Regan and I (Diana) met a few years ago when we were just diving into our individual studies in our history graduate program. I think probably my initial response upon hearing that Regan is from Kansas was pure joy at meeting another Midwesterner so far from home. Although Indiana is a long way from Kansas, it sometimes felt like it was the next town over when compared to southern California. Thus began our friendship, supported by our mutual love of, among other things: Anne of Green Gables, HGTV, Bobatime smoothies, our dissertation topics (sometimes!), taco salads, Dr. Pepper, running, the dream of raising chickens and goats if we didn’t live in apartments in big cities, and—especially for the sake of this blog—making delicious food.
So when I moved to Amsterdam more than a year ago to complete my dissertation research and marry my most wonderful Dutch boyfriend, we started plotting ways to stay in touch. Regan has been to visit Amsterdam, and I have been back to L.A. We’ve e-mailed and talked on Skype and have missed each other. In October, Regan left for Nigeria to conduct her dissertation research, and so now here we both are, living abroad and immersing ourselves in foreign cultures.
I have read that some of the hardest things to adjust to when living in a different country revolve around food, whether it be shopping for ingredients, learning different methods of cooking, or even just consuming different foods. That has certainly been true for the two of us, judging by the number of conversations we’ve had about Dutch and West African cuisines. That is exactly what this blog is about. It’s our conversation with each other about cooking and culture. We’re just two Midwestern girls having some fun in the kitchen.
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