A Life Far Removed from Durian Trees

Four days after the turkey roast, I still have a thigh and a wing left. (Note to self: do NOT cook turkey the night before hubby leaves for a one-week business trip abroad). I have had grilled leftovers, friend noodles with turkey, a turkey & mustard bagel sandwich and tonight I will make a turkey lasagne. No more turkey for at least six months. BTW the car has been sold. Big relief - we were worried about not selling it before we left Angola. Less than a month to go!

Today I am trying to roast a turkey. The bird is in the oven right now. An Algerian couple bought a frozen one for us a few months ago and I still hadn’t cooked it. When I took it out of the freezer this morning, I noticed: ‘ Expiry date 24 Aug 08 ’. Where has this turkey been for the last two years of its shelf life??? But, after ignoring the bird for months and getting the recipe several times from my Algerian friend and hints from hubby that he “feels like having turkey,” I thought I should cook it. So last night, I went online to look up some roast turkey recipes. Pretty daunting. Three days to defrost??? 24 hours to season? Where the heck am I going to get sage in Luanda??? What, I need an oven thermometer? Trusses? Cooking string? You gotta be kidding. But later when I looked closely at the frozen turkey, I was pleasantly surprised. Why? 1. The bird has been pre-seasoned 2. Comes with a non-toxic, oven-safe truss 3. A plastic thermometer pops up when the meat is cooked 4. Good in...

A sneak preview for those planning to visit! This is the house, with garden in front and courtyard at the back. The living area of a typical Yemeni house. This is the one in our house. Yemeni houses have beautiful stained glass windows and cornicing. View of Sana'a from the Movenpick Hotel. I think the land being cleared beyond the green bit is for a new shopping mall.

We are moving to Yemen! I was initially very apprehensive but we went there on a pre-assignment visit a few weeks ago and it ain't half bad... Some plusses: - Yemeni food is goooood (fab breads, rotisserie chicken, soups, meat dishes) - wonder why I haven't seen a Yemeni restaurant abroad??? - There is a KFC and Pizza Hut (not yet in Angola - there was a Nando's a few years ago but it closed down) - Temperate climate (it might be in the Middle East but Sana'a is 2,300m above sea level) - English-speaking! (but will learn Arabic) - In Sana'a there is the Old Town, which is beautiful and has a great souk, hotels and restaurants - Well-stocked supermarkets (trust me, it makes a difference when you can't get ginger/minced meat/etc for 3 months) - No traffic jams (everything in Sana'a is 10 mins away) - I don't have to drive (although women can drive) - Found a lovely house with a big garden and courtyard - Direct flights home twice a week and good connection...

Last Thursday, there was a presentation on ‘Tracking Palanca Negras’ at the Viking Club. The presenter was a Pedro Vaz Pinto, Co-ordinator of the Palanca Negra Conservation Programme and Environmental Advisor for the Catholic University Centre for Scientific Studies and Research. He spoke about the programme’s success in proving that the palanca negra (giant sable - endemic to Angola) has survived 27 years of civil war, through pictures and video footage captured using stealth cameras placed around the Cangandala National Park in central Angola. He also had pictures of the many beautiful plants, reptiles, insects, birds and the larger mammals that exist/live in the park – most of which none of us had ever seen before (e.g. mushrooms the size of a small umbrella!) and some have yet to be discovered. A bit of background on the palanca negra (hippotragus niger variani) – this animal is a famous Angolan symbol. It features in the logos of the national airline TAAG and national football te...

Last weekend was great. The weather in Luanda has cooled down for the cacimbo (winter), at a very pleasant 18-24ºC. It’s too cold swim so there isn’t so much beach traffic on the Samba road during the weekends. Traffic flow has also improved because construction on the narrow stretch of road near the President’s mother’s house is done. On Saturday, we decided to venture out for lunch for a change. Ate at a Lebanese place called Al Dar, near the Sagrada Familia church. The food is good but I don’t like the manager so we only go there when we have cravings for lots of meat! That afternoon, I made soya milk using beans that my husband brought from the US after a business trip. This turned out to be far too much effort for something you can buy at the store. (And one of my muslin cloths ripped so I sprayed soya mash all over the kitchen.) On Sunday, we indulged in a two-hour Chinese massage at the restaurant/massage place near ExxonMobil’s Imbondeiro compound. Afterwards, for the first ti...