Like cannedpeas

My father is the only member of my immediate family who can stomach canned peas. When my brother and I were younger, he told us that the secret to eating them is not to think of them as peas, but as a different vegetable entirely, cannedpeas. If you’re expected peas, you’ll be disappointed, but they taste okay if you have no expectations.

Banja Luka, where I spent my weekend, is like cannedpeas.

I went there to see K, who continues to be lovely and amazing and one of my favorite people within a 7 hour radius.

While, I was there, I also took in the city. A recent newspaper story in Banja Luka called the city a metropolis. It is not a metropolis; it is a nice town. It doesn’t feel like a capital city. Possibly, that is because it is not the capital of a country, but the capital of an entity, the Serbian part of Bosnia. It’s the capital of half of the country. (I didn’t even attempt to understand the Bosnian political scene – I did not have enough time for all of its complications.) Banja Luka has high government buildings and the river and old castle/fortress required of every Serbian city. If you’re not expecting a capital city, it’s a lovely town surrounded by beautiful hills. It’s a good place to wander around – even if it rained the entire weekend.

For my last meal in Banja Luka, K and I went to a ‘Mexican’ restaurant. It was very much a cannedpeas experience. I had been warned in advance to not expect anything approaching authentic, so I was free to enjoy Bosno-Mexican cuisine.

I ordered the vegetable fajitas. The grilled vegetables presented to me included peppers, mushrooms, potatoes, peas, and beans. The tortillas were surprisingly good and authentic. The sauces were a different story. The ‘salsa’ was cocktail sauce and the other sauce was ranch dressing. I learned that tortillas filled with grilled vegetables and ranch dressing make a rather satisfying meal. It’s just not one that could be called Mexican.