Standard 7 Graduation Cooking preparations

The Standard 7 lunch adventure or how to cook for 200 people with no advance preparation!

First, build 8 fires with cement blocks in a triangle around each fire.
Second, find 8 ginourmous pots and put on the fires.
Third, recruit all of the volunteers to grate carrots, slice tomatoes and cucumbers, slice and dice cabbage and so on and so on until it is finished. Thank god the goat was dead before he arrived! (long story from another trip)

Fourth, assemble all of the food on a very narrow walkway outside of the rec hall so there is no possible space to serve the food to the guests.
Fifth have two volunteers (one named Tracie) pop open sodas as they walk by. The following is what I personally repeated at least 150 times.

Tracie “Shikamo”
Guest “Maharaba”
Tracie “Gani Soda?”
Guest “Nini?”
Tracie “Gani Soda”
Guest “Fanta, hapana…Coke, hapana, Fanta” Asante
Tracie Kariboo!

Translation:
Tracie “Shikamo” - I give you my respect
Guest “Maharaba” I accept your respect
Tracie “Gani Soda?” Which soda?
Guest “Nini?” What?
Tracie “Gani Soda” Which soda? ( I assume this repeat was because of my sucky Kiswahili)
Guest “Fanta, hapana…Coke, hapana, Fanta” Asante Fanta, no Coke, no fanta, thanks!
Tracie Kariboo! You are welcome


Needless to say, not the most efficient system in the world, however everyone is pleased we are so polite and friendly and even though my Kiswahili is horrible and has a Texan accent!

Seriously, the event went off and the food was great and was actually hot and best of all no one received a hernia from carrying the 50 kilos of beans in one pot that is boiling hot to the table.

And so sets another day at the Rift Valley Childrens village.