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markets of the world…

iguanas, brains, & tarantulas, oh my!

August 24, 2011 by Cathy Arkle 13 Comments

iguana and avocados in Laos

I love a good farmer’s market. I frequent them weekly looking to discover my next favorite culinary gem. As much as I enjoy treasure hunts at the Los Angeles markets, it’s the markets of the world that intrigue me. Today’s blog is a visual journey to far away places with strange sounding names… not to mention food you probably wouldn’t consider eating!
Warning: some of the pictures are graphic – please don’t view this before eating unless you are on a diet.

woman carrying fish in luang prabang, laos

“FRESH FISH TO GO”

Our first adventure starts at the morning market in Luang Prabang, Laos. This city is a fascinating mishmash of oriental wooden dwellings with random kisses of European architecture thrown in. All reminiscent of a time when Laos was part of the French colony of Indochine. The royal capital of Laos resided here until the communist takeover in 1975.

Regardless of this country’s troubled past, beauty abounds. The adventurer who dares to journey the distance to the “land of a million elephants” will be richly rewarded.  Oddities of eclectic varieties were the specialty of the day, with not an elephant in sight. Our supper came from this bizarre bazaar… and that alone was too much information for me!”

”fish & bugs” or maybe you prefer “flies with your fish”
kind of gives a new meaning to fly fishin’

luang prabang, laos market-brains-feet

“pig’s trotters & brains… global trends in anti-aging food”

luang prabang, laos - little girl at the market

“never too young or old to sell your goods”

map indochina - Phnom Penh highlighted

Next stop: Skuon, a small Cambodian village north of Phnom Penh.

The rural area is sometimes called “spiderville” because of its street vendors selling heaping trays of whole arachnids. A palm-sized species of black tarantula known as “a-ping” is a well-known culinary specialty.

And how does one prepare such a delicacy? Fried with garlic, sugar, salt and other spices until their legs are crispy, silly!

cambodian tarantulas

In case your mother never taught you, this is how one eats a tarantula.

How to eat a tarantula in Cambodia

* Pick one whose body parts are still intact – dismembered units could be from last week’s production.

* Smell tarantula for freshness – if it smells rancid, it is.

* Drop whole tarantula quickly into your mouth before the brain has a chance to trigger its gag response. Or, do as my Mother does… take small bites while analyzing why you’re eating a tarantula.

cambodia bugs & birds

If tarantulas’ aren’t your style there are plenty of other tasty choices.

cambodia birds at market

We weren’t as adventuresome to taste the local duck delicacies… this time.
No trip is complete without the opportunity to give back in some small way. We had the pleasure to help a local Cambodian school with their English program, as well as participating the morning ritual of giving sticky rice the monks in Laos.

Giving alms in Laos

Even though I got deathly ill at the end of this trip (can’t imagine why), I would do it again. I have learned that while my stomach doesn’t always agree with other cultures, I can accept and appreciate them. Their lifestyles and customs are fascinating to me. I hope they are for you as well.

I have more market pictures and stories to tell, but I will save them for other blog entres. Look forward to experiencing Peru, India & Russia on the next encounter of a clash of culinary cultures.

Fish Massage in Bangkok on you tubeI leave you with a video that I shot
at the local night market in Bangkok.
My mother and I are enjoying a
screamin’ good fish massage.

I wonder why we don’t have
fish massages in California?
….and then, she paused for thought.

I entered the top photo in Junglefrog Cooking On Location Photo Challenge.
Click here to check out Junglefrog Cooking’s great blog site.
P.S. I won the contest. Click here for results.

Yum

Filed Under: Food Photography, Good Information, Simply FUN!, Travel Tagged With: a-ping, eating tarantulas, fish massage in Bangkok, giving alms in Laos, Laos, Luang Prabang, markets in Laos, Skuon

Previous Post: « chicken with charisma…

winning hearts, one dish at a time
Next Post: cooking class… in cambodia
»

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. junglefrog

    April 4, 2013 at 6:19 am

    Ooo what a gorgeous photos and what a fun find to see that you actually went to the same places that I did… I remember that market in Luang Prabang vividly! And ofcourse the spider village… I only ate one leg.. which was ok.. 😉 Love the shot you send in of the woman with the fresh fish (and you might want to check my blog a bit later today for the results.. 😉

    Reply
    • cathyarkle

      April 7, 2013 at 9:44 am

      Thanks Simone! Laos was such a beautiful and fascinating place. I love your blog and your photos as well.

      Reply
  2. El Oso con Botas

    April 4, 2013 at 6:41 am

    Congratulations, it is a beautiful shot 😉

    Reply
    • cathyarkle

      April 7, 2013 at 9:46 am

      Thank you for stopping by! Laos is such a fabulous country and great tourist destination.

      Reply
  3. Nusrat Azim

    April 22, 2013 at 2:57 pm

    Congrats ! Your picture truly deserves to win 🙂

    Reply
  4. Lentil Breakdown

    March 5, 2017 at 5:15 pm

    Wow!!! Tarantulas! I wanted to eat grasshoppers in Mexico but I was worried about the germs from the street vendors, not the grasshoppers. 🙂

    Reply
    • Cathy Arkle

      April 6, 2017 at 5:54 pm

      LOL I felt the same way about snail soup in Morocco.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 2012 Top Recipes | She Paused 4 Thought | She Paused for Thought says:
    January 6, 2013 at 10:38 pm

    […] Bay or Balmain. I tried them on my recent trip to Australia and they are much better than the “bugs” I had in Cambodia, but that is another post. …and then, she paused for […]

    Reply
  2. Junglefrog Cooking And the winner is.... » Junglefrog Cooking says:
    April 4, 2013 at 6:34 am

    […] Paused for Thought which I hadn’t seen before, but go on and hop on over for a closer look at her post containing a lot more on location […]

    Reply
  3. And the winner is.... Cathy from She Paused for Thought - simoneskitchen.nl says:
    January 19, 2014 at 2:53 am

    […] Paused for Thought which I hadn’t seen before, but go on and hop on over for a closer look at her post containing a lot more on location […]

    Reply
  4. And the winner is.... | Simone's Kitchen says:
    May 19, 2015 at 6:12 am

    […] Paused for Thought which I hadn’t seen before, but go on and hop on over for a closer look at her post containing a lot more on location […]

    Reply
  5. Ganja-Style Chicken & Eggs | She Paused 4 Thought says:
    July 14, 2016 at 3:59 pm

    […] Only in Azerbaijan can you visit a crude oil spa where you lie naked in a pool of oil up to your neck and relax. I am pretty sure this is up there with fish massages in Thailand. (Check out a video of my mom and I enjoying our fish massage here.) […]

    Reply
  6. Root Vegetable Tarte Tatin | She Paused 4 Thought says:
    March 2, 2017 at 9:10 pm

    […] foods. One thing I am not, is a Neophobian (extremely picky eater). I have been known to eat tarantulas, ants, crickets, guinea pigs, reindeer, camel and a few other things not worth […]

    Reply

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Welcome to She Paused 4 Thought! I’m Cathy - a farm girl from Iowa living in Los Angeles. Let’s cook, laugh, travel & have fun together. Read More…

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