Delicacies

         My brother has just returned from an extensive vacation in Thailand. When he came home my entire family sat down with him after dinner to talk about his excursion and  to listen to the stories he had to tell. One of the most interesting points that he made that night was that of the bizarre cuisine in Thailand.  He told us that there were vendors ( much like hot dog vendors in New York) lined throughout the streets of the villages he visited. At first I thought that these vendors were relatively normal to those that we have in North America. That is until my brother told us what they had on the menu. Many of these vendors served up insects such as cockroaches, tarantulas, scorpions, beetles, crickets and in some cases even maggots and worms. My mom nearly fainted when she heard these stories, especially when my brother told us he sampled some of the exotic cuisine.  After the conversation with my brother I thought a lot about what makes those actions of eating insects and some other sorts of meat taboo in our society, while its a normality in theirs.


       Each culture makes a living based on their geographic location as well as the availability of a certain food source. It makes sense that many people who live in tropical southeast Asia have adapted insects as a food source due to their incomprehensible availability. I also thought about how people who live throughout Asia and Africa often consume dogs, cats, horses and other uncommon food sources. I also thought about how many European countries base their nutrition partly around snails and frogs.


http://www.google.ca/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&tbo=d&rlz=1C1SAVA_enCA499CA499&biw=1366&bih=643&tbm=isch&tbnid=jPgWbgN2j90XPM:&imgrefurl=http://purdy.travellerspoint.com/15/&docid=FZCkLXRsoV5ljM&imgurl=http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/49892/Bugs%252520for%252520dinner.JPG&w=400&h=267&ei=sEC9UMiZIuPtiQLQzICYCg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=406&vpy=285&dur=6288&hovh=183&hovw=275&tx=152&ty=109&sig=101636535578839645397&page=1&tbnh=145&tbnw=224&start=0&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:0,i:108

^  Scorpions and crickets for sale at a market.


      What food sources may seem bizarre to North Americans may be a staple diet for other individuals around the world . And what may seem sick and disgusting to us may be a part of everyday life for people of different lands.

         I believe that travel is important because it exposes tourists to the different types of food and diet around the world whether they are taboo or not. If people travel more often when they are young they are more likely to feel less disgust in regards to delicacies other nations have a taste for.  Instead of feeling disgust I would care to hypothesis that these individuals will feel a sense of acceptance and tolerance for these cultures.


http://www.google.ca/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&tbo=d&rlz=1C1SAVA_enCA499CA499&biw=1366&bih=643&tbm=isch&tbnid=lXTjiFWhEHoyJM:&imgrefurl=http://mesasrey.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_15.html&docid=OPaTbEGjZgONOM&imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7BQUl06b7KfeaywRnsYoFowFIlLTTr2GCu-z6dPlwmrErbhlRjmSEIpOa1lK7hBBJWr-sLHR4xgZXgBst89n9Clq90L7rubF3VcdZp9CgZ1-2sV3KjE-EkytjrId3yJy6Y1kcC_jGiUQ/s1600/3.jpg&w=500&h=375&ei=sEC9UMiZIuPtiQLQzICYCg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=1074&vpy=346&dur=1051&hovh=190&hovw=253&tx=167&ty=169&sig=101636535578839645397&page=1&tbnh=133&tbnw=178&start=0&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:18,s:0,i:138

^    Market with fried insects

What do you think of other cultures bizarre dietary tendencies? What is the weirdest thing that you have tried abroad?

Thanks for reading!