Food on a Stick

I believe that any food served on a stick is better than that same food not on a stick.  It is even more awesome if it comes from some questionable food stand, preferably in a different country.   I will eat things off a stick that I would normally think twice about ordering on a plate.  Case in point:  squid on a stick from a vendor in Himeji, Japan.  Now I will eat calamari as a steak or as the little fried rings you get as appetizers, but I had not been confronted by an entire squid body before.  My Aussie husband was all excited for it, especially since it was lunchtime and he had just spent the last 2 hours following me around inside Himeji Castle.  There was some sort of market with food stalls and beer tents, some featuring posters of Ichiro hoisting a cold one.  We wandered through, checking things out and wondering what might be good.  And then, we saw this stall.  Not knowing the Japanese word for cooked squid we just pointed and were rewarded with a fresh off the grill sizzling beauty.   

Squid - on a stick!

This experience made me a little bolder when looking for snacks while traveling…  I have lately been drawn to eat food that is unknown and unidentifiable to my Western New-World palate, as I did on Qijin Island in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.  This area has about two blocks of snack stands on the main street off the ferry, as well as seafood restaurants near the end.  What I had was probably some tofu product, but who can be sure when you don’t know the language?  Whatever it was, it was tasty, and the lady who cooked it was very friendly.  There were many stands that I had to pass by that trip, but I plan to go back some day and eat my way from one side of the island to the other.

Is it tofu?  Who cares!

Opportunities for next time...