ကျနော်နှင့် မောင်တော ဆာမိုဆာ
I would not consider myself a foodie. Though, there are times when I do enjoy certain food. I enjoy pickled tea leave salad. I remembered asking Dada to bring some for me when I was in the UK. Aside from that, this became a newfound craving of mine.
About a month after I arrived in Maungdaw, an uncontrollable craving for samosas hit me. Usually, I do not prefer oily foods, but it was so strong and I wanted to indulge in samosas.
I could not conceal this desire of mine that one day I asked Ko Tin Tun Khine if he knew of any teashop in Maungdaw where I could find them. I was fresh off the boat at that time and struggling with getting orientated.
After breakfast, he took me to a shop by the main road, near the intersection. It was almost noon. There, a man in his mid-thirties was scooping samosas out of the cauldron. They appeared to be three times larger than the samosas
that I am used to. Anyhow, I bought three of them, and the seller got them in a plastic bag.
I said goodbye to Ko Tin Tun Khine and headed back home under the blazing midday sun of late April. I felt excited, eagerly anticipating the taste of them.
The TimSway family was waiting for me. I unlocked the gate and let them in.
I eagerly retrieved one samosa out of the plastic bag and took a bite. To my surprise, I tasted noddle and chickpeas. Oh man, I do not like noddle. Disappointed, I spat it out and inspected the rest of the samosas. I found the fillings were noddle, chickpeas, cucumbers, and onions.
Needless to say, it put me off. I fed two samosas and my left over to the TimSway family. They fought for them.
I never craved them until two months before my departure.
In the market near the football pitch, I found a new shop run by an old man and his daughter. They made proper samosas with proper authentic fillings – potatoes, onions and you know the rest. I became a regular customer, buying from them almost every day until my last day.
When I said goodbye, they seemed puzzled and asked the reason.
I eagerly retrieved one samosa out of the plastic bag and took a bite. To my surprise, I tasted noddle and chickpeas. Oh man, I do not like noddle. Disappointed, I spat it out and inspected the rest of the samosas. I found the fillings were noddle, chickpeas, cucumbers, and onions.
Needless to say, it put me off. I fed two samosas and my left over to the TimSway family. They fought for them.
I never craved them until two months before my departure.
In the market near the football pitch, I found a new shop run by an old man and his daughter. They made proper samosas with proper authentic fillings – potatoes, onions and you know the rest. I became a regular customer, buying from them almost every day until my last day.
When I said goodbye, they seemed puzzled and asked the reason.
My mission here has ended. I told them.
The old man nodded in understanding. That was it, no more, no less.