Thanksgiving in Cameroon 2009......

Except for my short army career, I don't remember being away from home for Thanksgiving before......I thought about it some today and I really do have a lot to be grateful for.














I'm grateful for the food I've enjoyed today. The fish is simply called sole and the rest of the food is typical Cameroonian fare. One of the rice dishes is called ndole , which is made of boiled, shredded bitterleaf (a type of green), peanuts, and melon seeds. It is seasoned with spices and hot oil, and can be cooked with fish or meats. It is considered the national dish of Cameroon.

The right-hand tray above the fish contains some clear-looking balls. They are a mixture of starches--rice, potatoes, yams--that are cooked then pounded until they form a sticky mass which is then formed into balls and dipped in spicy sauces.

The sauces are typically made of a root called cassava (which naturally contains traces of cyanide), okra and tomatoes. Peppers are added and can be very similar to Thai peppers in hotness. One of the other trays contains fried plantains which I've been told are not bananas but very similar.

I'm grateful for the hotel room I have over here. It is small but safe, secure and relatively clean.



















I'm grateful that I have three English-language channels on my TV set.





















I'm grateful for the Internet in my room which allows me to follow the online newspapers at home, keep track of the Dynamo during trading season, and basically just maintain contact with the outside world.



I'm grateful for my friends--especially the ones that send me emails.






















I'm grateful for the Skype feature on my computer that allows me to talk to Devin live almost every day while I'm over here.




















I'm grateful for my home and I truly feel for the many people in the world today that live in shanties like these we drove past today.



























I'm grateful for the community I'm going back to in three weeks and I really do appreciate it after traveling through poor communities like this one today.



















I really do feel grateful this Thanksgiving and, like I told Devin on Skype earlier this evening, don't feel sorry for me over here. I actually have it really good......I'm really grateful for the opportunity to travel the world and visit places like Cameroon.

And lastly, I'm grateful for this fleeting but beautiful sunset outside my hotel window as I was typing this.

Happy Thanksgiving from Cameroon.