Everyone Is Fed

Food, glorious food. This journey can only be done with the help of many individuals. And the energy requirements are met by regular, generous meals. Though many hands contribute to these daily feasts, the chef de mission is Yanez, a thoroughly decent chap from South Africa. Day after day, he and his crew of choppers, water carriers and mixers produce tasty fare for all of us. And it is delivered with a wry sense of humour.

Yanez stocks up on local market food and plans the meals. Vegetarians are given food that is prepared to satisfy their preference. Carnivores consume whatever local meat is available and it varies from country to country, region to region. Apparently, one of Kenya's finest eateries is The Carnivore in Nairobi. As we are bidding farewell to some sectional riders there, we may gather at that establishment to send them off in style. All you can devour.

One of our drivers, Steven, from Tanzania, prepares and serves lunch. The fruit, the chapatis, the condiments,...superb. Steven has a sunny disposition and each morning he greets us with a hearty "Good morning Afrika!". He and his family are based in Arusha. He is busy orchestrating safaris for those who wish to experience them during our three-day hiatus in Arusha.

Although hygiene is always an issue (one sign in Ethiopia read "Washing hands saves lives."), the food prep has been exemplary. Intestinal flora here can and does wreck havoc on one's digestive tract and yet we all seem to bash on regardless of the local food misadventures.