Today was exam day at Sorawell. All of the ladies were so nervous! I felt bad that I was taking pictures of everything, but I didn’t want to miss the action! I had the pleasure of getting to taste some delicious pastries that were made as part of the exam. A+ in my book. There are a few parts to their exams; today were the practical exams which consisted of cooking a 5 course lunch and preparing a natural juice. Then one girl has to be the server and gets graded on her performance. I arrived in the middle of the practical training, just in time to eat some sweets.
Around 1pm it was lunch time, which also meant grading time this particular day. I reluctantly closed up my dorky tri-pod and set my camera down to enjoy lunch with the students. The young woman serving us (her name is unfortunately escaping me) was SOO nervous. She was shaking! I felt I was adding to her nerves. She loosened up a bit and even tried to speak some English to me. When she was serving me instead of asking me if I would like another helping she said, “Again!?” it was pretty funny.
So in total I had 5, yes 5 courses for lunch. For those of you who do not know me, I don’t have the largest appetite so this was such a struggle for me. I must say all of it was delicious though and my body probably needed a large meal.
The first course was a Cameroonian twist on a Cobb Salad. It was really good! Next we had a quiche Lorraine which was delicious. I wanted seconds, but knew I still had 3 more courses to go. Next in line was sweet and sour pork with brown rice – also delicious. The quiche still held as my favorite. I kind of want more right now, now that I am thinking about it. After the sweet and sour pork there was a gnocchi and busa---something. I should know the name of it because it is Italian and I am Italian, but the name is completely escaping me right now. If anyone knows what I am trying to say please help! They were all anxious to know what I thought about the gnocchi since I am Italian and lived in Rome for a short period of time. I gave it the thumbs up! After the gnocchi I was starting to hurt and had to skip the curry dish. I did, however, save room for the chocolate mousse dessert which was out of this world.
I mean it really is incredible when you think about what these girls can do. To some, being able to cook multiple cultural cuisines may seem trivial, but these girls come to Sorawell not knowing anything but simple Cameroonian dishes their mothers have passed on to them. Keep in mind they prepared all of these dishes without a recipe. I mean I love to cook but 90% of the time I log on to epicurous.com and print out my recipe that I follow diligently. This skill makes them so marketable in Cameroon that employers in hotels and restaurants basically beg the administrators of Sorawell to send their students to them after they graduate. The next class graduates in September and they are all already employed!
After lunch I went to see Alice, a former student of Sorawell. It is truly amazing seeing the difference in the students who are in their first year, and those who are in their third year or have graduated. The girls in their first year are still very shy and unsure of themselves. By the third year they can talk confidently with anyone and start telling you how much Sorawell has taught them. Then you talk to the graduates and it is obvious that they aren’t going to let anything stand in the way of their dreams. They have a bit of work experience under their belts and talk about opening up their own restaurant, etc. They come to Sorawell so unsure of themselves and leave as proud young women with a future.
Alice was so great. Her brother owns a roasted chicken place and she now helps him run it. She brought a bit of innovation to it by creating new marinades and sauces to accompany the chicken. They sell about 35 chickens a day. She was so great and let me take pictures with her – very sweet young lady. I just realized I am calling these young women ‘young ladies’ like I am so much older than them… they are all my age!
After meeting Alice, Hermine, another graduate of Sorawell, took me around the market place. It is not so safe so she promised to act as my second pair of eyes and body guard. I met her mother and two sisters who sell things in the market. Hermine has passed on her business savvy that she learned at Sorawell to her family to help them with their selling. Her mother was so great; she let me take a picture of her, but demanded I send her a copy. Don’t worry that is all taken care of and she will get her picture!
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