Who Needs Utensils

I'm learning how to eat with my right hand, and I do mean my right hand. The standard method of eating here is to do everything with the fingers of your right hand. I'll spare you the photos … As you may be aware the left hand, especially in muslim countries, is considered unclean. Also, by tradition, implements are seldom used to eat. They say that the finger tips of the right hand are the first receptor in tasting and enjoying your food. Given a plate of rice, vegetables, and a curried meat or fish dish along with dal (lentil stew) and some chutney you mix a small ball of rice with whatever else you want with it and deliver it to the mouth. This requires two very necessary things to take place. First you need to wash your hands before you eat and second you definitely need to wash your right hand after you eat! It's actually very enjoyable and I'm getting the hang of it. Tearing of a piece of paratha (bread similar to a tortilla) using only one hand is still a trick but I'll keep practicing.

Here's a few pictures:

The first is a cart loaded with long bamboo poles in the town of Faridpur. I'm not sure where they're going but probably to a construction site.

Here are parathas being made at the cafe where we had our breakfast of parathas, vegetables, and a fried egg.

This picture is four of us in front of a ferry that take passengers and vehicles across the Tetulia River from Barisal to a large island in the delta. Two of the team are heading to Bhola.

This final picture is of a pedal rickshaw repair service across the road from the Red Crecent office in Barisal. Note the brightly colored paint jobs on the rickshaws. These are some of the more understated ones.