I hadn’t noticed it until the conversation began,
but there are practically no restaurants here.
There are probably about 5 restaurants at the mall. But driving around
from place to place I never see any restaurants.
I completed my PhD at Purdue (Boiler Up!) in
Lafayette, IN. According to UrbanSpoon
there are 259 restaurants in Lafayette, which has a population of 67,000
people. That means for every 258 people
in Lafayette there is one food outlet.
If the same formula was used, that would mean there should be at least
900 restaurants/fast food operations here.
We could even be conservative and go for half that. But there is not 450 food and beverage
outlets here, not even close. I would be
shocked if there were 100 restaurants here.
This afternoon I was visiting with two friends on
campus, Mompati and Gladys, and the topic of food was broached. As the “new kid on the block” they were
asking if I could cook. I told them that
yes, I cook, and according to my taste testers I was an excellent chef. Of course I failed to mention most of my
tasting victims were graduate students who could not possibly be completely
objective and were probably stressed out as I was standing over them insisting,
“Do you like it? Do you? DO YOU?”
Somehow the conversation shifted from recipes to
restaurants. They asked me about
restaurants in the U.S. and I easily listed and described 20 or more from
memory. They were dumbfounded. They told me it would be unusual to eat in a
restaurant more than once a month here.
Sometimes they didn’t even eat out once a month. I told them that was unheard of in the U.S.
and sometimes people eat out every day or even multiple times a day. Mompati and Gladys looked at each other in
such shock; you would have thought I just told them I was an alien. Though I can relate in small part to their
disbelief, I can definitely think of a few people who would find a year without
McDonald’s, Chic-fil-A, and Pizza Hut a little tough.For the curious out there here is the ONE fast food chain my friends could name for me. I will check it sometime and report back. Also, I should mention there is only ONE location for that chain (the chain in South African, there are no true Botswana fast food chains) in the entire country.
Hi Kelly,
ReplyDeleteErin gave me the link to your blog and I have enjoyed reading about your adventure. Both Uncle Jim and I noticed that your writing style is very similar to your grandmother's, particularly the humerous touches. If you are ever interested in reading her journals, Uncle Dan has them. I am looking forward to following the rest of your adventure. Have lots of fun (I know you will).
Love you, Aunt Ellen
Thanks Aunt Ellen, I'm glad you are enjoying it. I will be sure to ask Uncle Dan about that when I get back next year. Love you too, Kelly
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