During this meal Smitta taught me the effective method of eating with the hands, which I have always wanted to learn. In the past I have been mystified by the fact that Ethiopian people can eat so gracefully with their hands, while I feel like an uncoordinated baby. This method eliminates the indignity of opening your mouth and tilting your head back like a kid trying to catch snowflakes.
Here’s the trick:
1- Pack the food together into a little pyramid on your plate (or, in this case, leaf)
2- Pick it up with your fingers and thumb, then turn your hand palm up, with your fingers still cupped
3- Now – move your thumb back behind the little pile of food on your fingers and use it to shove the food into your mouth – BRILLIANT! Your thumb is a little pusher. It really works for this kind of food. Thankfully we had spoons for our delicious vermicelli with creamy sauce, flavored with cardamom and nutmeg, our dessert.
Later:
On the shore of the lake, a man and woman untangle the fishing net together. Below them a beautiful ebony-skinned woman in scarlet and gold dress sits in a gondola-like boat, waiting. Our boat slips silently along. Other tourists behind me murmur quietly among themselves. The water sparkles in a path of sunlight; I am mesmerized by the gentle rocking of the boat, the dancing ripple of the waves, the occasional splash of the pole as the valakaren lifts if from the water. I am rocked in my cradle and have returned to babyhood. I hardly have a thought in my head, let alone a care.
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