Chapter 289 Teaching
The Abbott family finally moved into this East African-style house. These houses are very different from those in Venice and have the characteristics of German architecture.
The Abbott family didn't have much luggage, just one suitcase. The suitcase contained some clothes, and there was no money left. Even the few clothes looked incomplete and full of patches.
"This house looks pretty good. It has bedrooms and a kitchen. Andrew, you live in the first bedroom on the left, Alina lives in the second bedroom on the left, and your mother and I live in the bedroom on the right."
The house is much larger than Abbott imagined. One of the smaller rooms, if he guessed correctly, should be the future kitchen. The area is relatively small, but the chimney opening has been reserved. Otherwise, it is empty. This is probably The reason why the police said they would choose a stove in the future.
As for the toilet, you can only go to the public toilet outside for convenience. In fact, some Venetians have not yet felt the strictness of hygiene in East Africa.
The East African policeman just mentioned it a little bit because he had too many things to do today and there were many immigrants waiting for him to arrange.
The sanitary conditions of Venetians in the 18th century were not much better than those in other areas. All domestic and production sewage was discharged directly into the river.
Their drinking water comes from thousands of wells in Venice, which is on the same starting line as East Africa.
Not to mention now, even before Ernst traveled through the world, there were very few public toilets in Italy. Even paid toilets were difficult to find, and they were not cheap and had to pay taxes. Even in the 21st century, there are still a considerable number of Europeans. Find a corner and solve it on the spot. Of course, in previous generations, almost every European home was equipped with a toilet, but it was not very convenient after going out.
Due to current economic problems in East Africa, it is certainly impossible for every household to be equipped with a toilet. What is needed is a complete underground drainage system. That is, the first town, as Constantine’s current residence, was extensively renovated by Ernst. There is running water and a complete sewer system.
So the real development in East Africa is public toilets, the kind of side-by-side "dry toilets" that Ernst had in elementary school.
This is also convenient. Manure is collected and processed, and then used to fertilize farmland. This aspect is usually done by "professionals" in the Far East.
In Europe, soil fertility can be restored by various means such as fallowing crops and planting extensively but harvesting little. However, the national conditions in the Far East are different and the utilization of manure and water has reached the extreme.
Of course, this is not the main reason. In fact, before the Ming Dynasty, the ancient Far East was mostly sparsely populated. The ability of dung water to increase food production was the real reason why the Far East was proficient in this "technology".
evening.
Nairobi government staff, who had been busy all day, began to guide the new immigrants to the canteen. Abbott and other families were also led by the police to the East African Canteen during the day.
"My name is Haydn. I am an Austrian. I will be a police officer in this area from now on. I will do many jobs part-time. That means you can come to me to solve most of the problems you encounter. If I can't solve it, you can go to the professional government. The department seeks help." The administration of the East African kingdom is so simple and crude, and the lack of relevant managers has resulted in the police assuming many functions.
Haydn continued: "I will take you to the cafeteria to eat in a moment, but I want to say something in advance. East African cafeterias are good everywhere, but one thing is uncomfortable, that is, the tableware provided is very unfriendly to us Europeans. If you You’ve brought tableware from Europe, so you’d better prepare it.”
Abbott and others didn't quite understand the meaning of Haydn's words, tableware! It’s fine if it’s available, and it doesn’t matter if the quality is a bit low.
But soon, everyone who arrived at the cafeteria understood the meaning of Haydn's words and looked at the upside-down chopsticks in the bamboo tube.
Haydn picked up a pair and began to show everyone how to use it, "Like this, like this...isn't it very simple?"
As he said this, Haydn looked at the blank expressions on everyone's faces and secretly smiled. Seeing them go through what he had experienced, he felt much happier.
"Of course, if you can't learn it, I can tell you a trick. Put them together, and then just hold the bowl and pull it into your mouth. Now let's go queue up to eat."
In the canteen, the staple food for dinner today is mainly bread and rice. Now the canteen staff in East Africa have discovered that making rice is much easier to handle than the flour needed to knead the dough. It is also easier to control the heat and wash out the water. , just put it in the pot and wait for the water vapor to evaporate. Therefore, the canteen staff, in order to save trouble, have begun to replace flour products with rice on a large scale. Why are there still noodles? It is their own working meal.
The main course is beef stew with potatoes. On the first day, the immigrants must have a good meal to appease their homesickness.
In addition, many fruits were specially prepared, but the quantity was limited, and each person could only receive a small portion.
Haydn held the rice bowl, and after the canteen staff made a big bowl of rice, the others followed suit.
"Okay, let's go back to the dining table and now it's time for actual combat."
"Look, if someone like me is skilled in using chopsticks, I can pick up vegetables, pick up a mouthful of rice, or pick up whole pieces of fruit, and then bring them to my mouth. Isn't it very convenient? Of course, this is for you It's a bit difficult, you just need to pick up the bowl, put it to your mouth, and use chopsticks to pull it into your mouth." Haydn Versailles said.
So everyone started the meal trip making a fool of themselves.
"Mr. Haydn! Who invented this kind of torture? This thing is simply anti-human tableware." asked Rip at the long table.
"That's because you haven't seen how convenient it is for people who know how to use chopsticks. Although it is a bit difficult to learn at the beginning, once you learn it, it can completely replace cutlery and other tableware. Just like me, even pasta can be easily picked up. It’s easy to produce, it’s made from simple materials, and it’s easy to clean.”
"Mr. Haydn, is this white thing rice?"
"Yes, how does it taste?"
"It tastes better than potato mush, but if I had to choose, it would definitely be bread."
“Bread is great, but rice is abundant in East Africa, especially in the Great Lakes region west of Nairobi, where all rice is grown.”
“The beef stew with potatoes tastes really good!”
"It's a good time for you to catch up. The animal husbandry in East Africa has developed, so we can eat this beef. When we came here, we could only eat the meat of all kinds of strange animals, such as lions, crocodiles, Then the government banned it.”
"Why?"
"The government has said that wild animals are prone to parasites and other unclean things. The biggest fear in East Africa is contracting diseases, so health management is very strict. You should have heard that diseases are rampant in Africa, and the reason why East Africa is prosperous Behind the development is an emphasis on health issues,” Hayton said.
"Speaking of hygiene issues, I almost forgot. You are not allowed to drink water other than well water after you go back, otherwise you will get upset. Your kettle has not arrived yet. It should be shipped in a few days. By then, even if Even if it is well water, it must be boiled for drinking. That is to say, you are new here and the conditions are not good yet. If you are caught drinking boiled water in the future, you will be fined..."
At the dinner table, Haydn carefully explained to these immigrants the various regulations and laws in East Africa, as well as life tips, so that they could adapt to the living environment in East Africa as quickly as possible.