Socially Acceptable Ways to Eat Sugar

Written during the 2016 field season

Knysna, South Africa

Teatime was our downfall. By tradition, (and for sanity), tea is taken twice daily at our archaeological site. Although equally as many, if not more of the crew chose to consume coffee during the break, "tea" time was the designated moniker, despite the fact that the muddy, sweaty, jean-clad archaeologists perched in a cave were a far cry from a quiet teatime.

The coffee thermos vanished immediately, divided into a plethora of tin cups, leaving the hot water to be split between the herbal connoisseurs and hot chocolate lovers.  Boxed milk, with a manufacturing label proclaiming a life span of multiple weeks, despite a lack of refrigeration (not always true...!), and a bag of sugar offered additional energy.

At this point, myself and our assistant director began a lively discussion of the necessity of sugar for tea. This rapidly (teatime is a strict 15 minutes) devolved into the suggestion that the required sugar fix be solved by a spoonful of white granules. Most people don't go around ingesting sugar by the spoonful At this point, I remarked "tea is a socially acceptable way to eat sugar!"

During the remainder of our field season, I enjoyed noting the "socially acceptable" ways to eat sugar, quite possibly to the annoyance of other crew members. Our list was extensive. Here, I have gathered five, (or, rather, five categories) for your consideration and enjoyment.

1) Drinks

Coffee, and the caffeine ensconced in it, is a necessity for adult functionality. Alright, I exaggerate....but not extensively. Aside from the delight and magical effects of caffeine, the drink itself is a rich, aromatic delight that some require be diluted with sugar. Luckily, I have developed the fortitude to drink it black, but wouldn't turn down a cavity-inducing frappachino from starbucks (or anywhere else for that matter). Limiting these helps both my wallet and dental health.

Those who don't drink coffee may prefer tea, or perhaps, are already sufficiently awake. The myriad of benefits  offered by this beverage include staying awake, falling asleep, curing/alleviating various colds, in addition to more ritualistic nature in certain locations. Tea is our second most popular drink on site, beating hot chocolate (because only one person was consuming it). It is certainly an acquired taste (which I acquired in 2015), and I’ve noted that many people prefer some flavors over others. I have yet to convince my skeptical South African comrades that pumpkin spice tea is amazing. It’s probably best not to debate some American’s obsession with all things pumpkin spice, so I will say that I have developed a taste for rooibos. As with coffee, some people like to offset the bitter taste with sugar.

Coke in south Africa is described as superior to its American counterpart. Unlike in the United States, they use real sugar to create the soda. However, when consumed in large qualities, also negatively impacts sleep and coherence. A crewmember became briefly addicted to it, suffering through numerous sugar crashes from drinking a six pack a day, before switching to tea, but not before introducing me to the amazing qualities of the soda.

Alcohol is strictly forbidden onsite (perils of working on a cliff....), but located readily on numerous other occasions. Arguably beer could have nutritional qualities, because of the wheat content, but the rum and coke is likely a different story….

2) Toppers

A delectable treat seemingly absent from American soil (as far as I can tell), the popularity of these rectangular, cream filled cookies demands their own category. Vanilla, chocolate, mint....a multitude of flavors. Bulk quantities of chocolate and vanilla were readily available following the PP5-6 field season (somehow unconsumed by the ravenous crew), and subsequently appeared at KEH-1. Our crew was fairly evenly split between chocolate and vanilla lovers, causing minor disputes about which cookies should be eaten, which type was no longer on site, and how many should replace them.

The small, tasty treats were a great way to provide a boost of energy, especially after the strenuous hike. I admit addiction, although I would not be alone at a "toppers anonymous" meeting. That is, until halfway through the season another crew member made a remark about the amount of sugar in those cookies.

Suddenly there were a lot of extra cookies.

3) Chocolate

Chocolate bars are amazing in that they are small, compact, and easy to transport. While the melting point may be a critical consideration for other excavations, luckily, KEH-1 field seasons take place during the south African winter (hint: occurs during summer in the northern hemisphere). A was rare a day would pass that someone didn’t bring chocolate to site, usually generously split among the crew. Our assistant director is especially fond of kit kats, and these frequently appeared during teatime. I cant say I'm complaining. Occasionally, our site director would leave a bar of milk chocolate on the table. This usually required a delay of approximately 2.5 seconds to  locating the owner and obtaining permission to eat said food. Chocolate served as a quick pick me up following the aforementioned hike, and sometimes we’d tuck extras in the packs for the walk out.

4) Baked goods.

Some days, the best days, we got additional sugar onsite--in the form of cake. This all began the Monday after our braai. I decided a leftover cake would perfectly compliment our coffee. Similar to a bunt cake, with a hole in the center which could be argued to signify loss of nutrients, it was a store bought, glazed confection encased in a clear plastic container, conveniently provided with a handle for carrying over an uneven trail and up a cliff (….probably not what the manufacturers had in mind). This proved popular with our crew, and weekly cakes made their way along the cliffs to the humble cave.

Midway through our season, we discovered the most amazing Italian restaurant. After a dinner of extravagant pasta and pizza, I spotted...the cake. Mario's sells a variety of rich, homemade cakes, displayed on a pivoting glass stand. I decided that the thick chocolate cake would make an excellent lunch the following day. This turned out to be a brilliant idea!...I had amazing amounts of energy for two hours.

Complete sugar crash.

The final weekends at the PP5-6 season coincide with the 4th of July (American patriotism at its most colorful), Canada day, and the birthday of a senior staff member. These 3 important holidays, combined with the regular weekly braai, resulted in singularly amazing desserts. Usually in the form of apple pie and cake. Enormous, expertly decorated, unforgettable cakes. One of these, a giant strawberry sheet cake, covered in an inch of pink icing and studded with liquorish and candies, was the perfect end-of-season farewell to the PP5-6 crew, as they departed for home. I can't take credit for that one.

I can take slightly more credit for our end of season cakes. While they were not my idea, I did help with the sketching.

Another favorite is the South African pastry known as "kochsisters". Imagine a heavy donut, dipped in syrup. Dripping syrup. Our favorites were bought fresh at the local farmers market, but could be purchased at any store. They say the best part of travel is the food, and we were having a blast.

5) Braai desserts.

A blog about food in south Africa would be incomplete without mention of a braai. A braai is similar to an American BBQ, except that the food is cooked over coals vs. open flames. It is a major social gathering, a custom happily continued by most of the PP5-6 and KEH-1 crews. Despite the cold, once a week we venture outdoors, light a fire, re-arrange the lawn furniture, collect our drinks, plug someone's phone into the speaker, and proeed to cook large amounts of meat and vegetables (some would argue that a braai is only for meat, but our vegetarians would disagree). A handful of our favorites include: braai rolls, lambchops, borewurst (I have on good authority that no braai is complete without these), gem squash, bacon twisties (literally bacon wrapped around a stick), bacon wrapped cherries, vegetable skewers, and ostrich steak. 

And, because by some miracle we are still hungry, we plan dessert.

Simple, easy and a giant mess? Slice a banana, stuff it full of chocolate and mini marshmellows, and wrap in foil. This seems more like the quintessential summer camp treat, but it also goes well with rum and coke.

Malva pudding. In case you have never heard of this, it is another amazing south African dish. one of our teammates makes unparalleled malva pudding. For some odd reason, we only consume about half the dish at the braai. The rest make its way to the fridge in my flat (again, I can’t take credit). Word got out, prompting late night visitors and midnight parties. I can also vouch for its use as a quick breakfast.

Honerable mention: ice cream.

I'm always tempted to pick up a magnum bar at our morning coffee stop, but have yet to follow through. There are plenty of other chances for the icy dessert, despite the winter weather. I've succeeded in getting someone else addicted to the stuff, and we subsequently planned several ice cream heists. However, not all of these ended on a positive note.

In Plettenburgbaai, there is a wide stretch of beach providing one with an excellent view of the mountain, bay, waves, and sky. Also a hotel, boats, and shops, including an ice cream kiosk. Several of us had purchased our snacks and settled down on the sand. The seagulls eyed us. Another crewmember purchased fries. The seagulls attacked, whooping in with keen eyes and sharp beaks. Fries flew everywhere.

By now, you might be wondering if we ever consume vegetables. Many archaeologists are health conscious, and a number are vegan/vegetarian (kudos for keeping this up while in a foreign land!). However, the logistical and ecological constrains of a field seasons require some exceptions: between all the heavy lifting and walking, high energy snacks are a must.

So, next time you see your local archaeologist, offer them coffee or tea (or hot chocolate!) I won’t turn you down.