CARNAL KNOWLEDGE
LONG BEACH WOMAN IGNITES AFRICAN TRIBAL WAR
Mugumu, Tanzania - A woman from Long Beach, California is accused by local township officials of triggering violent conflicts between several Tanzanian tribes. The Mugumu Attorney General told the Times, “There hasn’t been a white woman in Africa that’s drawn this much attention since Sheena, Queen of the Jungle”. While touring the African bush with friends, Cheryl Carter went missing and was initially thought to have been kidnapped. The tour group she was with contacted local authorities but search efforts carried out in villages throughout the area came up empty.
Soon after Ms Carter’s disappearance, violent clashes among local tribes began to take place with increasing frequency. The peaceful relations between the Maasai, Hadzabe, Datoga and Sukuma tribes of the Ngorongoro Conservation area that had flourished for decades, suddenly collapsed. It never occurred to anyone at first that there was any connection between the missing woman and the warring tribes. At least, not until a cookbook entitled Serengeti Stews, by Cheryl Carter showed up in the quarterly New York Times Book Review.
In the forward of her book Ms Carter reveals that she eventually returned home safely from Africa following a rather naughty, self-indulgent romp. While visiting parts of Tanzania, she was on her way to join the rest of her group for afternoon tea when a tantalizing aroma drew her into a small hut. There in the shadows, a tall elegantly-dressed gentleman was preparing a few dishes that were extraordinary. The man was the Sukuma Tribal Chef and neither he, nor his food, were anything remotely like Ms Carter had ever seen or tasted. She was hopelessly smitten and despite the alarmed voices she could hear in her own head, and visibly trembling with apprehension, she helped the man pack up his gear and accompanied him for the next 3 days until they reached the tree-covered foothills that border Lake Eyasi.
There, cooled by the evening breezes coming off the lake, Tarubi (the Sukuma chef), would pour out his heart to Cheryl, revealing to her closely guarded traditional recipes, passed down through countless generations. The only language they had in common was that of sweet and savory. Together, they would cook until just before dawn and then sleep through the day. Soon, Cheryl yearned to share with Tarubi, dishes from her world. Little did she realize what dangers lie ahead.
The Sukuma diet is considered quite healthy. Mostly grains and vegetables. Meat is used sparingly, primarily in sauces. The astonishing flavors and aromas that their food is known for come from the abundant variety of herbs and spices available to them. Insects provide the bulk of the protein in their diet. From the time Sukuma people first wandered about the plains of Africa til today, meat has never been more than an afterthought - Cheryl’s relationship with meat, clearly represented the opposite end of the spectrum.
Cheryl began sharing her recipes with Tarubi in their all-night cooking affairs and was deeply moved by the appreciation he displayed for her cooking. Tarubi was one of the Sukuma tribe’s most powerful elders and it wasn’t long before he proclaimed the daily use of a smoker for every family, and smoked meats of all kinds were added into the tribe’s festivals and religious rituals.
The Sukuma quickly took to smoking meats and there was no shortage of it to be had. The list of endangered species began to lengthen and violence between tribes broke out when the Maasai people saw their grazing cattle herds start to thin. During the warmest months, the Serengeti heat forms an inversion layer and soon valleys and plains were clogged with low-lying smoke from thousands of newly installed smokers. Respiratory illnesses were rampant and a poorly-translated recipe for Cheryl’s hush puppies led to unimaginable tragedy. The neighboring tribes began raiding Sukuma villages, assaulting people in their kitchens and dismantling smokers. The Sukuma retaliated by stealing livestock from the raiding tribes and operating their smokers undetected in caves and behind waterfalls.
Despite being seriously hoodwinked by her enchanting escapade, Cheryl could see it was time to find the exit. The various tribes, officials and United Nations Peacekeepers had connected the dots and determined who was to blame for the situation, offering a substantial reward for her capture. Tarubi managed to get both of them onto a truck hauling fertilizer to Nairobi - a harrowing, tortuous 6-day journey that Ms Carter promises to cover in a second book, soon to follow.