Day 4
It’s Wednesday, January 12 and it is supposed to be another calm day since the Black Stars are not in action until Friday. Usually, I will do a few stories, do a report on the Black Stars’ training and follow the rest of the tournament on television. But no, I have been swamped by a lot of messages in my Twitter DM and Twitter mentions from many Cameroonians.
Some are unhappy with portions of my last episode about my ‘cultural shocks’, and from the reactions, I reckon the biggest peeve for many was my claim of not finding ‘solid’ food in Yaoundé since I arrived in Cameroon. Many others have also reached out, offering some explanations and pointing me to some restaurants and joints where I can get some good food to eat.
I am looking forward to all the invitations I have received from so many Cameroonians and I’ll share with you how it goes. I will be in Yaoundé for a little over a week before leaving for Garoua. I am sure I will have a good time.
Before that, let me just say that I am not here to run down any country, just chronicling what I experience here on a daily basis. They are my experiences; I own them because no two people will have the same experiences in a country so feel free to disagree.
Santa Lucia to the rescue
Anyways, let me tell you about my latest discovery, SANTA LUCIA in Ngousso. Boy, what a relief. Santa Lucia supermarket to the rescue of a poor Ghanaian journalist.
Look, naturally, I am not very adventurous with food. I like to go for what I am familiar with. I schooled and lived for a year in Beijing, China and I could count on one finger the varieties and types of foods I had. Once I find what I am familiar with, its basically rinse and repeat, (lol).
So, you can imagine my joy when some of my Ghanaian journalists informed me about Santa Lucia and the fact that I could find groceries I am familiar with. We have been so busy working that we haven’t had enough time to explore all that is available as far as food is concerned. It was last night my colleagues mentioned Santa Lucia and I didn’t waste any time locating it. It didn’t matter it was past 8pm. I wanted to go and see it. And oh, I was pleasantly surprised. Needless to say, I did a basket full of grocery shopping with my colleague Benedict Owusu to take to our hotel.
Santa Lucia gave me a feel of home for a moment, and the customer service was great. The lady at the bread stand could speak some English and so when I attempted to speak my broken French, she replied in English to my relief. Definitely, going back there again. And it is not too far from the stadium so hallelujah, lol. And oh, I didn’t know there was soft bread here. I love soft, freshly baked bread and hadn’t had some since I arrived. The ones I get during breakfast at the hotel are a tad too hard for my liking but I understand that is how it is in some French-speaking countries.
Meat, chicken, fish and plantain everywhere
I try not to generalize my experiences here but if there is one that is easy to find in Yaoundé where I Iive then it must be chicken, meat, fish and plantain. You can literally find it everywhere. In my hotel, even for breakfast, you will get a pan of fish or chicken on the buffet stand. The Ghanaian journalists I came with can’t have enough of it. It’s tasty, especially the chicken which is referred to as poulet.
Two nights ago, a group of us, I think we were about 5 (Benedict, Nketia, myself, Herbert and one other guy) hungry and out of ideas stormed the joint which is close to our hotel to indulge a bit.
At the meat joint, our lack of French skills meant we were doing a lot of gesturing but a good Samaritan showed up and helped us. So, here’s how it went at the joint.
For each one of us buying the meat, we had to personally pick from a pan which meat we wanted and then proceed to add plantain if we so desired before the vendor chops them into hot oil and fry it. It is spiced with some pepper and voila you are ready to go.
We had a good time enjoying it alongside some Malta.
That brings me to drinks, I hear there is massive beer culture. I am curious to experience it and of course share it with you.
Keep reading and as always, thanks for your feedback.