Travel Bug

Prior to flying to the Land of Smiles, my brother and I made a deal that we were going to be brave. We agreed that we weren’t going to leave Thailand before tasting at least one of its exotic dishes – fried insects.

So it was with excitement that we kept an eye out for vendors selling these tasty buggers during the first few days of our trip. But after seeing the temples of Wat Arun, visiting the Reclining Buddha, and admiring Thai Silk King Jim Thompson’s East-meets-West abode, still no sight of an insect-selling hawker.

But as fate or the food gods would have it, on the eve of our flight back to our homeland, we finally found it. Basking under the garish yellow light of a naked light bulb in a stall mere inches from a busy main street in Bangkok lay pile upon pile of the gastronomic adventure my brother and I had been looking for ever since we arrived.

My brother grinned at me, knowing full well that I was having second thoughts about the deal we made. Handing over a couple of Bahts, he managed to order in half Filipino, half Thai, and half English a bag full of spicy, crispy, fried crickets. I tried not to think of Jiminy Cricket as my brother handed me the bag and I caught a glimpse of hairy legs and wings sprinkled with Thai spices and powders. I picked out a small cricket and studied it, wondering why in the world Thais thought insects would make for a tasty treat. Before I psyched myself out, I popped it into my mouth and started chewing.

Surprisingly enough, after getting past a leg that got stuck in between my teeth, it was delicious. Wanting to make sure it wasn’t just beginner’s luck, I tried another one. And another one. And another one. Before I knew it, we finished the whole bag.

Looking back, I realized that Bangkok is just like spicy fried crickets. It’s extreme, it’s exotic, it’s well, unusual, but you go back anyway because you can’t get enough.

On my next trip, I’ll give the beetle a shot. Who knows? I just might like it too.