Savour the goodness of life

 The traffic is pretty crazy. It happens every rainy season. People seem to forget how to drive. Intersections are jammed.  Even where the traffic lights are working, people push through  amber or red although there is no space on the other side of the crossroads.
So we all get stuck. Storm drains are overflowing, the city streets are flooding, pedestrians are negotiating the puddles and the cars.  There is water, water everywhere. 
But somehow it is almost fun. There is the relief that the rains are here and although the city doesn’t cope so well, all of us have enough rural or earth connection to welcome the rain and the growing season. 
And it feels like Christmas, the season to slow down, to be with family, to have some kind of holiday and feel a sense of hope and renewal for the New Year.
Still it was a relief to arrive at Cascais and I didn’t mind parking  in a muddy puddle and navigating begging street kids to get to the restaurant which was pretty wet as well! It felt too sodden to eat on the patio under the awning, though after the storm plenty of customers were happy enough dodging the drips amongst the puddles on the wet slate floor.
It was busy. We sat inside with blinking fairy lights reflected in the mirrors and were served by waiters sporting Christmas hats and smiles. I was meeting a friend whom I hadn’t seen for a while, and the Cascais is a good place for a conversation. It’s a popular business lunch venue —  central, easy to get to and with an air of friendly familiarity. Service is quick and unobtrusive and like many of the other diners, we were quickly engrossed in our chat.
My friend is coming home to Zimbabwe after some years away.  And she is figuring out how to show up. She doesn’t want to be seen as an ‘expert’, the consultant who gives advice, takes the hefty fee and moves on to the next job. She wants a stake in the end result, a stake in the future. Don’t we all?
I remembered the Cascais’ large portions. I was too busy chatting and listening to take note of other dishes on the menu — but the signature chicken was what we had come for.
We opted to share a baby chicken, (US$11) but that wasn’t on, so instead shared a half chicken. (US$9) It was plenty (for two ladies) and came with certainly enough nice chips for two. We ordered the chicken giblets to start.  (US$4) They could have been hotter — in temperature as well as taste — but arrived very quickly along with bread and garlic dipping sauce.
The side salad was fine though the dressing too stiff to pour out of the narrow necked bottle. I would prefer simple olive oil and vinegar on the table. The piri piri sauce is as good as always.
We had the Portuguese cream caramel for dessert (US$3) — better than the Holiday Inn’s said my companion — but still with a rather solid, spongy texture.  Sweet taste though.
Lunch for two — including 2 ‘large’ soft drinks (i.e. 2 small cans) came to US$28.
As we left the restaurant the sun was out, the streets were starting to dry, and the kid ‘guarding’ my car emerged to collect his 50 cents. I found myself hoping that the time is close for these streetkids too to feel they have some stake in a future.
 – g.jeke@yahoo.com