Food in Afghanistan

As you can see from this picture, the food here is just amazing!!! Look at those eggplants!! The water melons are just spectacular too... they're ruby red color in the center and not heavy in seeds. I often drive by these markets and just salivate, but stopping and buying anything is considered too dangerous. Oh ya, then there are the breads... flat breads but the size of a 12" pizza and light and fluffy, they look delicious. On top of the physical security challenges to buy, there is the always impending typhoid threat. Many use sewer water to water their gardens, so we're told the fruits/veggies themselves absorb the disease.... it's killing me. Most of you know how I just love fresh fruits and veggies... Mauria is always sharing her local farm stories. I might just risk it one of these days when I'm at the Ministry.

So, I eat almost exclusively at the international run DFAC, with no clue what that stands for but in reality it's a chow hall. It's bascially a set of large connected tents with a solid wood (unfinished) floor. So, here's how that goes.

You scan your ID card for entry and then grab a paper tray (think the tin trays from MASH) and grab a package of plastic eating utensils and stand in buffet line.

BREAKFAST: It's actually quite a spread. First, a short order cook to make omlettes/scrambled as ordered. If you want a fried egg, it's only fried VERY hard. From there are larger dishes of food to include: veggie quiche, chipped beef with gravy (SOS), bacon, pork sausage, turkey sausage (Muslims don't eat pork), biscuits, some type of breakfast potato, and oatmeal. Lots of high fat/cholesterol and I work hard to RUN by it... it's actually delicious from what I understand but I'm afraid to try. Then you enter into another room, more on my speed. There is normally a nice selection of fresh cut up melons, strawberries, grapes, and sometimes kiwi (all pealed), where I fill my paper tray up. Then danger approaches again with a cart full of breakfast pastries, pies, french toast, pancakes (melted butter and hot syrup). Then another cart filled with sliced deli style meats/cheeses, fresh tomatoes and jalapenos (I normally have the tomatoes/jalapenos). Then (yes, another) a large selection of bread, bagels, English muffins and industrial toaster. One then progresses through a room with tables for 4 and a large screen TV with sports or news showing. Then you enter into another large seating area. There you find cold cereals, yogurt, and a large cooler filled with juicy boxes (like we give the kids only real juice), and like containers for milk to include soy milk. Oh ya, a huge coffee machine that produces both "regular" and "strong" coffeee. More pastries in this room just in case you bypassed the previously huge selection of decadence. No clue how these folks aren't huge!

My standard breakfast: selection of melons, cold cereal with yogurt and soy milk (I also include some ground flax seed I brought with me), and a very large cup of coffee I refill before departing.

More on other meals in another blog.

Love to All... gotta head to work.