Thu, Jun 5 2008 - Movie Night - "The Visitor" (View Original Event Details)
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I'm doing this write-up at 3:03AM because I decided to do the "ceremony of the coffee" - which arrived sometime around 11PM - at The Ethiopian House restaurant. Our good-natured server first came around and shook and swooped the still-roasting coffee beans about our heads before later bringing the brew and pouring it for us. It was neat. I've often thought coffee deserved some kind of ceremony, just for being coffee! Anita had a sip and Jessie had a whole cup (they are tiny cups) and we all agreed it was wonderful and fresh. I think I drank 3 or 4 out of the pot, which I served using the "long pour" as our server had done the first time. I remember telling Anita, "No, it doesn't keep me up".....
Everyone enjoyed the movie. I'd have to say it's just simply a movie about relating, really. It's not a political movie. And it's not culturally political (one trying to convince the other of the superiority or inferiority of their culture). It's not even (gratefully) emotionally political. There's no music to tug at your heart strings and sway your emotions where they may not naturally want to go. Those, of course, are all the things that stop people from actually relating. It's simply a realistic slice of life and the meeting of 4 people - all of whom could have been from anywhere in the world, meeting anywhere in the world, at any time in history - and how they help each other out. Nice.
Now. On the politics of food (oh yes, it exists and might be the most powerful one to overcome)? We all have our biases and fears when it comes to new food (and I know my Dad's apple pie recipe IS the BEST AND ONLY apple pie in the world!!!) but six of us went to the restaurant and experienced some wonderful new flavours and textures and spice combinations that were new to us. It was good food, prepared with care and attractively presented. We broke bread (Injera) together and shared the food as we ate it with our hands. In keeping with the movie, what could be more conducive to relating than that?
Have some photos from this event that you'd like to share in our photo album? Please forward them to Erik Sonstenes at photos@torontooutdoorclub.com. Please note that we prefer to receive the photos in approximately 640x480 or 750x500 pixels - do NOT send original high-res photos. If you have a LOT of photos, please submit up to twenty of your favorites (only) for a day event, or up to forty of your favourites for a multi-day event. Thank you.