“At a dinner party one should eat wisely but not too well, and talk well but not too wisely”
Another gorgeous day, both sunny and cool, not a bit of humidity. With the gala so close, tomorrow night, I have a filled flow chart of tasks for both today and tomorrow. Today is mostly errands.
We never went anywhere fancy when I was a kid. Most places where we ate had paper napkins. The place settings were a fork, knife and spoon. More than those would have been confusing. It was in Africa when I first encountered multiple forks, linen napkins and serving men wearing white jackets. I was totally out of my element. The event was a luncheon in Bolga for the newly elected Prime Minister, Kofi Busia. I was invited because I was one of the few white people in town, and I always got invited to events at Government House. A formal, embossed, printed invitation was always sent, usually for cocktail parties which I seldom attended. This was the first luncheon ever held as far as I knew. The tables were covered in white linen. Multiple glasses and utensils were beside and around each of the plates. The waiters wore starched white jackets and had white towels hung over their arms. The Ghanaian women were dressed formally in beautifully colored fabrics. Their dresses were layered with a top, an ankle length skirt and a matching cloth wrapped around the skirt part of the dress. The men wore suits or kente, a traditional Ghanaian hand woven cloth. The kente was worn wrapped around the body with one shoulder uncovered. I was most decidedly under-dressed in my one layer Ghanaian cloth dress and sandals. I tried to stay in the background which was difficult as everyone else was Ghanaian. I shook several hands, took my seat, politely chatted with the guests on each side of me, put the napkin on my lap, took my forks from the outside in and listened to the speakers, especially Mr. Busia, whom I’d heard once before in Bawku when he was campaigning.
The luncheon broke up after his speech, and as Mr. Busia was leaving, he shook a few hands including mine. I smiled and said nothing. Mr. Busia then moved on and out of the room.
That whole event seemed surreal. I, Miss Paper Napkin, had dined with the Prime Minister. It was the most uncomfortable I ever was at any event I attended in Ghana, but I don’t think anybody else noticed. I suspect most guests felt the way I did and were too busy figuring out all those forks. Ghanaians most often ate with their hands. I always liked that, the sharing of a meal with all of us sitting around the dinner pot chatting and laughing.
Explore posts in the same categories: MusingsTags: Bolgatanga, formal luncheon, Ghana, Kofi Busia, Peace Corps Ghana
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August 27, 2010 at 1:41 pm
I can well imagine your discomfort. In a MUCH lighter mode, I was boggled when, as a teen trying to exist in an elder adult world of ham radio, I was invited to a dinner at an actual restaurant. They served chicken (not a stretch for a west Texas boy), but they were eating fried chicken with knives and forks!! I’d never heard of such a thing, much less attempted it myself. My ears were red and I was struggling mightily. I scarcely dented the chicken, though I was starving by the 8 PM hour when we were finally served (after much fun conversation about technical topics). I later learned the skills necessary to carry this off, but I’ve seldom been required to do such.
Glad you were successful in your nervousness, Kat.
August 27, 2010 at 11:13 pm
Rick,
I laughed at you and that chicken story. We all know fried chicken is meant to be picked up, gnawed at and eaten.
I have a friend who uses a knife and fork to eat pizza. I find that odd.
We both did learn use all those utensils and to maneuver a knife and fork around the oddest foods, but I still love picking up my pizza and my fried chicken.
August 27, 2010 at 2:13 pm
Dining with a prime minister! Not bad!
I love those usually colorful clothes they have south of the Sahara desert. I wish we could have something like it here, but we usually never use bright colors in our clothes.
I don´t think I have ever eaten in such a fancy place. Well I have eaten at a restaurant where the waiters had clothes like that and we weren´t allowed to get in to the restaurant until they had cleared the table we was going to get. But that was at a Pizza Hut restaurant in Portugal and I can´t see Pizza Hut as poch or fancy 🙂 🙂 🙂
They asked us what kind of whine we wanted to the pizza and we said that we couldn´t have wine since we were driving. They looked at us as if we were crazy 🙂 🙂 🙂 At that time Portugal had the worst traffic in Europe with most deaths while driving.
Have a great day now!
Christer.
August 27, 2010 at 11:15 pm
Christer,
Believe me, I still find that incredible. The room wasn’t very big, and there weren’t a whole lot of people there so I did get a close seat to the PM.
The cloth in Ghana is amazingly beautiful. Those are the only clothes I wore once I was there for a short while.
I have since then eaten at some fancy places, but they are not my favorites. I still like diners and taverns and cafes. I am more in my element there.
August 27, 2010 at 6:51 pm
Excellent post today Kat. What a great story and so well written by pulling us into the Ghana lunch from a back home set of plastic utensils. Quite clever. I enjoyed reading this and I bet you were excited to be there. Do you go back on Wiki or some other web site to find out what happened to all those prominent people you met? Where are they today?
August 27, 2010 at 11:19 pm
Thanks, Z&Me,
I sometimes hesitate telling Ghana stories thinking they might be boring to some people, but I do love the remembering.
I know Kofi Busia lasted as PM only three years, from 1969-1972, one year longer than my stay in Ghana. He was overthrown by the army.
He died in the late 1970’s.
I first heard him speak while he was campaigning.
August 28, 2010 at 3:02 pm
Huh. How old a man was he?
August 29, 2010 at 1:48 pm
Z&Me,
He was 65