Cultural appreciation through International cuisine?

I've always been ambivalent on my regard for foodies. They've always reeked of privilege and the most shallow form of understanding different cultures through food. But on the other hand, the appreciation for different cuisine definitely has its heart in the right place. And I definitely have an automatic liking to people who will try any kind of food out there with an open mind.

I chanced upon this blog: http://www.confinednomad.com/, which is kind of fun and really echoes how diverse and amazing I find New York City to be. It's a great idea for residents here to make a checklist of authentic food from each country and make the experience an adventure. What I don't see in this blog is much reflection on the culture or developmental state of each, a lens which I guess is limited to few to begin with and which they never purported to include anyway. But what they do excel at is discovering and explaining the diversity of cuisine within a single country. I discovered this for the first time when my roommate introduced me to South Indian food, which I am now addicted to and I find far more delicious than its North Indian counterpart. Dining at a Chilean restaurant for the first time also introduced me to new ingredients, like the insanely huge corn kernel that tastes nothing like corn from the Northern Hemisphere.

I kind of laughed when I read the entry on peanut butter in CAR, as I never saw such luxury there. I think if they really wanted to be authentic they would eat manioc (I believe this is the local word for cassava, but I'm not sure) and big fat, fried grubs. NO JOKE. Even the expats had to try the stuff. And sadly, one NGO worker described manioc as having "no nutritional value, smells like sh!t, makes you stupid and gives you gout." Don't even get me started on her.

Don't get me wrong, I love food just as much as the next person. I love the lovely manners of preparation and reliance on certain ingredients like they were familiar chords in your cultural songbook. But there's definitely a contingency of hipster foodies that seem to think that all over the world, people sit in their well-appointed living rooms with clean silverware and china plates with the air conditioning on and just happen to have different items on said plates. I think to not bring in the customs, history and a little bit of sensitivity rather misses the point. Besides, I'm somewhat jealous at how their pure curiosity and missions obtain them all these invitations to people's homes and other otherwise inaccessible places due to their light hearts, empty stomachs and open minds. Or is their open stomachs and empty.. ? Anyhow.. that is my diatribe for the day. =)

An opportunity to visit the Black Sea

These are some of the things that happen when you open yourself up to the Universe...

While I was in Portugal, recuperating from the health problems I had in Africa, I had the opportunity to visit Turkey. The European Commission in conjunction with the Turkish government was hosting a cultural exchange, and student representatives of a handful of countries were going to share a bit of information and exchange with Turkey, a country that has not gained admission to the EU and is clearly a bit put off by it. At the last minute, 2 students from Lisbon dropped out. Talk about being in the right place at the right time! I was permitted to take their place despite not being Portuguese and even more so not being part of the EU whatsoever! In less than 3 days, I would set off to the Black Sea with two of my very good friends from Portugal. I changed my flight home to account for the 8 days we would spend in Turkey and we jumped up and down together in excitement and laughter when I got the green light. Unbelievable!

We routed through Istanbul on our way to Rize, which is the tea capital in the eastern part of Turkey. It was nice to see the lives of people outside of the big cosmopolitan cities and understand the values and lives they lead. The higher altitudes of Turkey look much like what I imagine northern Germany or Austria would look like. Cold, green, and just barely visible through the mist. We would experience our first real Turkish Bath and taste Turkish Delights on this trip. As well as the hospitality and hard work that families put in to make it through their day-to-day lives. We were fed the most sumptuous food, and plates piled with breads and meats and vegetables, followed by endless bowls of fresh fruit plucked from their yards.

The spirit and determination of these young people were amazing. Every night, there would always be dancing. I would not keep up. The traditional circle dance took on a whole new meaning when you saw how everyone participated and it was as natural as breathing to most. The rest of my time spent in Rize and Guneysu was a blur of chai and dancing and young girls approaching me to ask "do you love Turkey?". It was wonderful!!

We participated in some tours, seeing some beautiful schools serving the local children, and drank copious amounts of cai tea. There is so much agriculture here in Rize, but the labor is hard. An entire bush of green leaves is needed to make a single cup of tea. In addition, it was clear that the credit crunch also affected this country. We saw multiple buildings that seemed to have been half-erected and recently abandoned due to project funds simply running out, leaving them with walls and a roof intact but no windows or doors.

We finally departed through Istanbul again, having a night here before returning to Portugal. We tried to absorb as much as we could of this place, which seemed like a chaotic swarm of people, smells and sights after our relatively peaceful and calm time in the countryside. What a diverse and amazing country. And there's nothing quite like hearing the dueling calls to prayer between the Blue Mosque and the Agia Sofia. The chanting is a bit mournful and soothing at the same time. The city was becoming more vibrant and more sensual by the minute.

We made our way to the spice market after visiting the world famous mosques. Stalls inside a huge stone hall sold everything from rugs to lamps to spices to Black Sea caviar. Vendors were helpful and not pushy, seeming to have hospitality at the forefront of everything they did. I came home with wonderful sealed bags of some of the best spices I have ever laid hands on and a box brimming with turkish delight. I would gladly return once a year to get my years' supply of their delightful concoctions. My cooking definitely tastes a whole lot better with them!