Tuesday 8 October 2013

Our little man!


Time flies! Time changes things! Wow, are these statements true of our last few months. It seems like it was such a short time ago that our family was walking the sandy streets of our town in North Africa. Our daily view encompassed olive trees and white, domed buildings. Our shoes and clothes were all faded to a dull grey/ brown from the intensity of the sun and sand. Our bellies were full of spicy couscous and chwarma sandwiches. Now…..such a short time later and our days look forever different. How can we simply board a plane and after a few short hours, emerge into a completely different world that somehow is found on the same planet???
Here, in the vibrant green of the Canadian prairies, our family has forever changed and welcomed our third little boy and fourth child! A beautifully chubby, always moving and pumping his legs, bright blue-eyed, healthy baby boy! We are blessed and bubbling over with thankfulness that we could be surrounded by friends and family who would love on this little guy and us at this time!

SO, welcome to our little blessing, Levi Simeon, who made our family complete on August 13th, 2013! He made his entrance into this world in the wee hours of the morning at 7 pounds 10 ounces! His proud daddy, Darnell Epp, and thankful momma, Christy Epp, cuddled him with joy and his three older siblings have showered him with love….almost a bit too much love! And now, we continue on this journey with FOUR little ones by our side!




Saturday 13 April 2013

Walking with Gladiators


The drive towards El Jem seems fairly unassuming. We had rented a car and after a number of harrowing hours on the road (and only one negative encounter between our car and a donkey's head!), we pulled off the modern, four-lane freeway towards El Jem. The view from my passenger's side window was quite typical to the rest of the trip; row upon row of olive trees, reddish/brownish earth speckled with the occasional cactus, and the familiar Tunisian white stone houses sporting bright blue shutters. And then the town of El Jem comes into view. Is this the place where Roman history comes alive??!!! Is this where gladiators would have swung their swords, exotic animals from all over Africa fought, and prisoners would have met their cruel deaths?!? And yet....

As you drive into El Jem, you can't help but marvel at how noooormal, and sleepy, and familiar this place feels to all the other little towns of rural Tunisia. Yup, we pass the many vegetable and fruit hanuts (shops), the cafe full of chatting, coffee-drinking neighbors, the tile shops, the beautiful arched doorways, the recently slaughtered camel head..... and then, suddenly the skyline doesn't seem so familiar. Above the general bustle of the local streets looms the towering arches of the ampitheatre!

We raced through the gates and began to climb the steep steps that took us to the second level. Our littlest one had to climb up with her hands and knees to prevent her from tumbling back down. A blustering wind welcomed us as we stepped out, in full view of the imposing remains of the amphitheatre floor!


(Four thumbs up! We all agree the gladiator should live!)

The benefit of exploring a place like El Jem in Africa is that nothing is roped off; it’s an explorers paradise. Our children had endless pillars to ascend as proud gladiators-to-be, and dark tunnels to disappear within. We tread the path of the fighters, down below in the belly of the amphitheatre. We imagined the snarl of a lion from one cage and perhaps the cries from a prisoner in another. And then, we came upon the spot that would have led each man and woman up towards their fate on the theater floor. What would it have been like to stand there and hear the animals, the thunder of the blood-thirsty crowd, and the thumping of your own heart? It is easy for little boys to naively glamorize the life of a gladiator…. but I found it hard to imagine anything but paralyzing fear in a moment like that.
                                          (Peering up towards the amphitheatre floor above!)





Overall, it is a surreal feeling to walk the tunnels of history dating all the way back to third century, to watch our children happily scurry about among the stones that have witnessed so many violent deaths. Some of those deaths may have been gladiators who chose their path, and even more deaths would have been those who had no choice....

And then we step back outside and back to 'modern life'. My hope is that somehow these experiences will impact us all beyond a good story and pictures. 




Tuesday 22 January 2013

A Journey for the "Buds"!



Let's face it! We all see the world through a certain lens; we all have a certain way that we feel the earth must turn. No matter how openminded and adventurous one might be, it is inevitable to encounter those points of clashing when coming into a new culture. Suddenly,  comments about 'the normal way .... is done" or "well, we do it .... way!" can be found spilling out of your mouth. GULP! Was that me making those ethnocentric comments??!! Really, these moments of clashing can happen on many different subjects, but as the point of this blog is to be a light glimpse into our lives here, we'll take a look at the subject of food!

What a journey this country provides for the 'buds'! By that, I am meaning the tastebuds. For my Canadian mouth, these past few months have provided an exotic culinary journey of tastes... occasionally clashing with my idea of what tastes should work well together. I envision myself perched up on the counter as a young girl, taking in every instruction from my mom on how to make a good sauce, or bake a cookie, or... the list goes on. My Canadian tastebuds began to develop an idea of which taste works with which taste, but never that! Well, welcome to a tour of a deliciously different menu of foods that we enjoy here on a regular basis. And please remember to put out of your mind 'the normal way'!

No McDonalds, Burger Kings, Subways in our town. In fact, I am not sure there is a burger to be found! But, we have found a nice option for those nights when mom just doesn't feel like cooking and it's called "Brick"! Let the journey begin. First, imagine a thin crepe-like shell with mashed potato spread throughout the center. Next, add a little harissa (the delight of our North African home - a paste made from hot chilies), tuna, parsley... and then, crack an egg into the mix. Fold over the edges, deep fry, and you have yourself an explosion of flavour called Brick. This truly has become a family favourite!



Next on our tour of cuisine, we'll take a look at, what seems to me, is the pride of cooking here - couscous! My favorite part about this dish is the community bowl. There is something unique and bonding to all gather around a bowl of couscous, spoon-in-hand, tasting each morsel of couscous and spicy sauce. From what I have experienced, the sauce is a tomato, onion, chili, and garlic-based sauce simmered with meat (often goat), and various options of pumpkin, potato, carrot, green peppers, and chili peppers. What a treat to be invited into a home to share in a bowl of steamy couscous!






Esa has recently been taking great delight in being the family's cup-bearer. He scans the menu, unable to read French and Arabic, and confidently points to an item, exclaiming, "I haven't tried that one! I want that one! What's in it?" His last attempt was quite a discovery for us all. Our next menu item for exploration is called 'Ojja'. Again, a tomato-based sauce is simmered with onions, garlic, harissa, green peppers and then the final touch is added: eggs are cracked into the bubbling mixture! What an aromatic  meal, especially when eaten with bread dipped into the pungent sauce.
And, in honor of my husband, I must pay tribute to his personal favorite, Frikasi (don't know the spelling of that one!) In Darnell's own descriptive words, picture a roll with a slight donut-like taste. Into the sweetness of that roll is added tuna, harissa, olives (oh olives! How delicious you are!), and an egg. And viola, Frikasi! Darnell is happy! 

Of course, this is a short guide through the carte de jour to be found on any given day in a bustling restaurant in this quiet little city. I haven't taken the time to explain the addiction my husband has to chwarma and bread and fresh olives. I haven't told you of the wonderful flavor that toasted almonds add to a cup of sugary mint tea. We haven't even delved into the world of fresh olive oil, straight from the tree and press. Oh what a taste difference you find! You'll have to wait to hear about all the other tastes that await your buds in North Africa....or just come discover yourself!

(And as a funny side-note and confession, I wrote this blog post while eating a plate of fries dipped in good ol' Heinz ketchup. The funny part of this story is that I carried my own ketchup to the restaurant because fries 'should' be eaten with ketchup. The waiter had a good chuckle and I had to shake my head at myself!)