Travel Sized Bites.

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deep fried hoppers, beetles & other delicacies

By Author: Peter W. Morris
E-mail: petertraveler@usa.net

Submitted on Friday 18th January 2002

International travelers’ view their experiences differently, but I can never understand those who eschew the foods of many nations in favor of generally bland American fare. Bluntly put, if you don’t partake of the cuisine of the various countries on the itinerary, then a big one-fourth of the adventure is eliminated, the other three-fourths being the people who inhabit said country, their customs, and the architecture which makes it unique.

Even some of the world’s most authoritative sojourners bypass the vittles, in favor of mere nourishment, as they hop from place-to-place about the globe!

Why? Why are foods native to other cultures overlooked by those who ought to know better?

Excuse
1: It’s not safe. "I’ve never heard of this entrée before; I can’t even pronounce the name!"

Excuse
2: Possible sickness resulting from "just a taste" of the questionable serving…nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and other nasty complications.

Excuse
3: "I know it’s just going to be too hot, too spicy; my sensitive constitution couldn’t handle it."

And, Excuse
4: "OH MY! The things I’ve heard these people eat are disgusting...monkeys, snakes, rats and even house pets!"

All nothing but...excuses.

One of this traveler’s great sadnesses is that American fast food joints are taking over the world. McDonald’s hamburger has, justifiably, become the hallmark of the decline of cultures hundreds and even thousands of years older than our own. With the exception of Earth’s remotest places, McDonald’s is everywhere, and everywhere it sets up shop, another nail is driven into the coffin of a beautiful-in-its-own-right way of life. I’ll long remember traveling through Morocco’s vastness late one night, darkness deep and black all around. "What’s that up ahead?" questioned daughter Andrea. Lights in the distance spoke of an unanticipated oasis. "McDonald’s!" came the scream—the angry rebuttal—of outrageous recognition.

I hate McDonald’s, McDonald’s so-called golden arches, McDonald’s Big Mac’s and, perhaps most of all, Ronald McDonald himself. Further, I love Vietnam’s old Saigon which, upon my last visit, had forced the closing of its only McDonald’s...not enough patrons to keep it in business! "Yeah, way to go!!!! Gimme five!!!"

Food, back to the subject...

A big misconception among travelers, and most especially those new to international foods, is that different is bad, probably bad tasting and potentially bad for the health.

Not necessarily...

As for taste, foods in other countries are generally delightful in their uniqueness, although prepared with different recipes than Americans routinely use. An important point to be taken here is that, with few exceptions, meats and veggies don’t differ all that much from one point on the globe to another. Asians love pork and chicken (yes, some of them add chicken heads and feet to the concoction, but such is easily avoided); lamb and goat are popular in Ireland, the Greek Isles and New Zealand; Russia, Argentina and most of South America favors beef; and seafood of all types tops menus from Chile to South Africa to Australia and beyond to every shore of every country.

It’s the added ingredients and ways of preparation that make the foods different.

However, (and this is an important HOWEVER) travelers, especially those jetting to undeveloped and third world countries, need to be vigilant in making sure that both meats and vegetables are thoroughly cooked. Too, as any good traveler knows, bottled water is a must, even in many developed regions and cities.

Conventional wisdom also (sadly) dictates that grabbing a bite to eat from street vendors, commonplace in less-developed countries, is not suggested. "But, the smells of these exotic dishes are impossible to resist!" comes my own plaintive cry. Somehow, dine-and-die (or even dine and wish you’d die) doesn’t have a great ring to it.

Each to their own level of insecurity/wisdom. I, personally, approach street-prepared foods cautiously, looking at how the food is being prepared, the cleanliness of the stall and operator and whether the chef has dogs, cats or monkeys adjacent to the spatula; if all passes, I eat! (Offering a sincere prayer of thankfulness Heavenward doesn’t hurt.)

"But, what about those REALLY GROSS foods?"

Yes, dogs are eaten as part of the family diet in many countries, mostly Asian nations. In fact, St. Bernards are raised for-the-table in China...big dogs, lots of meat. Have I personally partaken of dog at any meal?" Frankly, I’m not sure, but I think so. "What do you think it is?" asked a bewildered Betsy. We were in Beijing enjoying a lunch prepared especially for us. "I know it’s not chicken," I responded. "And, it’s certainly not beef or pork..." came her observation. Seafood was out of the question. "It’s not bad," I continued, "if I don’t consider the possibilities."

Generally, travelers have to ask for outlandish culinary experiences; they’re not routinely served to foreigners. For example, exotic songbirds top the by-request-only menu in Southwestern China.

Our educated-in-America Chinese guide, Raymond, answered the expected question with diplomacy. "I used to enjoy dog, until I escorted a group of visiting Asians to Nepal. They requested a meal containing dog meat, so we stopped at an out-of-the-way restaurant in the middle-of-nowhere. The cook," he continued, "brought a live dog to the table and took a full 10-minutes killing it, right in front of us. I’ve never dined on dog since that night, although my guests thoroughly enjoyed it."

Strange foods? They exist. I’ve tasted of Cobra Wine (featuring the entire snake, plus venom, within the bottle) in Vietnam; found great favor with barnacles (the sea urchins were ghastly) on the coast of Chile; helped skin live eels in China and enjoyed eel soup; thoroughly devoured moose burgers, moose steaks, and moose roasts in the wilds of Alaska; and feasted on what looked like pre-historic trilobites—and were, in fact, called Bay Bugs—in New Zealand.

Need I mention that wonderful Australian combo, crocodile and kangaroo burgers, in a Cairns café? Or the lizards, whose tiny bones stuck between my teeth, at a outdoor restaurant on the Vietnamese coast?

Ok, I’ll admit it, there are some culinary opportunities from which I’ve shied away. "Try `em; they’re good," urged an American friend in Northern Thailand, tossing two large, well-fried grasshoppers into his gaping mouth. My stomach churned as he crunched on wings, multiple legs and assorted blackened appendages. The fried grubs didn’t look all that good either, although I would have gone ahead and "popped-one" with a bit more encouragement. And then the toothless Thai cook held out a platter of assorted beetles....

I recall that 60’s commercial for Alka-Seltzer© "Plop Plop, fizz fizz, oh what a relief it is!" It’s especially quick to come to mind when I recall the baked sheep testicles I was tricked into eating in Iceland...but that’s another story.