Rice and rice

I walked down to the kitchen of the orphanage in the morning. It was only six o’clock. Here is Nepal people followed the sun and went to bed when the sun went down and got up when the sun came out. They were much more attuned to the nature around them than we westerners were. 

I waved at Maya as I entered the kitchen. She was making tea for us. Tea, rice and lentils - that was the typical breakfast, the typical lunch and the typical dinner that the Nepali had. There were many rice fields in Nepal. The climate was suitable for growing rice. The vegetables that were eaten in Nepal varied throughout the year. At the moment, apples and pears were in season, as well as cabbage. 

Diego walked into the kitchen. ‘Oh lovely... more rice!’ He gave me a funny face. 

The previous night Petra, Diego and I had talked about being fed up with eating rice all the time. We were used to a more varied diet and not eating the same thing three times a day.   

Petra came in and sat opposite us on the long table. She was yawning. 

‘Too early to eat rice. I’m just not getting used to it,’ she said as she sipped her tea. ‘I do like this tea though. It is sweat but different from what we get in Europe.’ 

Diego shrugged. ‘This is part of the experience, as they say...’

Maya walked to us, with a bowl of rice, willing to put more on our plates.

‘No, no thank you,’ we all said in unison. 

At the same time, the manager of the orphanage, Azim, walked in. ‘Good morning.’

He sat down next to us and Maya brought him tea. 

‘Can you tell us something,’ Petra asked. ‘Why is it that you always eat rice? Why not potatoes sometimes, or something else, like noodles?’

‘When you look back in history, rice was the only grain that was grown in Nepal. Back in the day, there were no imports and exports and the climate was too humid and hot for growing potatoes. They can be grown further up the mountains. Wheat can also be grown there. But down here in the valley, traditionally it’s been rice. People got used to this habit of just eating rice. They don’t even really consider other alternatives, though nowadays there are more options. Many people are very poor and simply don’t want to spend money on buying other foods, so they settle into eating their home grown rice.’

We all nodded as we listen to Azim. 

‘What about here at the orphanage,’ Diego asked. ‘Do you get the rice from someone who has their own rice fields, or how come these kids always seem to be eating rice?’

‘We get rice from the local people who grow it. People are generous here although they don’t have much themselves. You know, as an orphanage and as a charity, we need to be careful about money.’

‘Yes, we all understand that,’ Petra said. ‘But also it is important for the children to have a balanced diet. This is why it would be good to give them something else to eat once in a while.’

Azim agreed. ‘We do get other foods from people as well and give them to the children when we have them. I know you westerners are used to balanced diets and all that. We try our best and do what we can do. We give them lentils every day and some vegetables Whatever we can get. This gives them enough nutrients, we feel. Then it is a nice surprise for them when they get something different. They are so used to eating rice that they miss it when they don’t have it at least once a day. Besides, we are lucky. At least we have as much rice as we want to eat. Many people are so poor in Nepal that they need to regulate the amount of rice that they eat. ‘

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If you are interested in reading more about the eating habits of the Nepali, take a look at this link:

http://nepal.saarctourism.org/nepal-food.html