Like many people, I have a deep affection for food and eating. While I would never call myself an adventurous eater, I do like to try new things if they look appealing, especially desserts. While attending a university in Turkey many times I was compelled, sometimes with starvation being the only other option, to sample many new tastes.
One evening my girlfriends and I opted for a fine dining experience in the cafeteria. As we sauntered through the doors into the brightly lit and poorly decorated quarters, the aroma of over overcooked vegetables and unidentifiable meats besieged me. Being as hungry as I was, this scent was remarkably mouthwatering.
We found our places in line readied for our feast with our orange speckled plastic trays and cheap china. I surveyed the food searching for the items that looked to me the most like actual food and least like digested manure. I pointed to the fare that I desired and with a plop of the serving spoon it was all mine to enjoy. I quickly advanced through the line to arrive at my coveted destination, the dessert table. A multitude of choices surrounded me. I studied the possibilities and after thorough examination I selected a decadently layered chocolate dream.
Excitedly I ate my mysterious entrée that despite the saltiness, tasted better than I expected. I licked the remaining dinner particles off of my fork so as to not ruin the tastiness of my chocolate heaven. In the end I changed my mind and used my untouched spoon because it was free of other flavors.
I plunged my spoon into the soft fluffy layers. My eyes picked up one layer that looked wetter than the rest and I did not recognize but I kept fastened to the delight that was making it final descent into my watering mouth. As the cake slipped from my spoon on to my tongue I immediately realized my oversight. The disguised layer was made up of mashed bananas. It was as if the devil himself was in my mouth. I could not spit it out fast enough.
My dream of this layered wonder had been crushed by my remarkable disdain for bananas. My girlfriends had a good laugh out of my misfortune and devoured my chocolate crap on a plate, but I was hurt. Hurt by the laughing chocolate gods who had tricked me into eating a seemingly extraordinary piece of heaven that turned out to be straight from the depths of hell.
