Colombian Flowers

One cold Saturday, Oscar and I visited Dingli Cliffs for Oscar to enjoy Maltese food and discover a new part of the island. Horse meat was on the menu and this was a strange experience for Oscar. In Colombia, where he comes from, horses are held in high regard and it is illegal to sell horsemeat. Inspired by our project, Ħwawar u Fjuri, I asked Oscar what has become a standard question in my encounters: to tell me about the flowers in Colombia. The first images that came to his mind were of the ancient trees that can be found in Colombia which produce tropical flowers, and the beautiful places around the Amazon River where a diversity of animals live. He vividly remembered the parrots and small monkeys.Oscar told me that, in Colombia, flowers are used as decorations: for special and joyous occasions such as weddings and parties. Flowers are also used for funerals, and are taken to the cemetery, as they are in our own culture, here in Malta. In Colombia, Oscar remembered, it is traditional to place a crown of flowers on and around the coffin.

Another Colombian tradition Oscar remembered was that people enjoyed relaxing by having baths using fresh flower petals, generally of roses or sun flowers, which are boiled for an hour with a little honey added to the mix. Sometimes a puff or two of one’s own perfume is added. The mixture is added to the bath, and is believed to be revitalizing. Other flowers can also be used, and usually petals are bought, so long as they are fresh. Another belief linked to this bath held by some people in Colombia is that it helps to attract good experiences in life. This is not a widely shared belief, but, whatever one believes in, a bath with flower petals can certainly be a positive response to difficult moments.

Oscar remembered how in Colombia rose petals are also used to prepare a rose-dessert, which is very popular. I mentioned to Oscar that in Malta rose-vinegar used to be popular, although it no longer is today. Another tradition Oscar remembered was that in Colombia bitter plants, herbs and flowers are used to make a variety of teas, several of which are also used to refresh one’s own body. The plants used always originate in Colombia. Colombians like to drink tea, using flowers like ‘Manzanilla’ – Chamomile–which is also used to cure sickness. I mentioned that in Malta we also like to drink Chamomile tea but he emphasized that in Colombia people prefer to use fresh or dried flowers rather than ready-made teabags. Another flower Oscar identified as popularly used in Colombia is ‘Calendula’, known as ’marigold’ in English. It is believed that the tea from this flower helps the body to regenerate and heal scars: a belief Oscar defends from his own experience of drinking Calendula tea to help with his recovery process after having had an appendix operation.

In Colombia, flowers are widely used to organize feasts, or ‘Carnaval’. In the city of Medellin a very special feast is organized, called ‘La Feria de las Flores’. Oscar explained that this is a yearly tradition. Colombian flowers are used for the festival, and people use flowers in the parade that takes place during the feast. Oscar wanted me to look up online pictures of this event, which I did. The festival is organized in August, and a lot of people visit Medellin to participate in it. The pictures look stunning. ‘La Feria de las Flores’ is on Oscar’s to-do list.

On the other hand, Oscar pointed out that Saint Valentine’s day is not an important occasion in Colombia, but a similar day is celebrated instead in September: a feast called ‘De Amor Y Amistad’. This is a day where everyone buys a rose to give to someone else, to celebrate both love and friendship. Similarly, on women’s day, women are given roses. In his childhood, Oscar recalls that he often used to cut a rose from the neighbour’s garden to give to his mother on women’s day and, when he could not find a rose, he would paint one for her.

Shifting his attention to other aspects of flowers in Colombia, he pointed out that the country produces and even exports flowers, despite being more famous for its coffee. He pointed out that Columbia has emerged as the second largest international exporter of flowers as a result of the beautiful, colourful, varied and good quality flowers it produces.

At the end of our conversation Oscar pointed out that, culturally, the most important tree in Colombia is the ‘Palma de Cera’, which represents national identity, and is emblematic of the country, as, in flower form, does the orchid. Oscar emphasized that the ‘Palma de Cera’ holds a special meaning for people in Colombia, and the awareness of its importance is transmitted from one generation to the next.

Encounters in Valletta: Sharing memories of food in Somalia

Over a coffee in Valletta, Sakariya and Mario decided to initiate an exchange on the vegetables, fruits, herbs and spices most commonly used in Somalia. In this setting Mario tried to bring Sakariya aswell closer to Malta’s culinary traditions. On this occasion he did so by inviting Sakariya to taste for the first time kusksu, a traditional Maltese dish. In this article you are invited to read some of the culinary practices he shared with us from Somlia.

To join us in one of our workshops, where we explore with other participants our stories on the use of herbs and flowers on the themes of L-Ikla, Talba, Namur, Demgħa and Qawmien, we invite you to send us an email on hwawar.fjuri@gmail.com and read more on https://hwawarfjuri.wordpress.com/.

Looking through pictures, made available on mobile-internet, they set off their conversation talking about rosemary, one of Mario’s favourite herbs, typically used in Maltese kitchens, and also very familiar to Sakariya in Somali as ransoow.

Somali people living in rural areas like to eat bread with tomatoes and rosemary. In Somalia they are referred to by their Somali names of yaayi, for tomatoes of different varieties and ransoow, for rosemary. The most popular tomatoes are yaayi yawarey and samarsani, known otherwise as cherry and long cherry tomatoes. A popular way of serving them is sliced and garnished with salt and lemon juice.

Sakariya vividly recalls white corn being popularly used as a staple food in Somalia. Unlike the locally popular yellow corn, used to produce popcorn, white corn is ground and turned into flour, known as bur. The flour can be used to cook mumfo, a tasty bread-like loaf typically eaten with a healthy portion of tomatoes. The loaf is made from dough mixing corn flour and garlic. The dough is flattened and then baked in an oven, which, in turn, is placed directly on the floor. The tomatoes served with it are cooked in some sesame oil and onions. When ready, these are placed on the mumfo with some sesame oil that is usually produced on the farm itself.

On other produce discussed, barley, it turns out, is not generally used in Somalia, but, on the other hand, several varieties of beans are grown. Wheat is also popularly used, usually cooked in a covered pot of boiling water until all the water is absorbed. Sakariya explains that depending on the different regions of Somalia it is eaten daily, either mixed with beans or milk.

Reflecting on fruits, Sakariya recalls that both bananas and mangoes are regularly eaten and are also frequently used in cooking. The most commercially available banana in Malta is widely grown in Somalia and is known as buuyoow. Other variations of it are the sokori, a similar but smaller type of banana, and the bukeeni. The common name for all bananas in Somalia is muus. The buuyoow can be cooked by boiling when still not ripe, following which it is peeled, sliced and eaten with oil and sugar. Another way of cooking either buuyoow, or bukeeni when still not ripe, is to cook them with vegetables, such as onions, tomatoes and green peppers. The buuyoow can also be served cooked with tomatoes and fish on a bed of rice. The sokori, on the other hand, is never cooked; when eaten, it is known to help digestion and has also a very sweet taste. Sakariya lets Mario know that luckily they can be bought from African shops here in Malta!

Returning to mangoes, there are three types of commercially grown varieties in Somalia and they are generally referred to as ambo. When still not ripe mangoes can be eaten cooked, producing a plate known as leeleefoow. This is typically eaten by women during their pregnancy. The three types of mango are the ambo weyn, also known as the big mango, the qaroofow and the ambo kuukuusow. The ambo weyn is sliced and eaten either as a desert, or else as the main meal of the day. The other two types are eaten as regular fruit. Sakariya reminds Mario that culinary traditions generally vary between different regions in Somalia, but quickly points out that one tradition that is shared by all Somali is serving meat accompanied by a glass of milk.

Talking over the consumption of camels’ milk, a diary product not familiar to Mario, Sakariya recalls it being very fine milk, known for being extremely nourishing. He explains the particular way camel’s milk produced. It is collected fresh in a bure (a large container) in which, before being used, a burning piece of wood is thrown, and the container shaken with it inside. After this process, the wood is discarded and the container is then used to contain the milk. Once extracted into the bure, the milk is left resting for a day, following which it is shaken for an hour to produce butter, while the rest of the milk is recovered and sold. Unlike goat or cow milk, butter cannot be derived from camel’s milk.

Wondering about the use of flowers, Mario is told by Sakariya that their commercial production is not common in Somalia. Like in Malta, it is a custom in Somalia to give people flowers as gifts, though this is generally a tradition practised during times of peace and prosperity. In the current state of war and conflict in Somalia people focus their daily efforts towards securing enough food to feed their families and communities.

And these conversations are to be continued… mahad sanid to Sakariya…..

Links

This section is under construction.