27 months

The other day I was strolling off the tarred road in Bakweri Town and happened across this sign. It’s common to see the message “food is ready” written in chalk on scraps of plywood or on the sides of small containerized shops. More specific variations may include things like “goat pepe soup is ready,” “kwacoco is ready,” “achu is ready” and so on. I often use these signs to find some excellent home-cooked traditional dishes. Food prepared with love by a mama is almost always better than the finest restaurant meal. After nearly two years in Cameroon I thought I’d seen them all. This one made me do a double-take:

I snapped the photo under poor light conditions with my camera phone, so the quality isn’t the best. Later, I showed the photo to Hans who made a flapping motion with his hands and said, “Ah, yeah—bat. No, bat is good. You want to try it?” I told Hans if he could find some bat fried with love I’d buy us each a plate.