we said that we had to cook for our selves, Ramma asked if we didn’t liked her food, she was a bit insulted. So we stayed. I didn’t mind. I liked it very much. Picture this: in a room of 2 by 5. A bed in the room, TV and 8 person incl. us. Sitting on the ground, on bed and eating from one big plate of food with your hands. I loved it!

Ramma was going to learn us to cook the next day. We thought we were going to the Albert Market (Banjul), but we went to Serekunda (biggest city in The Gambia and for us also known as dirty Serekunda, because of the mud) . In Serekunda was more fresh fish and we were gonna cook at Ramma here parents place, because she had there more pans. I thought that we had seen the most part and things of west Gambia, but I was surprised how nice the market at Serekunda was. It is much bigger and you have much more stuff. We’ve been there before with Babel, but that was at another side of this market. The people seemed to be nicer then in Banjul. After the shopping we went to Ramma’s house. She has a big house!! Here in The Gambia you have a number of tribes. You have the Mandinka, Wolof and Fula. Ramma is from a whole different tribe. I didn’t know this one. But it seemed that this tribe, is the rich tribe. Well, you can see that at her house. It is even bigger then my parents house. After cooking we went to the nursing school back to prepare the rest of the meal. Ramma wanted first to make it for us, so that we could eat it at our own place. But we didn’t wanted that. We wanted to eat with the group. (we ate fish, salad, shrimps, potatoes). Renate went after dinner to bed, Marja and I stayed till half past 3. Het was zo gezellig! Most of the time they spoke Wolof, but the laughing and how they said it, it was funny for us. Marja has already a new love in her life. This time it is a 34 years old military second year nurse student. She was very happy with his present that night! So anyway..We made some friends her on the nursing school. I really enjoying myself! It is nice to know some people here, to know more about their culture. Besides that it is better then to be in our room and sleep at 10 o’clock. We are there now every night and meet every night new people.

We’re also invited on Wednesday at Ramma’s place for the suikerfeest (the fest after the Ramadan). We know that we were also invited by Babel, but you maybe get the impression that we don’t really like him. We haven’t heard from him since last week. But anyway, we’re invited to Ramma’s place. Maybe we’re also going to Binta’s place. I really hope so. She told us one evening about her family and showed us pictures. I thought I was reading a book. Her mum is married to a man, what isn’t her father. Her stepfather has 3 other wives. When she was like 16 she had to work in a whole different city, because between her stepfather and mum was trouble. Her stepfather stopped paying, so they didn’t had enough money to buy food, so Binta had to work. Now it is getting better between her stepfather and mum, so her mum has some money. Her biological father is in Guinea and she never seen him. She just find out a few years back that her stepfather isn’t her biological father and that she has brothers. Why her father in Guinea is, I don’t really know. She also could get married at her 14th, but she wanted to learn. When we asked if she had a choice to say no, she said that she had the help of God.

Like I said in my previous story, we’re going next week to Bansang. But we had a problem with the transport…We don’t know how to get there. We’ve heard from different people different stories how to go there. And because we don’t want to ask the help of Babel, we asked around. Now is Binta going to bring us to the stand place of the bushtaxi’s to Bansang. We’re so happy with her help!

Monday we’re going to make pancakes (pannenkoeken) for the people here. It really seems that time is flying right now. We’re here for a week and have made some plans here. Then 3 weeks Bansang, then a week in Banjul and then I’m going back. The last week will be flying, because we’ve already made plans also for that week. We’re going to the club with some students from here. So nice weeks to go and I actually find it to bad to go to Bansang, because I’m just enjoying myself here a lot with my new Gambian ‘friends’. But it also good to see other places of The Gambia.

So that was for this week. I have just one announcement. My new name is Kaddy. From the beginning I really didn’t liked it. Every time I was saying my Gambian name, I was a sister of a mother of that person. Besides that I don’t liked it! So I changed my name into Kaddy.


reactie op berichten:

leuk wat van jullie te horen. heb ook al veel gehoord van mn ouders dat ik zoveel bewondering krijg hoe ik hier leef. moet zeggen dat t wel mee valt hoor. We eten nu ook vis en garnalen. enige is,is dat we koken op een gaspit en miss een beetje anders leven. iig..ik vind het wel erg meevallen en ook erg leuk om te leven in een andere cultuur.

@ marty: dacht toch echt dat je n hbo opleiding deed...?

@ loes: ik heb je nog gesmst, maar is volgens mij niet aangekomen. wanneer ik weer beltegoed heb wil ik je weer bellen. ben benieuwd hoe het daar is

@ jankebal: dat is toch schattig!

@ Frans en Marjolein:

VAN HARTE! hoop dat jullie leuke verjaardag hebben.

@ de rest: fotos heb ik opgegeven. het is onbegonnen werk. ik geef als ik terug ben wel een dia voorstelling or whatever. ben nu een half uur bezig geweest om dit erop te zetten. Dit is een goede manier van therapie voro anger management!

jullie kunne fotos bekijken op renaat dr site: renateingambia.waarbenjij.nu