CONNECT Humanitarian  Affairs  Asia    

initiates  Angel  Kitchen  

 

 

 

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Last   January   20,   2013,   Humanitarian  Affairs   had   its   first   Angels’   Kitchen  activity  with  MERCY  Home  Pattaya.      The  mission  set  for  the  day  was  to  cook  up   a   meal   good   for   60   people.   The  menu  that   the  team  prepared   included  rice,   fried   chicken   wings,   stir-­‐fried  vegetables  and  tomato  omelette.      With   Head   Chefs   Tina,   Bianca   and  Jennifer  on  the  lead,  the  team  was  took  on   the   challenge   of   preparing   big,  hearty  feast  for  the  little  ones.  

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“If   you   want   to   know   a  country   [and   its   culture],   go   to  the   market   first,”   said   Tina.  Humanitarian   Affairs’  Taiwanese   intern   shared   with  us   her   thoughts   on   her  experience   at   the   Naklua   wet  market,   the   oldest   wet   market  in   Pattaya   which   has   been  around   for   more   than   a  hundred  years.    The   team   went   to   the   wet  market   to   buy   ingredients   for  their  first  Angel  Kitchen  activity  with   MERCY   Home   Pattaya.  From   this   short   shopping   trip,  Tina   described   Thailand   to   be  abundant   in   seafood   and,  

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popularly   known   to   foreigners,  have   affordable   prices   for  quality   goods.   Looking   around,  one  could  tell  that  Thailand  was  also   blessed   to   be   rich   in  agriculture.      Shopping   at   the   wet   market  was   a   welcome   change   from  their  usual  grocery  shopping  in  local   supermarkets   such   as  Big  C   and   Foodland.   They   were  greeted   by   rows   and   rows   of  the  freshest  vegetables,  seafood  and   meat   they   had   ever   seen.  The  quality  of   the  produce  and  meats   were   remarkably   better  than   in   the   supermarket  although   prices   were   much  

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lower.  Soon  after  this  first  visit,  the  interns  concluded  that   they  would  be  back  to   look   for  their  grocery  needs  in  this  market.      While  at  the  market,  the  interns  scouted  for  the  ingredients  they  needed  to  cook  for  their  dishes.  They   checked   tomatoes   and  vegetables  for  bruises,  each  egg  for   any   crack,   and   meat   for  freshness.   Before   any  purchases   were   made,   they  made   sure   that   they   would   be  leaving   the   market   with   only  the   freshest   ingredients   for  their   friends   at   MERCY   Home  Pattaya.    

MISSION  POSSIBLE    

A  Trip  to  the  Market  

Cooking  for  the  Children  

 

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Different  Strokes  for  Different  Folks  

What  do  you  get  when  you  put  together  a  team  of   interns   coming   from   different   cultural  backgrounds?   Well,   you’ll   get   nothing   short   of  the   ordinary   when   you   are   with   such   a   lively  bunch.      “My  normal   is   not   normal”   is   a   phrase   that   the  first  of  batch  of  interns  playful  use  among  them.  They   say   it   whenever   they   find   out   that   a  common  practice  in  their  country  is  uncommon,  strange   even,   in   the   view   of   their   other   fellow  interns.    Tina  and  Jay  always  wash  the   shells  of   the  eggs  before   cracking   them   open.   Ruth   cuts   a   carrot  from   top   to   bottom   while   it’s   on   its   end.   Lui  crushes   garlic   with   a   mortar   and   pestle   before  peeling  off  the  skin.    Even   if  one  person  says   it   is  normal   to  do  all  or  some  of  these  things,  others  might  still  find  them  strange.   Nevertheless,   these   differences   have  been  a  cause  of  intrigue  and  amusement  for  this  cross-­‐cultural  encounter.  

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The  interns  arrived  at  the  Our  Father’s   Home   of   Mercy   Home  Pattaya   in   the   mid-­‐afternoon.  They  came  at  just  the  right  time  before  most  of   the   children  got  back   from   an   activity   in   their  school.   Upon   arriving   at   the  centre,  the   interns   immediately  laid  out  all  of   their   ingredients;  eighty   pieces   of   tomatoes,   10  dozens   of   eggs,   and   120   pieces  of   chicken  wings  were   some   of  them.  

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The  interns  worked  together  to  set   up   a   big   feast   for   the  children.   Everyone   did   their  part  in  the  cooking  and  cleaning  to   get   the   job   done   before   the  children’s   dinnertime.   Some  took   charge   of   the   cutting   and  preparation   of   the   vegetables  while  others   took   to   the   stoves  to  do  the  cooking.    It   was  definitely   a  challenge  to  cook   for   60  people.   The  interns  have   never  cooked   for  so   many   at  one   time.  All   the  while   the  

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preparations   were   going   on,  they  were  fussing  over  so  many  things:   would   there   be   enough  chicken   for   the   children?   How  much   seasoning   and   oyster  sauce   should   go   with   the   stir-­‐fry   vegetables?   Are  we  making  the  children  wait  too  long?    

A  Big  Feast  

 

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Curious  Kids    “Khao  Pad?  Fried  rice?”  asked  some   of   the   children.   They  wondered  whether  their  friends  were  cooking  fried  rice  for  them.    The   children  were   very   curious  about   the   sudden   activity   in  their  centre’s  kitchen.  They  kept  going   back   and   forth   to   the  outdoor   kitchen   to   figure   out  what  was  really  going  on.      It   was   surprising   for   the  children   to   see   the   friends   they  made   last   week.   “They   are   the  people   who   went   to   feed   the  sheep   with   us   last   time,”   said  one   of   the   children   as   she  recalled   their   petting   zoo  experience   in   the   previous  week.    Sharon,   one   of   the   coordinators  at   the  centre,  explained  that  the  activity  was  also  something  new  

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for   the   children.     When  volunteers  from  outside  MERCY  Home  Pattaya   provide   food   for  the  children,   they  usually  bring  in   the   already   cooked   meals  from   their   homes.  Humanitarian   Affairs’   Angel  Kitchen   activity   was   the   first  time   the   centre   had   seen  

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volunteers   cook   within   the  vicinity  of  the  centre.  Curiousity   got   the   best   of   the  children  as  they  poured  into  the  dining   area   one   by   one.   They  watched   their   guests   prepare  their   meal   for   the   evening   as  they   waited   altogether   for  dinner  to  be  served.  

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Once   the   dishes  were   done,   the   food  was   distributed   to  the   29   children   and  four   staff   members  of   the   centre.   Each  plate   had   a   serving  of   2   pieces   of   fried  chicken   wings,   rice,  stir-­‐fried  vegetables,  and  tofu  and  tomato  omelette.    A   few   minutes   into  dinnertime,   the  interns   started  hearing  the  children  repeatedly  say   “yami!”   Ruth,   a   Filipino  intern,   checked  on   the  children  to  find  out  what  the  commotion  was  all  about  by  asking  Sharon  

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to   translate   for   her.   She   then  learned  that  they  children  were  actually   saying   “yummy”   and  “aroy”   to   express   that   they  

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found   the   meal   to  be  delicious.      Steven,   another  one   of   the   staff  

members  commended   the  team   for   their  work.   He   said,   “it  was  delicious!  Both  thumbs  up!”    The   team   felt   a  sense   of  achievement   after  seeing   the   children  

finish   their   meals   and   seeing  some   even   coming   back   for  seconds!  

“Yummy  Food!”  

 

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 “Right  after  I  cooked,  I  felt  full  already.  Usually  when   you   cook  for   others,   you   feel   full   for   the  people,”   said   Filipino   intern  Bianca.    Bianca  was   happy   to   have   gone  through  the  entire  experience  of  cooking   for   the   children   of   the  centre.   Although   the   task   was  tiring,  she  didn’t  feel  tired  at  the  end   of   it   all   because   she   could  feel   the   energy   of   the   children  affecting  her.      She   also   felt   the   teamwork  amongst   all   the   interns.   For  Bianca,   she   could   tell   that  everyone  had  a  part  in  the  entire  activity   to   truly   come  up  with  a  big   and   delicious   feast   for   the  children.    Jay,  an  intern  from  South  Korea,  shared   with   us   that   it   was   her  

Dr.  Sujit  Singh  Gill  This   Angel   Kitchen   Program   was   made   possible   through   a  kind   donation   from   Dr.   Sujit   Singh   Gill   who   is   a   Vascular  Surgeon   from   Singapore.   Humanitarian   Affairs   Asia  appreciates  the  kind  support  of  Dr.  Sujit  Singh.  

Mission  Accomplished  

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first   time   to   give   a   hand   in  cooking.  She  assisted  by  helping  out   in   chopping   the   vegetables  and   preparing   the   chicken  wings  for  frying.      More   than   learning   how   to  cook,   Jay   considered   the   Angel  Kitchen   activity   as   a   venue   to  learn   about   handling   stressful  situations.   With   a   big   task  before   them,   she   became  more  familiar   with   how   her   fellow  interns  worked  under  pressure.  It  was  an  experience  that  taught  her  about  how  different  people  play   out   their   characters   and  personalities  in  their  own  ways.      It   was   a   successful   mission   for  Filipino   intern   Lui   in   terms   of  team   and   personal  achievements.   It   gave   her   a  sense   of   achievement   to   help  out  the  team  by  overcoming  her  fear  of  knives.  Setting  aside  her  

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fears,   she  knew   that   her   efforts  paid   of   after   having   chopped  garlic,   cabbages   and   carrots   for  the  stir-­‐fried  vegetables  that  the  children  loved.        The   interns   were   reminded   by  what   Senior   Director   Kim  Solomon   Lam   has   told   them  about   the   activity:   “It’s   not   the  food,   but   the   thought   and   care  you  put  into  your  cooking.”    With   this,   the  day   finished  with  everyone’s   tummies   and   hearts  full   after   serving   the   29   little  angels   of   MERCY   Home  Pattaya.      

 

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