Re: Travels and food (was Debating Guns, Germs and Steel)

[Guest guest]

> I was 14 years old in 1976 when I took the trip although I was

pretty mature

> for that age. I related well to the other team members who were in

their

> early 20's. We flew from Miami to Manaus and spent one day touring

the

> city. I remember little of the town other than that it was a real

shock to

> me to compare the life there to one that I lead back home.

Everything was

> very unkempt and very poor. While we certainly had our poor

sections in the

> town in which I grew up most of the place was neat and tidy and well

> maintained. It was a tremendous contrast for my young mind to see

such a

> different way of life.

This reminds me of the trip I took with about 75 other people to

Belize in the early 1980s.

When we stepped off the plane in Belize City, we were immediately

struck by the aroma given off by the street-gutter sewer system. ;-)

It was right before Christmas, temps were in the mid-60s, and one of

the baggage handlers at the airport was wearing a stocking cap

because the weather felt cold to him. We, OTOH, felt the need to

ditch our winter coats!

> > And the

> > inevitable question: how about the food you ate while you were

here?

> > Don't tell me you only ate American-style food.

>

> Oh yes. Lots and lots of spaghetti. Zero Brazilian food except for

> bananas. We brought all of our own food with us. Lots of cans of

horrible

> tasting things. One of my happy memories in the big city to which

I can no

> longer recall the name was that we found an American style

restaurant and I

> had a hamburger.

I also ate canned food that I brought with me. I don't remember

having any local food except for the night we went to San Pedro

Island and had island food, which was unusual and quite good.

I spent a week there, mostly in Belize City. One day we went to

Belmopan. Some of our folks took a side trip to Chichenitzen, and I

wish now that I had gone with them.

Belize City was very rundown and poor looking. There was a pink

convent that was very well kept, but almost none of the other

buildings even had a coat of paint on them. One of my first thoughts

was, " There really *are* places like this in the world! " It seemed

novel to be looking at such places without a piece of glass

separating me from the scene.

One little girl walked with me and my buddy each day, and I remember

asking her one time what her favorite food was. It was beans and

rice. I had a hard time understanding the people, even though the

official language was English. Their accent sounded like a

combination of British, Black, and Hispanic.

One day we were walking through a different part of town, and a

familiar smell caught my attention. Kentucky Fried Chicken! I

looked around and saw there was indeed a KFC restaurant!

The main reason I took American food with me was that I had no idea

how much local food would cost. I didn't want to carry around a lot

of cash, either. If I had it to do again, I certainly would have

eaten local food more.

The cautioned us before we went about using the local water, so we

tried very hard to avoid drinking it. I didn't get sick, and I don't

remember others getting sick.

Has anyone on the list lived or traveled in the Middle East? I'm

curious about what they eat these days.