Taste Buds…..

A Sojourners' Return

Taste Buds…..

Obad glanced at his silver plaited Gucci watch, a gift from his father to mark his acquisition of a doctorate degree and realised the time was far spent and hunger had set in. He arose from his spartanly furnished office to begin a slow languid walk towards the restaurants scattered at the heights of the University.  His office was on the ground floor and numbered as the first in the row.  It was a large space, with his wooden table edged towards the left and high bay windows quite high above. At its side was a spilt air conditioning unit and in front and array of  plastic chairs to cater for the endless streams of visiting students and colleagues.  

It had been a long, hard day, with the blazing heat of the sun refusing to abate in its intensity, blending in with the students’ relentless in their visits.  Obad now needed a respite, the kind offered by food. Suddenly he developed a hankering for some fried rice prettied with carrots, laced with onions, embroidered with chunks of chicken and garnished with prawns. As a suitable accompaniment he had wild dreams of a iced cold drink in the manner of a Chapman to refresh and cleanse his palette enabling the food to slither down his throat and into oblivion. 

His thoughts gravitated to his mother who had attained the heights of culinary feats by being the first person to introduce the delights of fried rice into the Nigerian social scene. Hers was always crisp, and cooked, simmering to perfection and the ingredients readily recognisable and of cause rich in a variety of nutrients.  But with a budget of under N500 where and which caterer could rise to the height of his desires?  The few restaurants littered around were designed to cater for students and for those on a budget, they were not given to the luxury of the Michelin star quality.  It is with these thoughts he had to make do and navigate his discerning taste buds.