Good to Eat

Minor clarification-- I'm not eating rats! And there aren't a million rats running around Chittagong either, thank goodness. It is a problem in the rural areas.

Another thing I am not eating: Vegetables. I do miss those.

What I am eating, though, looks like this:


Our cafeteria serves some of the above for lunch and dinner. There is always rice, roti (the pancake/bread things), and daal (a soupy yellow mixture with the occasional lentil). Sometimes there is naan, a thick fried bread-- this is delicious! Those are the staples. They typically serve a mushy, oily vegetable curry (potatos and pumpkin, sometimes carrots), too. And some sort of meat: chicken, mutton, or fish kebabs (my favorite, surprise). I'm sad pineapple season is ending; we used to get fresh slices at every meal!

I try to eat cafeteria meals at least once a day, since its free. I'd eat there every meal if my stomach could handle it. Otherwise, I'm a big fan of bread and butter. And oranges, I eat a lot of oranges!

There are two other main components of my diet:

Pepto-bismal:



and antacids. They taste just like candy!

The food here is very spicy! My personal tolerance of spice has hit a whole new level. All the spice, plus all the oil, takes a pretty big toll on my stomach. Half the time, I have no idea what sets it off when I get sick. It could be something as little as eating off a plate that was not dried completely after being washed in tap water (the water quality here is pretty poor)...and I'm in the bathroom all night. Woo!

The Bengali diet is all about just getting enough calories, it seems. A novel concept for an American, of course. Every thing here is either swimming in oil, or tastes extremely sweet. Even the bread. But everyone is so skinny!