Half a goat and a broiling chicken

This afternoon we took a trip to Peckham to get supplies for Yuri's birthday party (barbeque!) tomorrow. We among the large quantities of meat needed (because it is, after all, a Brasilian barbeque), we also needed mandoica (cassava). Try getting that in Wimbledon. Having lived in Wimbledon for the past two years (and Elephant for a year before that), Peckham is now a completely different world, albeit one I remember much more fondly now than I ever did when living there.

We started by getting rained on, then the sleet started. A huge shower of the stuff, which had be believing that if he rain would only stop, the snow would come at last. But that, is not our cultural education.

What I really miss about Peckham is the food shops. To be precise about it, the grocers and butchers. We managed to get guavas. In the past, I've only been able to find them in Church Street Market, and they're wrong. The outside is too light in colour and the inside is white. They just don't taste the same as the Brasilian ones which are darker on the outside and a deep pink on the inside.

Best of all, though, was our trip to the butchers we used to get all our meat from. We got chicken wings, chicken drumsticks and steak. On asking for a few bacgs of drumsticks, we were presented with a sack, being told that there were probably about 50 in it; more than enough to take tomorrow and chuck some in the freezer for later. The beef we chose looked big enough for two portions, and at £5, was a bit cheaper than the supermarket. We spent £18 in total.

TB loved it. The chickens hanging from the racks, heads still on. Half whole goats. Chicken feet. Cows feet. I'm sure if we'd gone into one shop we could've shown him a sheep's head. Fish of different colours and sizes, scales and stripes. A crab and still live electric eels. The entire trip fascinated him.

When we got home, I cut up the beef, only to find enough for six steaks and some chunks. On opening the sack of drumsticks, it appeared that there were rather more than 50. I took the time to count them. 109.

Then I checked on the online supermarket. That little lot would've cost the best part of £50 from Tesco. I feel we've had a successful afternoon.