We are privileged to live in a culturally diverse community. This weekend the students from Vanuatu held a fund raising event and so Gorgeous Man, Gorgeous Girl and I went along.
I love that we can take Gorgeous Girl to an event and she’ll hear songs in 6 different languages/dialects and see dances from two additional countries. After the speeches we had a traditional dinner.
There was kaukau (sweet potato) cooked in banana leaves under the ground.
The darker purpley ones are cooked banana.
When I was at university (for the first time) I had a lot of Polynesian friends, so I was happy to see taro on the menu. This was cooked in coconut milk and was very nice.
Gorgeous Man and Gorgeous Girl are not fans of taro.
This last one was interesting. I went back after everyone had finished eating to take pictures, so it’s a bit of a mess.
This is yams which are mixed into a paste and then cooked in a ring around the bowl in the centre. (The cooking container is made from banana leaves and is also cooked below ground). The bowl in the centre is filled with onions and coconut milk. You slice a piece of the yam material off and dip it in the coconut milk.
I love that Gorgeous Girl is an adventurous eater and will try new foods.
After the food there was dancing and singing. Firstly the girls from Kiribati (pronounced Kiribas) danced.
There was some Samoan dancing as well.
I had some very good friends who were Samoan. Both of whom have passed away, so this dance made me smile and brought back many happy memories. I have better photos than this, but I’m trying to respect people’s privacy while at the same time show a little of what we experienced.
I also have pictures of the garden, but will save them for next time.
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