one city, many cultures

Aug 06

On Sunday I was invited to lunch at a friend’s parents’ home -It was her birthday the day before and so celebrations continued the next day.

(now for typing’s sake, I’m abbreviating the word Portuguese to read P…okay?)

Where I grew up, I never had a P friend, never had a P class mate nor did I ever eat at a P‘’s home before.

The area I now reside in used to be all be P owned. In the last five years of my staying here, I have only met one P guy from the area – and so still no real culture check, well at least until Sunday that is.

I felt comfortable and “at home” when I saw the food all laid out on the table. It reminded me of my mom’s Sunday lunch. Each portion in its own glass bowl, each bowl with its own spoon, each person dishes up their own plate of food, all exactly like it used to be for me when I was living with my mom.

The food was no stranger to me – so familiar – even in the taste of it. There was the sweetened butternut with cinnamon, the broccoli and cauliflower, for the meat eaters there was roast chicken, savoury rice but like savoury because its brown of the onions not using spice for rice, sweet potatoes, heck I can’t remember all of the nice stuffies – was just damn good food.

Whilst eating, I looked around in their back yard, noticed how familiar the gardening style was,this again reminded me of my grandmas garden. She used to have grapevines (but the grapes never grew THAT well), the apple tree, the peach/plum whatever tree, guava, banana (even though bananas never really grew) and more.

It got me thinking… District Six (D6) is where my family came from. My grandma, pa, my mom and her three sisters and my uncle (her brother), had a home in District Six, in Pedersen Street (if my memory hasn’t failed me). Portuguese land was just next door to District Six, in Walmer Estate and University Estate. My mom always mentioned that most of the houses in the D6 area was rented from “Die Joore” the Jews but never really mentioned any interaction with the Portuguese.

What I didn’t realise is that the cooking and ways of living of the so called Cape Coloureds and the Portuguese was so alike. Seriously this really surprised me tremendously as I always described that kind of food, as Coloured food.

This calls for lots of research time that I need to do to see where the cross over happened and how the ways of life became so alike.

Off the topic slightly:

I have to compliment the mommy on her cake she made. Very unique indeed. They called it “The Biscuit Cake” and R and AJ and I wondered “what the hell? A biscuit cake?”

Well anyway, imagine like ten or so Marie biscuits stacked on top of each other. Now imagine that stacked biscuits multiplied by about seven or so to ensure that the round plate is filled to form the shape of a cake. She then dips each individual Marie biscuit into coffee (coffee already made and liquid – not the beans or powder) and then I think she said cream in between and over the top of the cake. That’s it! A biscuit cake.

Was very nice but I couldn’t have too much because of THE TOOTH. yes it pained since this Saturday past already and I only went to fix it today!

Update:

I managed to ask the friend for a picture of her mom’s famous Biscuit Cake…