Spaghetti Omelette (Western)

Here is an entry from my Aunt Linda who came and visited me in Cameroon. 

 

The hotel's hot shower and comfortable bed were amazing -- especially after arriving in Cameroon, with the long flights from Cleveland to Washington, D.C. (where I first met Carol's mom, Ruth), to Brussels and finally to Yaoundé. That first night of exhaustion flew by and morning arrived.  I wondered what would be for breakfast.  Allen asked if we would be interested in "spaghetti omelettes."  This was something new to me and a cup of strong coffee was my first priority.  Ruth and I had agreed that we would be open to most things on this trip.  We didn't really know what to expect.  Having never had a "spaghetti omelette," I decided to give it a try!  The spaghetti was boiled and then added to the middle of three eggs which were cooked until set.  This omelette was a lot of food and the coffee was, in fact, strong!  That was the beginning of the adventure. 

 

Now that I look back and have had a chance to process some of what occurred on this trip to visit Allen and to meet Carol, it did remind me a bit of a spaghetti western.  Spaghetti westerns were a group of films from the mid-1960's that were mostly produced and directed by Italians.  They were about cowboy adventures and the border conflicts between the U.S. and Mexico.  They included some famous American personalities as well as European actors.  Most were produced in Italian, filmed in Europe and had low budgets.  The stories were epic. 

 

How does this compare to visiting two Peace Corps volunteers in Cameroon, you ask?  There were the four main characters (Allen, Carol, Ruth and me).  The language spoken by the locals was not our native language (mostly French).  We traveled through the "old west" of Africa on trains, a bush taxi, motos (on unpaved roads), and with crazy taxi drivers.  We experienced hot days, bright sunshine, starry nights and a lot of dust. We did see men on horseback as they were riding right through the middle of town.  Also, we had a relatively low budget and not much in the way of tourist amenities available.  We often slept rather soundly on the floor; lacked for hot, running water; and ate what was available locally.  We climbed a mountain (Mount Ngaoundere).  We were accosted by critters (lizards, mosquitoes, large spiders, crickets, cockroaches, chickens, goats, etc.).  We saw a lot of cattle at the ancien marché du boeuf that was very close to Carol's house, and cattle were often just grazing or walking along the road elsewhere.  We saw wild animals (mostly in the zoo in Yaoundé) and dwelled with the domesticated (Buddy and Honey).  We had heart-warming experiences with Cameroonians and those of other nationalities as well.  We accommodated each other's foibles and enjoyed each other's company.  We encountered some mean hombres who tried to overcharge us for our moto and taxi rides, and some who insisted that they had the right to carry our bags for a fee.  We were a team, against all odds.  And in the end, Ruth and I rode off into the sunset.

 

It was a trip that I will never forget.  Thank you Allen, Carol and Ruth, for the experience of a lifetime! 

 

Hasta la vista and happy trails to you…jusqu'à ce que nous nous rencontrions de nouveau (until we meet again).