Colombia #11- La Comida (The Food)

While I could have easily talked about the food of Colombia throughout the other posts, the food was so unique and so delicious, it really does deserve its own post.
 I may have been the only one who took pictures of their food (and people may have found that strange) but it has helped me chronicle and remember the different meals we had, and the hands that served them to us with love.

 Each meal was made with complete love by the ladies- DeAnna, Delci, and Pastora Nubia- who were always in the "kitchen" (loose term there, not a kitchen by American standards. see the picture below).  On top of the meal being made for us, they would set up tables and chairs under the cabana and the girls would serve us.
 Let me say that again.... They served Us. 
  It was humbling. Here I went to their country to serve them, and somehow they served us. They set the table, they brought our food over, they filled juice pitchers, and they politely cleared the table as we finished. We never did a dish, never had to worry about not having enough food. And when a teammate wasn't up to eating, the ladies would plate it for them and save it.  They humbled me.

Mileth setting our table

Our table set up and we are ready to eat!

 So, what did we eat?

 Well, we had a variety of dishes. First of all, the big meal of the day is lunch. (Which, let's be honest, while we may never adapt to that in our culture, it makes sense to eat bigger at lunch and less at night).
  So, we had soups of all kinds- made from scratch and so very delicious!

  We had chicken dishes. The first day we were there, we had one that had a delicious sauce on it, Another day, this chicken (above), with a sauce and corn topping.
  We were served fish one day, and if you asked them what kind of fish, they would say "It's sea fish!" That was just what they call their fish. However, the official name of this fish was Cojinua, which whether or not it translates to this exactly (I had to look this one up) it is Blue runner. Don't ask me  questions about it... All I know is that I ate it and it was delicious. We picked the meat off the bones of it, of course.

  They had fresh squeezed juice for us every single meal, and I know that had to be a lot of squeezing! It was delicious. One of the common ones served to us was called Tomato Tree juice? (I believe I understood that correctly, but I know if I didn't Paola will correct me) It was thick and in between sweet and bland. But, it was all wonderful. (I wish now I had taken a snapshot of the juice. We all drank it down pretty quickly.)
  Every afternoon the girls would come serve us either fresh lemonade or a juice box (which me and Eric said tasted way better than our kids' juice boxes because it was more natural... or so we convinced ourselves!) . Seriously, they brought it out on trays for us to the work site and served us.
  Not only was it super refreshing in the hot sun, but it was humbling once again to be served. And they did it with smiles every time.

  We had a few different kinds of fruit while we were there, and this was one of them.

 It's called granadilla. You scoop out all the insides to eat. Yes, it looks a little like fish eggs (which Paula Lou pointed out) but it tasted really good. They eat it with their hands, but those of us less experienced used a spoon to scoop it out. It was sweet and delicious.

 The picture below is yuca and ñame. (Pronounced in-yah-mae)

 This was our last meal there, and to me, one of the most meaningful. Not my favorite by taste, but the meaning will last with me forever. On Sunday, during the church service, they had a time of offering, where people could bring forth their sacrifice, their representation of themselves in the village, and lay it at the altar as an offering. Some of the old villagers came forth with their "crop". It was yuca plant and Ñame. (see the offering below.) The church loved us so much that they served us what was given on the altar. To me, that spoke volumes far more than any tasty dish could have.










Lastly, when we were in the city, we enjoyed a couple of tasty restaurants. Here, you can see the enjoyment this ice cream dessert brought to me and Paula. And a few other dishes as well.

Lemon Ice Cream, with lemon candy, white chocolate and strawberries 

This was called Colombian Pizza

 I cannot neglect to mention the coffee of Colombia. It. Was. So. Good. I've been craving a cup that good since I have been home.

Stay tuned for the next blog, where I will share with you about a few of the clinic staff.