Cultural Exchange Program

[onshoreleave]

It had only been a day or less since the idea had been placed in Tonia's mind to cook for some of the crew and officers. Most of the Castille family were the sort that loved to throw parties even taking hurricane season as a reason to have a pig roast. There was no limit to how much the love of cooking had found its way in to the young Barrows girl

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[first_donoharm]

Needless to say, McCoy was excited for food that reminded him of his native South. While he mostly ate farm cooking in Georgia, Cajun food was everywhere in Atlanta. Tonia had also promised him seafood gumbo, and after tasting her jambalaya a few days ago, McCoy was itching to taste one of his true comfort foods for the first time in more than a year.

One of the first to enter the room, he could feel some of the tension in his shoulders drain away. Needing to find Tonia, he scanned the room until his eyes caught on the familiar face.

"This is like going home," he said, the highest praise he could give.

[onshoreleave]

With a mint julep in one hand and beads in the other, Tonia was having a ball. The music was playing allowing people to dance already as others were descending upon the tables of food. Half were in uniform and half weren't and with it being her off day the younger woman was dressed in a flowy red dress she would have worn to any party along the bayou. When the doctor managed to catch her attention she was half turn toward the door.

"I'm glad your likin' it so far!" she said with a giggle, handing the drink toward him that she hadn't even touched yet. "Since it looks like we aren't going back to Earth for Mardi Gras.. I wanted to bring some of it here to the crew. Which reminds me." Standing on her toes, Tonia kissed McCoy's right cheek then his left before placing some beads around his neck. "Now. I'm giving you fair warning because I like you and I want to share the humor with someone. Caïman is alligator and grenouille is frog. Don't tell unless someone asks. Got it?"

[first_donoharm]

If McCoy had known they were supposed to look nice, he would have stayed in uniform instead of throwing on a battered pair of jeans and a threadbare University of Mississippi tee-shirt. He'd recently lost a bet with Spock, of all people, and so he was actually wearing his cowboy boots; though he supposed it fit the theme. Tonia looked very pretty in her red dress, a thing obviously made for dancing. He'd seen similar dresses on many girls in New Orleans, going out on the town

[onshoreleave]

Trouble? He was best friends with Jim Kirk. Of course there was going to be trouble since he had beads now. Even if flashing for them was not allowed in this party. "This may be true, but you can't have the feeling of Mardi Gras without being there you know." Giving the slightly older man a little wink, Tonia couldn't help but laugh a little. Just picturing the Captain running around New Orleans was just to much for her. "Promise me you'll save a dance for later?"

"I hope everyone likes it. Cajun food is an acquired taste for a lot of folk who ain't from the South." Not that the food was overly spicy. Tonia had made sure that it would be decent enough for the crew who she didn't know so well. No need in making people sick off how hot the stuff could be on a normal day along the coast.

[no_dryer_box]

Cultural exchange night may have been one of the best ideas he'd ever heard on a Star ship. Granted, he wasn't taking into account what could happen when this crew got their hands on the hurricanes in glasses on the far table. He needed to remember to hide those formal apology forms before anyone else got their hands on them.

He took a little bit of everything except for the vegetable dishes, happy to be free of bland replicated star ship food for the evening and sat at the end of one of the tables, thoroughly enjoying his meal and his drink.

[onshoreleave]

By the time that the hostess managed to find her way around the room, one of the only spots for sitting was with the Admiral who she was more than happy to share a seat with. Plopping down across from him with a rush of air escaping her lungs the Yeoman just grinned as well as laughed. "I swear.. if this goes off without a hitch I will do it again next year. Not next month. Not tomorrow." Of course it was clear that she was enjoying herself way to much.

"I hope it's not to spicy for you, sir. Some people just can't handle it."

[no_dryer_box]

Pike laughed, "I'm impressed you put this all together so quickly. Who knows, it might be such a hit that you'll start getting requests to do it again."

He ate another forkful of his dinner, "The spice is fine, a nice change from what we usually get."

[onshoreleave]

"Oh trust me. My mom's side is really big so when we go down to visit it's like feeding an army in a small amount of time." And it really felt like that some times. Her mother was the third child out of nine giving her a multitude of cousins who were either slightly older than herself or younger. Her Nannan was always entertaining people or babysitting even at eighty years of age. Cajun people were tough but that woman was more than so.

"I'm glad you like it, sir." Why yes the woman is blushing now thanks.

[redhaired_orion]

Gaila was excited to hear about the cultural exchange program. It meant that a lot of the crew would be in the same place, and she had a chance to get to know them. She was a bit nervous, but at least she could wear something a bit more sexy than that damn uniform.

She hadn't brought very many party dresses--this was a serious starship, wasn't? But she did bring one tight-fitting electric blue one with a slit up the back. She didn't mind being shameless.

Smelling the food before she got there, she walked into the mess hall, which was still a bit quiet. The clicking of her heels seemed too loud.

[onshoreleave]

It was getting hard greeting everyone as they came through the door. Tonia was doing her best to meet up with everyone, beads in her hands and words of encouragement to the wall flowers that were hanging about. When she came across Gaila just entering into the room she beamed a bright smile toward the Orion she hadn't met yet.

"Hey there!" the Yeoman said in greeting probably a little to bubbly. She'd had a hurricane and a mint julep or three by that time in the evening which was mild for her and Cajun parties. "Glad you could make it!"

[redhaired_orion]

"Hi!"

Gaila had heard that Tonia Burrows was heading this whole thing, but she hadn't been able to put a name to the face 'till now. Gaila could see that Tonia was energetic like herself. It was refreshing to meet with cheer.

She flashed a grin and made her way over to the food table. Grabbing a bowl of gumbo, she looked around for a few moments before taking a seat with Tonia and a younger girl she didn't recognize.

[cadet_amara]

Amara was torn when she heard about the festivities that night. On the one hand it was a chance for food that actually had some taste to it. However, on the other hand she wasn't really one for parties. That was why she decided to come and play the professional wallflower. She was a good wallflower. Observing other people was usually easier than actual interaction.

So, she slipped in, and made her food selections quickly. She was familiar with most of the choices, she had lived in Louisiana for three years when she was a kid, though those weren't memories she particularly wanted to revisit. She then scanned the room and found a seemingly quiet corner. The plan was to eat, stay for a polite amount of time, and then leave to find more quiet surroundings.

[onshoreleave]

"Now don't tell me you are planing on leaving so soon after eating," a voice said somewhere from behind Amara as the newest cadet joined the other who was also new on the ship. With a pleased sigh Tonia settled into one of the chairs pleased to get off her feet for even a few minutes worth of rest. The older woman gave an approving nod at Amara's dinner selections before giving a wide grin. "I hear you are the cadet doing some field training with us- it's so awesome that you are able too!"

[cadet_amara]

"Yes I am. Sink or swim. Or... desperately tread water to keep from drowning." She frowned a little, feeling like it was more the latter. "Something like that."

[onshoreleave]

"It's a real easy group of people to get along with.. Amara isn't it?" With a chuckle the older woman just manages to shake her head a little giving a wistful sigh. "Don't worry about trying to fit in to a mold that's already here. Just be yourself and everything will be all right!"

Then Tonia grinned. "Plus, we cadets need to stick together."

[flying_plantman]

Sulu entered the mess hall quietly, glancing around and taking in the familiar faces. Familiar, yes, but he still felt slightly unable to easily make small talk with most of them. While on the bridge or in the lab, Sulu felt comfortable and unhindered by any nervous tension, but -- well, he was a Starfleet officer and shouldn't hang back too much. Anyway, that gumbo really did look extraordinary.

Wearing simple black slacks and a dark blue button-up shirt, Hikaru hoped had cleaned up to an appropriate degree. Although -- considering what Dr. McCoy was wearing, the helmsman figured he was doing fine.

[setphasersto]

"Hey!" Angela greeted Sulu cheerfully, approaching from behind him. "It's nice to see you outside of the bridge." She too had passed on her uniform for her civvies, and was dressed in a favorite pair of jeans and a lacy red tank top.

Thee food smelled delicious and her stomach was grumbling. Angela normally didn't really have much preference for "real" food over replicated food, but there were a few things the replicator didn't do well and spicy was one of them.

"I don't even know where to start. What are you having?" she asked.

[flying_plantman]

"Evening, Martine," Sulu said, smiling slightly at the woman. "It's nice to be off the bridge, even for a bit. I --" He paused when she mentioned the food and he glanced at the spread. "I might start with the gumbo. I'm not really sure. It looks like Barrows spent a week preparing all this." He was grateful for the ensign, giving him an in, a hint as to what to do next.

[setphasersto]

She grinned. "You can call me Angela when we're off duty, if you want," Angela offered with a shrug. She knew some people were more casual than others, so if he chose to keep calling her Martine that would be alright too.

Considering the food again, she took a plate and started to load it with a variety of... well, whatever that stuff was. Angela wasn't sure she'd heard of any of it before, much less tried it. "Maybe a little of everything? I'm feeling brave. And look, little labels so I know it isn't anything weird."