no 25. Soup Nights for building community in Namibia

Illustrated title and image of soup night dinners © thesmarti 2024

Yours truly hosted a soup night with friends on the regular during the Namibian winter season. It started as a way to get to know a particularly fascinating friend. Easy way to lure her from her offices with a comforting meal, and then send her home with leftovers because a) I love sharing and b) I figured it would incentivize her to come back. Yup, that's me. Shamefully bribing new friends. Ruthless strategic friendship skills, I know. But when you are new to a community, sometimes you have to flip the systems in your favor. And Windhoek is a tiny city and a tiny population. Closed-knit to the max. So, I started the soup nights to break in and meet the other artists. And I can highly recommend a soup night if you want to build community, too.

Why soups? It's soothing. It's healthy. It's easy. Momola and I did a lot of soup cooking together over whatsapp during corona-times. Chop. Sauté. Boil. Simmer. It's easy in comparison to more complicated dishes, and the repetition feels nice. For this soup night stretch I've made:

• roasted red pepper soup

• white bean chili

• green goddess soup

• laksa curry

• gazpacho

• french onion

• artichoke gnocchi soup

• creamy white bean and kale

• golden chickpea soup

• tomato soup (and cheese sandwiches)

• creamy potato soup

Illustration of the layers of artichoke for soup night 6 by Smarti.

Illustrated components of gazpacho for soup night 4 by Smarti.

Illustration of a cheese sammie wading in tomato soup for soup night 7 by Smarti.

Illustrated invites for soup night - artichoke gnocchi, gazpacho and tomato soup © thesmarti 2024

And hosting? People often tell me that it seems like a lot of work. But actually, I find it easy, and I like staying at home (hello, happy homebody here!) Not so secretly, I also love curating an experience. But I have had my fair share of mistakes:

1. not being showered before guests arrive

2. not having indoor slippers for guests (we're a shoes-free home and winters are cold!)

3. running out of tupperware

4. realizing soup is cold as I'm serving it

5. not checking my phone while a guest was lost for 40 minutes

6. pouring boiling water on my hand because I was engrossed in conversation

7. burning my arm on the oven rack because I was distracted by a great question

8. Etc. etc. So many mistakes.

   
   

Despite those mistakes - I still it's worthwhile. Anyone can do this. Although you need to know yourself and your bandwidth. As an example, I had to learn to let go of serving drinks as part of the hosting experience for soup nights. Two reasons. First, I'm a camel in social situations and won't drink even if I'm holding a glass in my hand. I just get distracted easily and I cant be bothered to remember to fill up someone else's cup. Two, I like it when people feel emboldened to move around my kitchen like it's theirs. So my solution was to set up a drink station easily accessible on the kitchen counter and let guests self-serve. Other bits - I'm picky about quality salad dressing so I have oil/vinegar set on the table so people can do their own dressings, and I'm apathetic about dessert so I just don't do it. I know some people will gasp at that - but I know my boundaries and practice self-compassion there.

Closeup of yellow soup pot and tea kettle ready for soup night.

Table set and ready for a cozy soup night dinner by Smarti.

Tray stocked with cups, hot cocoa, tea and sugar.

photos of yellow soup pots, place settings and dessert tea tray ready to go for soup night © thesmarti 2024

Here are other things that work for me:

1. keep the date consistent and repetitive (every other Monday)

2. decide the soup a week before

3. add ingredients to the weekly grocery list

4. estimate for twice the people and have carb fillers like potato, rice, or bread for the extra hungry (almost always guarantees leftovers)

5. whatsapp a small invite the week before with date, time, location, recipe

6. pin google directions it at the top of whatsapp conversations so people have it accessible

7. on the morning of, set up table, set out slippers, set up drink station

8. on the afternoon of, cook the soup early and let it warm on the stovetop

9. have a spotify playlist ready

10. use lamps and candles for lighting

11. afterward, load the dishwasher since it uses less water than hand washing

12. throw linen in washer overnight, set it out to dry in the morning

And alright, ok - a little braggy but I still think I did an okay job. Was it perfect? No. Did I make mistakes? See above. But did I enjoy myself? Yes. Did I build some friendships? YES.

And WE ATE WELL. I'm also so proud of that. Serving people nutritious food in a safe, curated space is such a love language. Soup night means all that and more. Breaking bread together and knowing that the food is doing good things for the other person. No fake ingredients, no cheating flavors. Real good food with real good togetherness. It's everything.

Soup nights brought a lot of solace over the autumn and winter months of April-May-June-July in Windhoek. (Southern hemisphere means we have winters in the opposite time frame - confusing? Yea, sometimes.) Through these dinners, I've had heart-to-hearts, wild chaotic exchanges, bonded over family stories and laughed at myself a lot. That one friend became an even closer part of my circle. Others joined in too. Friends of friends were invited in and the group expanded. It was a sweet and intimate way to call in and connect with other creatives in the network. And I'll probably do it again next year.

Illustration of building friendship through hosting soup night dinners © thesmarti 2024

If I dig deep, these soup night have been empowering for me. To be in charge of the inviting. To be the one who gets to decide all the things. To be the one giving instead of receiving. When you are always the new kid because you move around a lot, stability in social situations often feels scary and overwhelming. You are damn lucky if you happen upon a host who is willing to host AND serve AND introduce you into their already busy schedules. It can happen. I've been lucky in other posts. But it's crazy to expect it. And planning is my safety blanket, so these soup nights have helped me flip the tables, set something up instead of waiting for something to happen. And it made me feel secure and accepted in a way I didn't realize I needed.

To be frank, I'm surprised it worked as well as it did. It's probably due to the energy and willingness of the friendly local creatives here. (And that one elusive gem of a friend who everyone wanted to spend more time with!) They've each given me time and grace and ate cold soup once and brought food gifts, shared stories and were just generally wonderfully kind and accepting people. People are wonderful. And it's made me feel very much at home and feel in my heart like I belonged. And that my dears, is what it's all about in the end.

Cheers to soup nights and willing friends,

smarti

no. 24 the packing list to a wedding adventure in Northern Namibia

Last year, a friend invited me as part of her entourage to a wedding in Northern Namibia. I didn't know the bride, I didn't know the groom, but I was excited to go and see the northern part of the country! We had a couple of calls about what to expect and what to pack, and here's what that looked like:

1. Snacks. Namibia has plentiful game and a lot of the culture is centered on cattle. A lot of the menu will be meat-centric barbecues and I came ready to feed myself and share with others if generosity required.

   
   

2. Water. This is desert country. Bring a gallon for each day.

   
   

3. Several outfit changes. Weddings typically include multiple days with a variety of events, so I borrowed a dress, my friend bought me a traditional Oshiwambo dress, and I also rustled up some formal wear from my closet. I wish I brought with me some hair powder to soak up the natural oils (I didn't want to waste water to wash my hair.)

   
   

4. Camping gear. The wedding party was going to be quite expansive, so we would need to camp out at the bride's house. We ended up sharing a bedroom in the main house as part of the celebrated guests/family. But the camping gear was helpful to share with other guests.

   
   

5. Notebook and pencils. I was NOT about to see this experience without documenting it! I didn't bring my colored pencils - and that was a mistake! Colors would have brought a lot of life to the drawings. But I brought my trusty mechanical pencil and eraser pen and clipped my notebook open and ready every chance I got. As usual, this got a lot of attention from the kiddos, which always delights me. But after a while, some of the adults opened up and were gracious enough to let me draw their portraits, too!

   
   

6. Pillow. I don't think I would have made it without this pillow. It brought support and relief when my period dropped on the long drive north and I needed to curl up. And then, served as a huggable divider as I shared a bed with my friend each night. And then became a squishable rest for backseat passengers for the long ride back home.

   
   

7. Lavender spray. I don't travel without this anymore. It's great for freshening up, cooling down, calming my zen and changing the vibe.

   
   

8. Frog Togg® towel. This stay-wet-towel helped me manage the heat. I would soak it and wrapped it around my thigh to keep my blodflow cool. I would switch it from leg to leg to let my soggy skin rebound and prevent the towel from drying out too fast. And at night, I would lay it on my legs to cool me down when the desert heat became unbearable. Truly a life-saver, highly recommend!

   
   

Illustration of The Packing List for the wedding trip © smartigraphicdesign

I designed a little 'zine sharing the adventure moments day-by-day which I plan to post here soon. Drawing this 'zine itself has been a challenging exercise. Considering the flow of the events, pulling together layouts, and trying to capture poses and expressions. It definitely felt like taking my drawing skills to the next level.

It reminded me of how rich a graphic novel can be. When we lived in Paris, I was overwhlemed by how the culture elevated the graphic novel. I enjoyed how the pages created a visual immersion into a story that words couldn't always capture. Making it myself this time, I believe I'll remember more of the adventure because by drawing I'm actually reinforcing the imagery and moments into memories. And I don't want to forget this experience!

Photo of 'zine pages in layout form © smartigraphicdesign

I'd like to extend my gratitude to: my friend Taimi Nangula who invited me as part of her entourage, Lusia who was our official host and the sister of the bride, to Maria the bride and Venondjo the groom for letting me join in! Thank you also to all the fun people who allowed me to try and capture them for this mini publication of a brilliant cultural adventure.

happy Namibian wedding memories to all,

smarti

no 23. designing tea card 2024

Well, one year into Windhoek and I finally pulled together a tea card for friends and family. Woohoo! Never heard of a tea card? It's a card that I make where I add a local tea and share an update and package it in a cute way so I can share a snail mail treat. You can head back to this post to learn more.

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To be honest, as soon as I wrote that blog post about my tea cards, I realized that I really missed putting them together and decided I would find a way. So I started doodling some ideas about a card, and definitely wanted to share some of the animals that we've been so lucky to see here. And then I saw a paper cut card and thought how it might be fun to show the layers of the savannah in a special way.

Folding the layers took some time to figure out. I bent and snipped and pasted a couple of different versions so I cold get a layer effect to happen. I did the first one by eyeball. But the measurements were so bizarre. Eventually, I cut the paper and measured everything to minimize the folding error when the thicker printed paper would inevitably cause some discrepancy. I didn't want to waste paper so I made an outline on A3 and put two letters on a page.

The easier part was drawing and designing some animals, placement and color. I lean towards a bit of playful pastel when I'm in my happy place, so I decided to paint the animals in candy-coated arrangements. The result is bizarre but fun, and adds a bit of whimsy to the already proposterous idea that I'm living in Africa.

Close-up on first draft design of safari animal folded tea card design by Smarti.

Illustrations of giraffe, impala and oryx by Smarti.

Close-up of final design of safari animal tea card design by Smarti.

left to right, 1) photo of first draft, 2) animal illustrations, 3) final design @smartigraphicdesign

When I went to the store, I couldn't find any tea that matched the whimsy. But I went with a basic rooibos tea - which is an herbal bush tea that's very popular here. I found a variety with some flavoring variations, and then taped them to a postcard in case people want to write me back a response, or just share it with someone else. I like giving people options.

I found a local printers that was able to make the designs come to life. (Thank you getgraphics!) But unfortunately, they don't have any speciality paper. So I had to go with a basic matte to get saturated colors and a 120g so it would be thin enough to fold. I brought the pages home and cut each one out by hand with a faulty exacto knife. Lesson learned in the morning when each page looked hacked and had paper bits still connecting the sheets. I went in by specialty scissors by hand to fix what I could.

Close-up of tea choice and illustrated safari animals by Smarti.

Close-up of master letter and cut-out fold by Smarti.

Visit to the post office in Windhoek by Smarti.

left to right, 1) roiboos tea packets/postcards, 2) editing a master letter, 3) post office visit @smartigraphicdesign

I wrote a master letter this year because there was too much to share and I knew I wasn't going to have enough time to share all the bits. But I personalized each one at the bottom and then stuffed in the tea to the envelope. For my family in Spain, I had to write out a completely different letter for each one since I know they will brag to each other and I wanted to give each of them something special to share. The personalized writing part took about 3 days to complete.

At the post office, I got a special attendant who helped me to address and stamp each one. One letter, no big deal. 60 letters to different countries? It gets a little complicated. He was flabberghasted at the price near the end, but I was ready for that. Each time I've done this, the cumulative cost is always more than I've anticipated. Thankfully, the postage prices here is incredibly low. But that also means that they might not pay their postal workers enough to care, so who knows if they will ever make it out to their destinations?

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I'm eagerly awaiting when the first news of the cards will start trickling in. I have a feeling it will take somewhere upwards of 3 months since I tested the mail out with one of my sisters last year. But who knows? My biggest worry is that someone's card will go missing and they'll think they were skipped on purpose. Thankfully, I've got backup cards at the ready.

cheers to receiving snail mail and here's to hoping your tea card arrives soon!

smarti