27, BA National House University of North Sumatera Medan May 21, 2014 My dear Mummy and Daddy, Many thanks for your letter which arrived this morning. Sorry, I have not been writing as regularly as I should. The fact is I have started cooking my own food here. It is much cheaper than the Hostel food and sometimes even better. There is a kitchenette next to my room. Breakfast - porridge, eggs and coffee – can be prepared in about 10 minutes and there is always some bread and cheese and fruit to go with it. Lunch takes about the same time. And the most it takes to prepare a good dinner is less than an hour. And part of the time you can be watching TV in the next room. So it is no trouble at all. Moreover, I have teamed up with a friend of mine, so we share the work, which makes it much easier. Do send some recipes – for frying fish, cutlets and so on. We can get real good minced meat here and all the spices and very fine rice. So we can make anything we want. There are lots of Bataknese at the BA National House this year. The latest to come is one from Doloksanggul who is working for his magistrate in Education. During the Xmas-New Year break, we were invited by several Batak families here. So we went out and ate a lot. And we called all the Batak families over. I cooked Arsik for forty people. And it was perfectly edible. You don’t believe it? Well … How is everybody at home? Ask Revato write to me unless she is too busy cutting up corpses in the Medical College. Your affectionate daughter, Helen How long does usually it take the writer to prepare her lunch?

Question

27, BA National House
University of North Sumatera
Medan

May 21, 2014

My dear Mummy and Daddy,

Many thanks for your letter which arrived this morning. Sorry, I have not been writing as regularly as I should.

The fact is I have started cooking my own food here. It is much cheaper than the Hostel food and sometimes even better. There is a kitchenette next to my room. Breakfast - porridge, eggs and coffee – can be prepared in about 10 minutes and there is always some bread and cheese and fruit to go with it. Lunch takes about the same time. And the most it takes to prepare a good dinner is less than an hour. And part of the time you can be watching TV in the next room. So it is no trouble at all. Moreover, I have teamed up with a friend of mine, so we share the work, which makes it much easier.

Do send some recipes – for frying fish, cutlets and so on. We can get real good minced meat here and all the spices and very fine rice. So we can make anything we want.

There are lots of Bataknese at the BA National House this year. The latest to come is one from Doloksanggul who is working for his magistrate in Education. During the Xmas-New Year break, we were invited by several Batak families here. So we went out and ate a lot. And we called all the Batak families over. I cooked Arsik for forty people. And it was perfectly edible. You don’t believe it? Well …

How is everybody at home? Ask Reva to write to me unless she is too busy cutting up corpses in the Medical College.

Your affectionate daughter,
Helen

How long does usually it take the writer to prepare her lunch? $\;\;$