Scrounging

Living in the World Vision compound, where I have my own furnished bedroom and sitting room, and even hot water in the bathroom (no matter that it’s shared), the biggest challenge so far has been food. The grocery and restaurant scene here in Morrumbala is predictably austere, and with no real kitchen to speak of, I’ve had to get creative with my non-cook foods. The malaria-prone cook has yet to appear – maybe he doesn’t work on the weekends even when not bed-ridden with a tropical disease – so the charcoal stove has been out of the question. My original thought was to hard-boil a bunch of eggs to make sure I’m getting protein, but a scan of local stores and markets on Friday revealed that eggs are much more difficult to come by than I would have suspected. I couldn’t find a single one.

Peanut butter and bread and the occasional hot meal at a restaurant, or cooked at a friend’s house, can only take you so far. I have started taking a daily vitamin, and at least being underfed makes for exhaustion and early nights (that’s dark humor you see). But seriously, I need to figure this nutrition situation out as soon as possible. Work starts this week, so I’ll speak to the office staff in the morning and see what system we can come up with.