Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Saipan, Uncle A'be's house


Saipan, A'be's house - porch, originally uploaded by *caramimi*.

My Uncle A'be, lives a fairly natural life on his beautifully tended property. Although he has one of the last tin & wood houses on our family compound, his tidy house and garden is the charming ideal of tropic life.

I spent a few afternoons at my uncle's house having lunch. After a filling meal of tuna and rice (cooked on the wood-fueled stove), I took some pics of the inside and outside kitchens, and the surrounding property. The carnival of plant life and color, was almost too vibrant -- a feast for the senses. I especially loved the Asian touches Aunt Amy accented throughout their home.

Saipan, A'be's house - petta (door)
petta (door)

Saipan, A'be's house - kusina (inside kitchen)
kusina (inside kitchen)

Saipan, A'be's house - firewood stove
All the cooking is done in the outside kitchen. Most families have gas-burning stoves, but Uncle A'be still prefers cooking with firewood -- even rice, despite the fact he owns a rice cooker.

Saipan, A'be's house - concrete sink
The poured concrete sink in the outside kitchen. Utilitarian, yet beautiful design.

Saipan, A'be's house - tree trunk utensil holder
A tree runs through the outside kitchen, conveniently used to hold the cutting board.

Saipan, A'be's house - aga yan chotda (ripe & unripe bananas)
aga yan chotda (ripe & unripe bananas)

Every home, I visited, had bunches of bananas hanging to ripen. I'm not certain of these varieties, but the small bunch in the back are the tiny thin-skinned bananas with sweet, firm, almost tart flesh, usually found in Asian or Latin markets.

Saipan, A'be's garden - tire swing
The huge tree with tire swing was perfection.

Saipan, A'be's garden - trunkon niyok (coconut tree)
Uncle A'be was particularly proud of this bunch of coconut trees, he made sure I photographed it.

Saipan, A'be's garden - Hibiscus
multi-petaled hibiscus

Saipan, A'be's garden - Mother-in-law's tongue (acalypha hispida)
acalypha hispida aka "Mother-in-law's tongue!"

Saipan, A'be's garden - fireworks
garden fireworks