Osun Osogbo

This weekend the roommates and I traveled to Osun-Osogbo (pronounced something like O-shun O-Shobo). We really didn't know what to escpect or what we would find. Osun state is about an hour or hour and a half away from Ibadan, which is in Oyo state. 

What we found was a beautiful forest, yet strange because of the mythic Yoruba folklore. For centuries the local Yoruba tribes have considered the place a "sacred forest." You can see evidence of the shrines and idols that are placed in different spots throughout the trees. In addition, there are still "priestesses" who will pray over people who come to be healed from infertility. To be honest, I didn't pay much attention to what the tour guide had been staying because I was too busy snapping pictures of the things I was seeing. 

Instead of seeing the place as a remnant of this old folk religion, I was able to thank God for showing me beauty in His creation. I was so thankful for the breath of fresh air and for the enjoyment spent feeding and watching the wild monkeys. And from an artistic standpoint, I also enjoyed some of the sculptures that we saw. 

My favorite part of the day was the monkeys. When we arrived, they were all hidden in the trees, that was until we started calling for them and brought the bananas out.  It was the craziest thing, suddenly the trees started swaying and before you knew it, monkeys were all around us demanding bananas. Some were more shy, and didn't want to get close, but others ran right up and grabbed it straight from our hands. 

I almost expected to hear George of the Jungle coming through the bushes "EeeOoooowEeeeOoow!...watch out for that tree!"

The largest ant pile I've seen.

The fertility goddess.

This poor bird is used in some sacrifices so he can't fly away, but they don't kill him because the it's the goddess of fertility and she brings life, not death.

Water droplet

Oshun River- I wouldn't like to fall in those waters!

Meg!

Many of the forms reminded me of the sculptures found in Barcelona.

From L-R, Meghan, Gretchan, me, and Sam

"Hey what's going on down there?"

"Create in me a new heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me."

-psalm 51:10

For the Beauty of the Earth

There are times that I've looked around this city, and all I can see is the red dust that covers every surface. The stench of garbage and refuse hits me like a brick wall when I step out of the compound. The city I live in is overpopulated and people you do see aren't the ones sitting in their comfortable homes, they're the ones by the side of the street. The people who haven't showered in who knows how long. They are the polio twisted bodies who stay in the same place day after day while life moves around them in a never ending swarm. 

At times, when I see the picture as a whole, I think, 'what a dirty place this is.' The truth is, there is beauty all around, I've just been too blinded by the things that are new or different to notice the little things. 

The beauty here is in the small things...in God's handiwork. It is the vibrant colors found in nature. The beautiful designs of so many different kinds of plants and flowers. Who could have even thought up the many different designs on their own 

We have an amazing Creator...One who also delights in the beauty of the earth!

For the beauty of the Earth,

For the glory of the skies,

For the love which from our birth,

Over and around us lies;

Lord of all, to thee we raise

This our hum of grateful praise!

For the beauty of each hour

If the day and of the night,

Hill and vale, and tree and flower,

Sun and moon, and stars of light;

Lord of all to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise!

For the joy of ear and eye,

For the heart and mind's delight,

For the mystic harmony,

Linking sense to sound and sight;

Lord of all to thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise!

For Thyself, best Gift Divine,

To the World so freely given,

For that great, great love of thine,

Peace on earth, and joy in heaven;

LORD OF ALL, TO THEE WE RAISE

THIS OUR HYMN OF GRATEFUL PRAISE!

Hummus

Yesterday in my fifth grade art class I said something to one of my Lebanese students, but he wasn't paying much attention.

"Huh...miss?" he responded. 

Trying to be funny, I replied, "What? Why are you calling me hummus?? Do I look like a type of food to you? Or maybe you're just so hungry, you have hummus on your mind." 

He did laugh and also apologized, " I'm sorry miss, I meant to say hummus!" 

At least he knows what hummus is, some of the kids had blank stares. Little known fact...(or maybe it's well known and I just just happened to find out for the first time)...but did you know that hummus is believed to have originated from the country of Lebanon? Oh boy can they make some hummus!

A fact about Liz... I love hummus! 

The first day I went food shopping here, I was more than a bit overwhelmed. I walked around, our local food shop, completely overwhelmed. I couldn't even remember what I liked to eat, or what things I would need to buy for the week. 

The only food I really thought of was, 'man, I sure hope they have hummus here in Nigeria.'

That first day, all I could find was a can of "hummus" in the can goods isle right next to the beans. Eww. I didn't get it, but Sam, the other girl who is new with me, obviously loves hummus as well and bought it. It looked just as unappetizing outside of the can as I thought it would.  

I was a bit sad, until I discovered a Lebanese restaurant within walking distance from our house that makes homemade hummus!! My joy is complete. Creamy delicious fresh made hummus!

I kept buying it every week until last week, when I realized it is actually kind of expensive for the little bit that they give you... 700 naira(around $5). 

If course as a lover of hummus, this was a sacrifice that I was willing to pay, until I thought, 'why don't I try making my own?'

Last week I bought a bag of chick peas and cooked maybe 1/3-1/2 of the bag, which gave me a huge pot of cooked beans. I made some hummus and froze the rest of the beans.  I also realized why the recipe said to keep it in the fridge for 3 days (day 5 it did not taste so great). It makes you wonder what Sabra and all of those other store bought brands put in their hummus to keep it fresh. 

Here's a little glimpse of my hummus making process.  Fresh ingredients are key! Tahini, fresh lemons, garlic and of course some great olive oil! 

Oh garlic, lovely garlic. I could go off in a tangent about how amazing garlic is. I use it in just about everything.  Ok maybe not everything, but I do use it in a lot. 

Today I took all of the beans out of the freezer and made hummus at one time (It's too much work to do it every time I want some hummus), but decided to freeze most of it.

I made enough to fill this casserole dish!

Look at that massive amount of hummus!! My mouth's just watering looking at it! 

Let's just look at the cost for a minute. The entire bag of chick peas was 700 naira, the tahini was 800 naira, and lemons and garlic are next to nothing at the  market. I still have about 2/3 of a bag left of chick peas and I made about a months worth of hummus today! 

I'll have to let you know how freezing it turns out, but it sounded like it should work!

Doesn't that look amazing? The best way to eat it is warm. All it needs now is some pita (or as they call it here, Lebanese bread). 

And this was my lunch...

I don't really follow recipes exactly, but this is the basic recipe I looked at:

http://www.inspiredtaste.net/15938/easy-and-smooth-hummus-recipe/