My First Tattoo! Africa!

I am not really a fan of Tattoo’s to be honest and i always said i would never get one unless it was very meaningful to me. so after seeing some tattoo ideas i decide this one was perfect for me and i would never live to regret it as it means so much to me. I have it on my lower ankle on the inside 🙂 The reason it means so much to me is because it will always remind me of being in Africa and always remind me of my happiest moments. As you can see it is not only the African continent but also a beautiful lady carrying a pot on her head. As most people know, this is how most people around Africa carry many things on a daily basis so it represents culture as well as Africa as a continent! I love it so much and i think its the most beautiful tattoo ive ever seen so i had to get it! 🙂 Now i have Africa with me where ever i go! 😀 You can see some photo’s below of the process while getting my tattoo 🙂 

 

 

Education In Africa

My post today is not to talk about how education is carried out in Africa because i know it is not the same in all countries around Africa. My post today is more about why education is seen differently in countries in Africa than in other parts of the world. Now, First of all i will start by saying this post is not to offend or insult anyone or to make anyone look smarter or better than anyone else. It is simply to give people an understanding of how education is seen in Africa compared to other countries like UK or USA etc. I will be using UK as an example as i was born and raised in the UK while spending all my life learning about Africa and traveled to Africa. So i feel i have witnessed and understand a lot about the way education is seen in both the “western” world and in Africa.

A lot of people can be judgmental about westerners and how some don’t take education as serious as they should but i have to just say, its not always the kids fault. If someone is born into a certain culture and way of life they simply feel they are doing no wrong. Also there is thousands of children who focus their whole life on their education so i don’t think the stereotype is always true.

Anyway, if we take a look at education in certain parts of Africa we can see it is somehow looked at differently, which i experienced when visiting schools around Ghana , other than the obvious things like language, culture and religious education which is sometimes different in each country but other than that the subjects are basically the same Maths, Science, history etc but how adults and children around Africa look at education is kind of different to the UK. I believe that this is because, in Africa, Education is EVERYTHING! Without education there is almost no opportunities for young children and young adults to gain employment or work placement or a better future. YES education is very important world wide! BUT in some countries like the UK, there is help from our government and other options and opportunities for young adults to gain employment and better their life’s. For example there is something we call “get ready for work” Course which young adults can join even without school qualifications, this scheme is funded from the Scottish government education funding. On these courses they will find a work placement for you and also train you how to do well in the work place as well as a small salary, not much (around £55 per week) which is not a lot in the UK as living costs here are very high, BUT it is still an excellent opportunity for young adults who want to better their life and gain work experience. In Africa an opportunity like this is no common at all and some governments in Africa don’t help with free education or courses. So having good grades and education is very much essential if you want to better your life.

If you know any parents or friends from Africa it is most likely that they do ALL they can to assure their children have the best education they can and do well in school and pass! It is not always easy to get money in some parts of Africa to pay for good education but for those who are fortunate enough to get the chance to go to school or university then it is extremely important that they give it their all! Some people think African parents are too strict on education with their children but no, they are not. They simply want a better life and future for their children and they have worked hard to get the money to make that possible.

I totally admire the friends i have all over Africa as they are totally focused on their education and try hard to make their parents proud. As for the parents who work so hard to fund their kids education i take my hat off to you all! It is even hard for some people to gain employment in Africa even after graduation so i really pray that the future will start to look up for Africa and i pray everyone gets the chance to have a good and comfortable life after all the hard work and effort put in.

Well i hope you enjoyed reading my post for today and i hope it has been informal. I do know that i may not know everything about Education in Africa and i may have missed a few facts but this is judging from my experience and what i know so far. Feel free to share your comments but keep it friendly please as i will just delete negative comments 🙂 Thanks again and thanks for all the lovely comments so far.

Ese Pupo! 🙂

Try a taste of Kenya!

I love foods from all over Africa but Nigerian, Kenyan and Ghanaian food seems to be my best.

I love to cook and i always have. I had previous jobs as a cook but moved on to Accounts and admin now so i mostly cook at home. So, like my previous post on how to make Egusi soup, i now wanted to share this Kenyan dish and step by step guide on how to make it like i do.

When most people think of African food they think of yams, rice, plantain, chicken and meat! So why not try something different than your average meal with a Quick and easy Kenyan stew with ugali and chapati!

You can get all of the ingredients listed below from Most African/Caribbean Stores. If you do not have any local African stores in your area, then do not worry! You can even find these ingredients in most big supermarkets.

• Chicken (on or off the bone)
• Maize Flour
• 1 very large onion or 2 small onions
• 3 carrots
• 3 small tomatoes
• Chapati’s (can be found in any supermarkets in packets)
• 1 spring cabbage
• Mixed spices
• Gravy browning
• Water
• Salt

Step 1 – Wash you chicken through out and place in a large pot with water and salt to taste. Allow to boil for 35 to 40 minutes. When your chicken is ready, Remove it from the bone and cut into medium sized peaces or strips.

Step 2 – Heat a large pot with a little cooking oil and place your peaces of chicken into the pot with 1 chopped onion.  Allow to fry for 3 to 4 minutes.

Step 3 – When you have finished frying your chicken, Add 1 pint of hot water to your pot with mixed spice powder (how much spice you use is up to you depending on how spicy you like your food) Then add 2/3 table spoons of gravy browning. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes while you prepare your veg.

Step 4 – Get 3 carrots and Wash and cut the ends from your carrots. Do NOT slice your carrots into circles as most people do. Cut your carrot into thin long strips. This way it is easier to lift your soup by hand when eating your stew with ugali. Now add the carrots to your pot with the chicken.  (it is not compulsory to eat with your hand but i personally enjoy African food more if i eat with my hand)

Step 5 – Separate your cabbage by tearing off the leafs. Wash your cabbage leafs very well. Now chop you cabbage into strips just like you did with the carrots. Now add the cabbage into the pot and add about 1/2 a pint of water to the pot with a few table spoons of salt. Also chop and add ur tomatoes to the stew then place the lid on the pot and allow to steam and cook for a further 20 minutes. (no need for constant stirring as this stew will not stick to the pot like most stews)

Now that your stew it cooking and ready to serve After 20 minutes of steaming, We will now move onto the Ugali!

• Simply add water to a pot (about 1 pint) allow to boil for 5 minutes.
• Next, get your maize flour and start pouring into your water while stirring with a wooden spoon. Always stir fast or you will get lumps.
• Keep stirring and pressing against the side of the pot to assure all the flour is cooked.
• Add more flour if needed, until it is very thick. When it becomes all stuck together tightly and has formed a cake-like shape, its ready!

To finish it off, now simply heat your chapati in a frying pan with a little oil for 30 seconds on each side. Now Serve with your stew and ugali.

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as i do. 😀

Thanks for reading.

Beautiful Kenya!

About Kenya – Kenya is a country in East of Africa with just over 43 million people living in the country. The country is named after Mount Kenya. The largest city in Kenya is Nairobi, which is also Kenya’s Capital. English is one of Kenya’s languages although Swahili is there own countries language. (which i tried learning when i was a kid and i have to say it is a difficult language to learn) lol

I have always had a huge interest in Kenya since a young age. Again, i will say i have learned alot about Kenya as well as other countries in Africa. I have many Kenyan friends and they are very great people. I love Kenyan food, music and History etc. Although what most people dont know is there is not really a “culture” for the whole of Kenya.

When most people think of Kenya all they think about is Safaris and Animals urgh yawn yawn yawn! Kenya is NOT all about the safari! There is soo many wonderful things about Kenya other than Animals! Yes there is nice Safari’s in Kenya but too many people only care about that.

Anyways Kenya has soo many different ways of living. so to say “Kenyan Culture” isnt exactly correct. Each town/village in Kenya has Individual cultures and ways of living. Also there is sooo many different foods that are eaten in Kenya, the most common one is Ugali. I am sure every Kenyan has had Ugali for dinner hehe. Kenya also has some wonderful Art and also very colorful handmade beeds and tribal clothing. Although not all modern day Kenyans still wear the tribal wear.

I guess like every country, culture is reducing less and less.

Anyway, Below are some great pictures i have had for a long time and i wanted to post here to let people see some of the beautiful sights, people and lands of Kenya.