14 Aug 2014, by Matt Shupe [74N, 170W]:
It happens many times a day. We all gather in the port-side mess hall for meal time. Bo, Ranjit, Lise, and Lena prepare the food and make sure everything happens in the kitchen. They work wonders considering that we haven’t had access to re-supply in nearly 6 weeks. We started out with green salad on the counter for most meals, with some fresh veggies and other toppings. But before long these gave way to cabbage, olives, shredded carrots, and other items that are somewhat less perishable. I’m one of 4 vegetarians on board (ok, I eat fish too, and that happens perhaps once a week). Us veggies get our own dish, put to the side. I’m thankful for the special consideration as the standard fair is heavily meat oriented. I guess it’s not bad if you are the meat-eating type; some of those big hunks of bacon looked ok! Many have been on shifts such that the standard meal times are missed. Thus, the mess is quite the hangout at night, as people graze through the refrigerator full of cheeses, breads, yogurt, etc. Midnight sandwiches anyone? Last night some of us had a traditional Swedish meal; herring from cans that smelled quite horrible. This whole ordeal was out in a storage space that opened to the outside so that the ship didn’t get infested with the odor. Once you get beyond the smell, it’s not that bad. I do enjoy the various Swedish traditions that are part of the routine around here. My favorite part of the food situation is probably the bread. Ranjit is quite the baker and each day there are fresh breads or rolls….. just add butter. And one more very convenient thing: you just show up. Pretty nice to not think about food preparation or clean up. It certainly is a life of luxury.
Meal time.
