Last Friday was the dedication of my daughter's paternal grandmother as a deaconess in the church. It was an exciting occasion and it reflected the typical Cameroonian way to party. 

Friday Parties Are Fun Too

The decor for the party

Usually, parties are scheduled on Saturdays in Cameroon but this one was programmed on Friday. Friday is a working day so not many people had the time to help out with the preparations during the day. 

I wasn't expecting it to be a big party so I was surprised at how much preparation was being made.

I sewed our 'asoebi' for the occasion. That's for me, baby and daddy. Daddy helped me with the sewing and we did it the day before.

Slicing tomatoes for the party chicken stew

The party started at about 8 pm. There were no long speeches - just a welcome speech and an apology for the late start. Immediately after that, the guests were ushered to the table to eat.

The good looking salad, bread, egusi pudding, etc

Opening the food and preparing to serve the guests

The rest of the menu

It went on well as we helped to serve the guests. Until we noticed a guest who dug into every bowl of meat taking at least three to four slices from each bowl. In fact, he helped himself to everything on the table. We had to stop him at some point because he kept on filling his plate with slices of pork after taking four slices of chicken.

The surprise was that he came for a second round. This time he wore a pullover over his shirt. I don't know if he wore it to go unnoticed but I discovered he was the one from the way he dug into the Ndolé and from the number of Miyondo he took from the table. The amount of food he took made me wonder if he could actually eat all.

Then came the time for dancing and this guy was one of the leaders in it as he drank his beer. Others had their moments to dance but this guy and a few others were on the dance floor nonstop. It was fun to watch them dance. I danced to a few songs that I couldn't help but dance. It was so much fun.

In between the fun, my daughter woke up from sleep a few times. By 5am I was tired and went to bed as well. We returned home in the morning still tired. I took home some leftover Ndolé and sweet potato which I ate once I got home before going to bed to rest again.

I just remembered that the same guy whom I talked about earlier - the one who kept filling his plate with meat almost carried away a pot of food. When the table of food was being cleared there was a tray of Khoki on the table. In fact, that was the only food that was left there. This guy after dancing would come from time to time and take some slices of Khoki. So when the rest was cleared it was taken behind to where the washing was being done. The plan was to save the food left and then wash the dishes. There was also a pot of sweet potatoes standing by waiting to be emptied and washed. 

This guy went behind, took the tray of Khoki and the pot of sweet potatoes and was leaving with them. When he was stopped he said he was taking it to his house. He was now asked to bring a bowl to get some of the food to take home which he did. 

When we talked about it in the morning it was so funny. From what I gathered the previous day, he isn't totally mentally stable. He actually did animate the party so much with his dancing steps.

In Cameroon, there are people who will come and grace your party like that. Most times they come with the desire to eat and drink to their fullest and even take some home. And most of the time they are uninvited guests. 

The Friday party was great because it was possible to rest on Saturday and Sunday.