(January 2 – 7, 2015) American Thanksgiving Looks Puney

                    What did you do for Thanksgiving this year? Unless you had a “Gilmore Girls” galore marathon meal eating fiasco (see season 3), I am guessing it went something along the following lines: Get together for late lunch or dinner with family and eat a ton of food---Rolls, white meat, dark meat, ham, green beans, random casseroles, cranberries, pumpkin pie, apple pie, pecan pie, whip cream, ice cream, coffee, juice, pop, and whatever your family specific traditions are (like pickled asparagus or deviled eggs). My family eats huge lunch, goes comatose, and then feasts on left-overs for dinner and during following weeks. Pretty much a one-day one meal wonder. 

                     Oh, if only this was that simple here. 
Day 1: Friday, January 2 or 24 Tahisas, was Saint Teklay Himonout’s celebration day. This is the day the great saint was martyred. While the 24th of every month is dedicated to this saint, this is the one where he was killed and thus the celebration is extreme. However, it is not a cause for school to cancel.

                     Even though I ate a scrambled egg deluxe breakfast, when I got to school two different teachers invited me for tea but changed to splitting silisi before I realized what was happening in order to celebrate. At lunch, I left the school - even though it is English Day and I claim to be there all day - with vice director to go to a teacher’s house. Here we met the majority of Shift 1 (my shift) teachers. Plates were dished out followed closely by injera. Taking one only, I soon realized my mistake when 4 different dishes were piled on top of it. There was hilbet (a white whipped bean dish), silsi, [Janet's internet definition=sauce made with tomato, onions, and spice] shiro, [Janet's definition = bean stew] and cabbage with crinkle cut French fries. I had to get a second injera roll to eat down to my original one. However, when attempting to eat down, the gracious host was always quick to add more to plate. It is hard enough to try to gauge how much one can eat and the ratio of injera to food remaining, but being served more doesn’t help. Thankfully though, the food was absolutely delicious so getting stuffed didn’t hurt quite so bad.

                  After teaching my three back-to-back classes, I went home for a quick shower than off to another teacher’s house for a birthday/Teklay celebration. Here a similar thing happened; however, the plate-bowl was smaller, but was constantly getting offered more food. Injera, bread, silsi, hilbet, shiro, other bean dish I never got name of, and cabbage were all piled on. While I had to take more injera to finish off meal, I couldn’t finish the roll and bread and had to set them aside. After a couple hours of hanging out with teachers that kept rotating through, I was finally able to finish off plate with some more silsi and hilbet (an absolute favorite combination). Giant glasses of “jolly juice” (think orange kool-aid) was able to help wash every thing down. I could only make it through one round of buna ceremony (and it was good coffee even by my standards) before having to call it a night to give stomach a break. While turkey would have helped me sleep, I was absolutely stuffed. 


                 Day 2: Saturday, January 3, or 25 Tahisas, was Mohammed’s 1465th birthday.

          While I am pretty positive I celebrated this holiday in Zanzibar in February, TV announcements and party invitations indicate it is today. Having no internet to verify, I am going with what my Muslim friends tell me.
           I only had one breakfast (single egg), and had mac and cheese for lunch (thanks to Grandma sending Cheez Whiz). However, just as I finished lunch, my teacher buddy and Tigrigna tutor called me to go over homework so I went. Ended up eating everything I had had at his house the night before at slightly smaller proportions (minus hilbet ) and the full coffee ceremony with popcorn. Went home to relax where, 45 minutes later, my phone rings with my vice director saying there is a buna ceremony with my usual weekly group of teachers happening now. So, I went and was pleasantly surprised when another teacher friend from the Prep school was there. We all laughed and joked around while having ceremony (three rounds of coffee), bananas, and popcorn.

                         After a while, vice-director and school buddy and daughters left, so it was me and my two favorite Muslims. We ended up watching the news and discussing (very broadly) the holiday and traditions that Muslims practice. Around 7:15ish another teacher and his wife showed up and we repeated the ceremony. Thankfully she makes good coffee and the cups are small, but still. Close to 8 they left, and I made to go, but my friend assured me it was okay and he would walk me home so there wasn’t any worry. 

                      Soon after, our hostess surprised me with an elaborate dinner of injera and goat berbary wat. [Janet's definition = spicy stew]. It was extremely good and messy. However, walking home after I felt like I wouldn’t eat again for a long while…and I wouldn’t ---till late lunch the next day. 


                        Day 3: Wednesday, January 7, or 29 Tahisas, was Ethiopian Christmas. While I did celebrate Christmas with ample food two weeks ago (see previous blog), this one takes the cake.

                I fell back to sleep around 4 when chickens got slaughtered, but slept in till 9! Had enough time to take a quick bucket shower and slice an onion for eggs when my dear neighbor invited me over to her house. Hot doro (chicken) wat isn’t what I pictured for breakfast with injera 9[spongy bread]  and himbassa (flat bread), but it was delicious. She woke up at 3 to start cooking everything! The popcorn for her buna ceremony filled in all the gaps. However, she still thinks I don’t like buna (and I am picky) so I wasn’t asked to drink any.

                Got back to change into my white Ethiopian shirt (see pictures on facebook of swearing in ceremony) and headed to one of my site mate’s house. Her dear compound friends had a plate piled with dulet (ground liver with garlic and other spices) and chopped goat in delicious sauce being offered to me before I had been there five minutes. Oh it was so much food, but so good! Today marks the end of a 44 day fast (from animal products) for the deeply devoted Orthodox Christians so the meat is delicious and in great supply.

                        After chilling and letting food settle, we went to our other site mate’s compound where they were having a Christmas/Christening celebration with injera and chicken wat with extra spicy burbary. I was offered sewa [locally made alcohol] but turned it down. Although I only had a little to be respectful, it filled me up to stuffed all over again.

              In order to bring good luck to my first site mate’s house, we went back there to have a buna ceremony. The coffee was “Presbyterian”  by Grandpa’s definition! So thick and strong I could barely get it down, politely. I excused myself afterwards to go take a nap.

                        Then headed to have coffee ceremony with teacher buddies, but since there wasn’t food at that one, I ended up having mac and cheese late at night for dinner. 
        American Thanksgiving may be a one-day wonder with a month till Christmas comes around, but Ethiopians have a multi-day marathon of eating to the brink. I have a better understanding of how hobbits must feel with all their meals spaced out, but have no clue how anyone can do this every day. True, not all Ethiopians celebrate every holiday, but I was amazed at how many individuals celebrated or were with people of different religions for the festivities. Besides learning how to balance injera and wat, I realized how blessed I am to have friends in various religions and have the opportunities to feast with all of them.











                   I only had one breakfast (single egg), and had mac and cheese for lunch (thanks to Grandma sending Cheez Whiz). However, just as I finished lunch, my teacher buddy and Tigrigna tutor called me to go over homework so I went. Ended up eating everything I had had at his house the night before at slightly smaller proportions (minus hilbet ) and the full coffee ceremony with popcorn. Went home to chill where, 45 minutes later, my phone goes off with my vice director saying there is a buna ceremony with my usual weekly group of teachers happening now. So, I went and was pleasantly surprised when another teacher friend from the Prep school was there. We all laughed and joked around while having ceremony (three rounds of coffee), bananas, and popcorn.

                   After a while, vice-director and school buddy and daughters left, so it was me and my two favorite Muslims. We ended up watching the news and discussing (very broadly) the holiday and traditions that Muslims practice. Around 7:15ish another teacher and his wife showed up and we repeated the ceremony. Thankfully she makes good coffee and the cups are small, but still. Close to 8 they left, and I made to go, but my friend assured me it was okay and he would walk me home so there wasn’t any worry. 

        Soon after, our hostess surprised me with an elaborate dinner of injera and goat burbary wat. It was extremely good and messy. However, walking home after I felt like I wouldn’t eat again for a long while…and I wouldn’t ---till late lunch the next day. 


                        Day 3: Wednesday, January 7, or 29 Tahisas, was Ethiopian Christmas. While I did celebrate Christmas with ample food two weeks ago (see previous blog), this one takes the cake.

                I fell back to sleep around 4 when chickens got slaughtered, but slept in till 9! Had enough time to take a quick bucket shower and slice an onion for eggs when my dear neighbor invited me over to her house. Hot doro (chicken) wat isn’t what I pictured for breakfast with injera and himbassa, but it was delicious. She woke up at 3 to start cooking everything! The popcorn for her buna ceremony filled in all the gaps. However, she still thinks I don’t like buna (and I am picky) so I wasn’t asked to drink any.

                Got back to change into my white Ethiopian shirt (see pictures on facebook of swearing in ceremony) and head edto one of my site mate’s house. Her dear compound friends had a plate piled with dulet (ground liver with garlic and other spices) and chopped goat in delicious sauce being offered to me before I had been there five minutes. Oh it was so much food, but so good! Today marks the end of a 44 day fast (from animal products) for the deeply devoted Orthodox Christians so the meat is delicious and in great supply.

                 After chilling and letting food settle, we went to our other site mate’s compound where they were having a Christmas/Christening celebration with injera and chicken wat with extra spicy burbary. I was offered sewa but turned it down. Although I only had a little to be respectful, it filled me up to stuffed all over again.

              In order to bring good luck to my first site mate’s house, we went back there to have a buna ceremony. The coffee was “Presbyterian”  by Grandpa’s definition! So thick and strong I could barely get it down, politely. I excused myself afterwards to go take a nap.

                 Then headed to have coffee ceremony with teacher buddies, but since there wasn’t food at that one, I ended up having mac and cheese late at night for dinner. 
        American Thanksgiving may be a one-day wonder with a month till Christmas comes around, but Ethiopians have a multi-day marathon of eating to the brink. I have a better understanding of how hobbits must feel with all their meals spaced out, but have no clue how anyone can do this every day. True, not all Ethiopians celebrate every holiday, but I was amazed at how many individuals celebrated or were with people of different religions for the festivities. Besides learning how to balance injera and wat, I realized how blessed I am to have friends in various religions and have the opportunities to feast with all of them.