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A Day at the farm!

1/31/2019

18 Comments

 

After a breakfast of fried plantains, french fries and delicious Cameroon coffee, we headed out to a farm owned by a friend of Farmer Tantoh. Farmer knows so much about agriculture and plants and he shared his knowledge with us! We saw Cassava plants, avocado plants (called “pear” in Cameroon), palm trees, pineapple, mango and papaya trees and much more. We even got to suck on deliciously sweet sugar cane. One of Farmer’s sayings is “Everything you need, you can get from the earth.”
Palm trees are located throughout the farm. In addition to the nuts, that can be eaten and also pressed for oil, the trees can be tapped, yielding 5 liters of juice every day for a month. If the juice sits around, it ferments and becomes palm wine. There are also grubs in every palm tree; in the larva stage, they are considered a delicacy when they are fried up. They have lots of protein and health benefits. Farmer Tantoh is currently doing research on how to breed these grubs so they can be sold.

The vision for this farm is to house an Eco-Lodge, where people can come to learn about gardening and agriculture. We visited a fish pond on the farm where we used a machete to clear some grass around the pond.

We also saw a man making a medicinal mixture to treat typhoid, a disease people get from drinking unclean water. It consists of a plant pounded into a paste, mixed with one raw egg and Guinness beer.
For lunch we pulled up the roots of the cassava plant, and peeled and boiled it over a wood fire. We made an orange sauce out of the oil from the nuts of the palm tree mixed with spices. Delicious!!

Cameroon is known for the beautiful dresses worn by women as well as the fabric used to make these dresses. We went to the shops and each bought some fabric. Which one do you like best?

For dinner, we had a delicious tomato fish stew with rice that we helped prepare, preceded by fried grubs as an appetizer. Farmer fried them in oil with sliced onion, parsley and spices and, although we were hesitant at first, we ate them and actually enjoyed them!
​

To end our wonderful day, Farmer and his wife Quinta surprised us with beautiful Cameroon dresses that we will wear when we go to church with his family on Sunday!
18 Comments
Mrs. Bis's class
2/4/2019 09:11:21 am

What makes the grubs safe to eat?

Reply
Ms. Calarco
2/9/2019 07:26:43 pm

Dear Mrs. Bis’s Class,
The grubs live in the palm trees, which is what they feed off of. Since the palm trees are safe to eat, Farmer told us that mean the grubs were safe to eat.
Thanks for the great question!
Ms. Calarco

Reply
Alexzander
2/4/2019 09:24:16 am

what animal did you like the most

Reply
Mrs. Mlod
2/9/2019 07:28:34 pm

Dear Alexzander,

I really like the colorful lizards, but the gorillas and chimpanzees were cool, too!
Thanks for writing!
Mrs. Mlod

Reply
Joshua ziegler
2/4/2019 11:42:53 am

did you visit the eco-lodge and I want to try some fresh sugar cane.

Reply
Ms. Calarco
2/9/2019 07:29:39 pm

Dear Joshua,
Unfortunately, we weren’t able to visit the Eco-Lodge because of the fighting in that area of Cameroon, but we hope to go back some time so we can see it and the well that was put in with money donated by Auburn students.
Thanks for writing!
Ms. Calarco

Reply
Bill Clinton the Llama (Mia Bachman)
2/4/2019 11:43:20 am

What and how are the dresses made out of?

Reply
Ms. Calarco
2/9/2019 07:32:31 pm

Dear Mia,
The dresses are made out of beautifully patterned cotton material and to get a dress made you can go to the markets, choose a seamstress and materials to get a custom made dress.
Thanks for the great question!
Ms. Calarco

Reply
Myles McBride
2/4/2019 11:43:52 am

how many crops were on the farm?

Reply
Mrs. Murphy's
2/4/2019 02:41:21 pm

How is farmer thanto plan on breeding and selling the grubs?

Reply
Ms. Calarco
2/9/2019 07:33:41 pm

Dear Mrs. Murphy’s Class,
That’s a great question! He is still trying to figure out how he is going to do that - maybe he will have figured it out by the time he comes to Auburn and you can ask him then.
Ms. Calarco

Reply
Ardee- Herman Ave.
2/4/2019 03:03:42 pm

How did the grubs taste?

Reply
Ms. Rice
2/9/2019 07:34:33 pm

Dear Ardee,
The grubs were actually pretty good! Farmer Tantoh fried them up with some onion, parsley, and spices until they were crunchy.
Thanks for the question!
Ms. Rice

Reply
megan
2/5/2019 09:16:27 am

how many aniamls are there

Reply
Ms. Jackson's Class Genesee Elementary
2/6/2019 09:11:04 am

Are you enjoying the different kinds of foods there?

Reply
Mrs. Mlod
2/13/2019 11:15:49 pm

Dear Ms. Jackson’s Class,
I love trying new food, and I really like the food in Cameroon. Some new foods that I’ve never had before include plantains, grubs!, huckleberry and cassava. I love avocados and there are lots of avocados in Cameroon (but they call them “plums!”)
Thanks for the great question!
Mrs. Mlod

Reply
Kayla Coff
2/6/2019 09:42:49 am

Was the coffee different than in america.

Reply
Ms. Calarco
2/9/2019 07:36:05 pm

Dear Kayla,
The coffee has a different flavor than the coffee I drink at home. I’m bringing some packages of coffee back that you can smell!
Thanks for the great question!
Ms. Calarco

Reply



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Date Created: February 15, 2016 Date Last Updated: October 25, 2019
  • Home
  • Travel/PD Opportunities for Teachers
  • Travel Blogs
    • Croatia Blog
    • Cameroon, Africa
    • Istanbul, Turkey
    • Morocco Travel Blog
    • Philippines Travel Blog
  • Teach
    • Global Assessment
    • Local Partners
    • International Learning Opportunities
    • Global Standards
    • Technology Tools
  • Global Unit Plans
  • Study
    • Global Resources
  • Contact