Easter Lunch

Lambs to the slaughter - literally!

Easter was last Sunday and I still haven’t posted about it which means my laziness is now pathological. I have only one thing to say about Easter in Addis Ababa – The Goats Die! From Good Friday onwards there was a goat invasion of Addis with herds of them in every market, even grazing on the grass growing on the road divider on Bole Road. Apparently they cost around 2000 Birr per goat. The chicken cost between 50-200 Birr with the prices being hiked up for Easter. One of the English newspapers had an amusing headline on Monday protesting the steep prices ‘Doro-What??’- a pun on Doro-Wot  which is an Ethiopian chicken dish. I understand Amharic puns now. Clap, clap. Although if you consider that the majority of the readers are probably expats whose Amharic is as sketchy as mine, then  reporter was probably just playing to our limited intellect. 

Grab a plate

When we arrived at our hosts house, the goat had already been butchered and the meat was marinating for the barbeque.The raw meat did make me squeamish as expected and I did not try it, but  even hardened non vegetarians steer clear of it so thats ok. The Ethiopian chilli pastes taste really good and are definitely not too spicy for the Indian palate.  I am developing a taste for Injera but not the wots.I think it will taste rather good with a curry instead. Will report on the experiment.

The more conventional way to eat the meat

Residence Permit

My Green Card!

Both my residence and work permit are here and not a day too soon as my one month Business visa expires today. Strangely enough the Ethiopian embassy in Delhi issues visas starting from the date of application for the visa and not the date of arrival in Ethiopia,so you have to time your departure well. For example, my mother in law and Vihaan arrive in Addis on the 3^rd of May ( Yay!) and she returns on the 26^th of May. Therefore, I’ve asked them to apply for a visa after the 26^th of April so she will be well within the specified period. The other option is to of course, get a visa on arrival which is possible for Indian citizens. But I don’t want her to stand in an additional line with Vihaan who will definitely be uppity and jumpity and probably poopity pants by then. The visa on arrival is definitely an option I’ll explore when my mother arrives as she will be travelling alone.

In other news, tomorrow is the Ethiopian Good Friday and the following Sunday is Easter. This would also mark the end of the fasting season. Selfishly, we were rather grateful that we arrived when the general populace was fasting because getting vegetarian food was easier. And we never had to explain what vegetarian food was, we just asked for fasting food. This actually consists of vegan fare as it is dairy free as well but works well enough for us. Come Sunday it is going to be every man for himself. Our social calendar is surprisingly full as we are invited both to an Easter lunch and a Tamil Sangamam event to celebrate the Tamil New Year.

I still haven’t figured out why there are so many Tamilians in Addis Ababa. Geographically, it is more distant without even a direct flight and yet..I did read that the erstwhile Emperor Haile Saillasie recruited teachers from Kerala to work in the state government run schools and Universities, so are the Tamilians part of that connection? Currently, I have to admit they are utilizing the business oppurtunities well and are rushing to meet the demands of a developing economy. Most people have established business interests other than the salaried job for which they originally came here.  And although they complain about the living conditions and food, they have also relocated entire extended families here.  It will be interesting to find out the rest of the story. As for the Easter lunch, I am steering clear of the kitfo.

First Addis Ababa post

Also second non Delhi post and first post from Africa, not that anyone cares as after the brief blip of popularity when Vishal posted a link to this blog on his facebook page (60 views!) it has managed to slide back to comfortable anonymity.

We arrived in Addis on Thursday at 7.30 a.m. local time. The airport is decent, maybe comparable to the Chennai one.

When you reach a new country,especially somewhere like Ethiopia which is far removed from our cultural conciousness, there are so many aspects to write about. I am only going to mention the overall impression of the city and the people now and save the specifics for later. I have been diligently trawling the internet for information about Addis for three months now like a lonely single haunting the dating sites and found precious little information. I came with low expectations and 106 kgs of baggage mostly consisting of rice,dals and masala. Well, I needn't have bothered. So far, Addis has far surpassed my expectations and I am sure things will only get better once we are actively at work.

The overall feeling is pretty much the same as if I had moved to a city in India which I know of but have never visited and has a language I don't speak, like Bhuvaneshwar. Like being in a Bizarro version of India, the same beggars and potholes but with subtle differences.

For example look at this mushroom and onion pizza we ordered at a Pizzeria close to home. Standard base,tomato topping, cheese and onions ? What distinguishes the Addis Ababa pizza from the Big Chill one is that bowl of green chilli paste served with it which the Ethiopians slather on generously before taking a bite. Also, how cute are those knives with 'pizza' cut out in them?

Same,same but different. 

Seasonal munchies

Old Delhi is justifiably famous for chats and kebabs, both of which I devour at regular intervals. However the impending winter has brought forth a slew of snacks which I was previously unacquainted with. The first is the sweet potato chat. Sweet potato makes its appearance around the Navratras being a favourite of the fasting masses. The vendor piles up wood chips and coal in the centre of a rubber tyre and then slow roasts the sweet potato till it is tender and infused with the lovely wood smoke. He then peels the skin off, cuts it into bite sized pieces, adds masala powder and nimbu and serves it with a flourish and a toothpick. The combination of the sweet tuber with tangy  dressing is surprisingly great.

My second discovery this month are singharas or water chestnuts. When I saw mounds of the green-black singharas piled up on wayside carts, they looked alien and not very appetising. But they are a favourite of my mother in laws and have been appearing regularly as a evening snack. Wiki just informed me that these seeds have been cultivated for food for over 3000 years in India and China. Of course, they are also another Navratra favourite. These sham fasters-feasters I tell you. In my house, they are simply peeled, cut and sauted lightly with a little oil, zeera and salt. It is slow cooked with a lid on for a while so that the salt nicely permeates inside. I can easily eat a kilo at a time, the only problem is that it is so light that you are hungry again an hour later.

The last item is the perennial winter favourite – Roasted groundnuts. The sight of those huge mounds  by the roadside with a burly man incessantly stirring the groundnuts in an iron kadhai is a sure shot sign that winter is nigh. I got the shock of my life when I recently hopped out of the car to buy 20 Rs worth and got this measly packetful.  I remember buying the same quantity for about 5 Rs as a kid walking home form school. A visual reminder of our soaring inflation rates.

Groundnuts are more often boiled than roasted in Chennai. Boiled  peanuts with a dash of grated coconut, chilly and coriander  is the quintessential Marina beach snack. Fresh peanuts are available in super markets in those orange fish net like plastic bags.In a fit of déjà vu, I bought some non roasted groundnuts and attempted to pressure cook it with salt. They turned out a tad under boiled. A testimony to my cooking skills or are Delhi peanuts tougher than Madrasi ones ?  

No food on Id

Id Mubarak to all. Kept planning to go to Jama Masjid all month to eat awesome Ramzan food but just didn't happen. I don't blame the baby for the lack of time, I blame the Delhi traffic. I can sneak out of the hospital at around 4.30 p.m. on a light day, it would take me half an hour to get to Chandni Chowk by rickshaw ( autos are few and far between in old Delhi ) Assuming an hour and a half to sample lots of street food and another richshaw ride back to the hospital, that would leave me stuck in peak traffic at 7.00 p.m. when it would take me a couple of hours to wind my way home. Of course if I were a truly dedicated foodie, I could take the Metro to work and catch the Metro back home from the Chawdi Bazar station. There's always next year. Enjoy the biryani. 

I don’t need mummy no more

As I didn’t post at all for three months after Vihaan was born, I haven’t written about any of the basic  baby blog topics like breast feeding and diaper changing yet. I didn’t really put much thought into breastfeeding during my pregnancy because well, breastfeeding is good so just do it, right? Surprisingly, in the hospital I delivered in, I was given the baby only on the day after the delivery. Apparently babies need very little feeding in the first two-three days after birth which is when the milk starts to come in. Up until then, the breasts secrete only small quantities of colostrum  or pre milk which is sufficient to nourish the baby besides containing essential antibodies. Fortunately, I had absolutely no problems with the baby latching on or learning to feed. We were off and running from the first try itself. Initially, the baby used to feed every three hours regular as clockwork. However, he also used to feed for an hour at a time. Apparently a baby sucking efficiently can empty a breast in 6-10 minutes. However, they also have a “need to suck” which is variable in babies. I was feeding on demand and not by the clock, I decided to be guided by the baby on the duration of the feed as well. As I was spending upto seven hours a day feeding the baby, I shifted a straight backed chair with arm supports into the room and acquired a feeding pillow. This is a soft half doughnut shaped pillow which fits around the waist on which to lay the infant. As I am a creature of habit, I fed on the chair even in the middle of the night. It has become second nature to grab for the remote before settling down to feed. I have watched a lot of sitcoms over the past few months. I later realized that maybe feeding in the bed might have been less disruptive of my sleep cycle but I never got the hang of it. Usually the baby was as anxious to go back to sleep as I was although there were a few nights when we were up to hear the morning azaan. I had the usual anxiety for the first couple of weeks about whether the quantity of milk was sufficient and ate arhar dal and other weird herbs to increase milk production and felt appropriately like a cow. The anxiety was not helped by my mother in law commenting that the baby was hungry each time he howled. He is a baby. He howls. Thats just how it is.

It took me about two months  to get really comfortable with the whole feeding deal. At about ten weeks, my son the angel started sleeping for longer and longer stretches at night and gave up his three a.m. feed by twelve weeks. He was always regular as clockwork about his three hourly feeding schedule ( I could feed him, hand him over and dash out for dinner or shopping ) By his fourth month, he has started having longer gaps between his daytime feeds as well and the duration of each feed has reduced to twenty minutes. I could leave him at home long enough to watch a movie in a theatre when he was four and a half months old.

The current guidelines recommend that you start weaning from breastmilk only after six months. Many paediatricians however continue to recommend that the best time to start introducing semisolids is at four months. I don’t have much choice in the matter as I will be resuming work full time from April when the baby will be five months old. I initially considered expressing breast milk for his daytime feeds but after much research decided to opt for early partial weaning. I will of course continue to feed him when at home. Next came the question of what to wean him with. I have started him on Rice Cerelac for one feed and it seems to be working well till now. I started with a couple of spoonfuls and have gradually increased it to three scoops of Cerelac. He learnt to eat from a spoon easily and the photo is evidence that he seems to enjoy it.

I am planning to substitute one more feed with formula milk ( Nan 1 is the most recommended brand ) By the time I start working, I plan to feed him in the morning before leaving, at 6.30 a.m. He will be fed Cerelac at around 11.00 a.m. followed by a bottle of formula at 2.00 p.m. Traffic conditions permitting, I should be home for his evening feed by 5.30-6.00 p.m. I also tried to feed him a bit of mashed banana yesterday which he spat up promptly. I am planning to replace the formula milk with a puree of rice, dal and vegetables next month. Fingers crossed, it should all work out well.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed feeding the baby and all the warm, fuzzy feelings it generated. Literally as well, it was all warm and cosy to cuddle in December. It was great fun watching him grow like a weed on nothing but milk. Magic Potion ! Also, power! I am the Master of your Universe kiddo! Definitely going to miss this phase when it is over.