Thanksgiving in Tanzania

I went to the tourist camp for Thanksgiving dinner. It was such a treat and it almost makes my rather repetitive diet worth it to have the enjoyment of eating something different. There actually was turkey. I was very impressed. It was juicy and fat and yummy. There were about ten guests in camp and then the group of students, teachers, and camp staff which was a group of about 27. So, on the menu was turkey, spiced eggplant, salad with a very yummy dressing, green beans and carrots, cooked cabbage, and of course the staple rice and sauce. And of course the essential "this-is-a-treat-drink," Stoney Tangawizi (ginger beer). Here is my plate. It was my plan to take a picture of the yummy food before I chowed down, but I was distracted by the scrumptiousness awaiting me, and therefore, here is a picture about a quarter into the meal. I went back for seconds and I can honestly say it was the first time I have gorged myself in 7 months. I actually forgot what a 'I'm full' tummyache felt like. The ambiance at camp was very nice too. This is the chandelier and here is the bar. After dinner, we just sat and digested for a bit, much as people do in America. I was sitting near the edge of the deck-like hut and I was lucky enough to have a genet walk up and sit by my feet. Apparently they feed it at the camp. I was excited to see one so up close, as I am sure the rest of the guests have been. However, it wasn't so tame because as soon as it realized I was a person sitting, he scrambled back into the bush. They sure are cute though.


It was late when it was time to go home, but I wanted to look for an aardvark one more time, so after the students left in the cars, I took off on foot with my super mag-lite. Hamna muhanga. It was nice to have a walk in the dark after such a big dinner and in fact I remembered going on walks with my extended family after dinner when we used to all get together for Thanksgiving.