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I entered a Humanities class the other day led by a very good teacher who played many games to break the ice with his students and get to know them a little bit more before he started raining down the year's topics on them. He showed the kids three videos; Move Eat & Learn... watching them brought back memories but also had a big effect on me that I wanted to share them with you. (I was unable to download the other two but if you search for them on YouTube).
Before watching it... think of the amazing places you visited or could visit in this world, the things you learned or could learn from different cultures and the wonderful/exotic/weird food you tried or could try.
I remember going to Zimbabwe, sitting in a beautiful restaurant where a Witch doctor told me that my first born will be a boy and I ate some game like Kudu and Crocodile meat. But one thing that I thought I would never try without my husband's encouragement were Mopane Worms. I like to try different food but I am not big on trying little creatures that crawl in my house or in my garden (with the exception of escargot). I am comfortable eating dishes that have bits and pieces that I can recognize or, as I mentioned in my Three Tongues' post, will eat what was placed in front of me if I had no other choice. But with Mopane worms it was different... I had other food choices but my hubby kept urging me to eat the different foods the locals eat...
oh boy... I kept staring at that worm in my hand for ages before I had the guts to place it in my mouth... and I also had to fight the gagging reflex that came straight after it touched my tongue... but I did it... it was chewy... not much there to taste as it was not cooked with garlic or herbs the way snails are...But now I can say that I ate a worm... so if I were stranded on a deserted island somewhere then I know that I would be able to eat strange things to stay alive... it is good to know that I can push myself like that!
The three videos are so beautiful and I hope that you will enjoy them as much as I did. We could learn so much from people, cultures and places around us. It is important for us, even if we were unable to travel, to continue growing. Even though I recommend traveling around the world to experience the different cultures first hand there are ways around traveling... through the Internet, TV and the actual experience of being around people of diverse cultures in our own countries that we are able to continue learning and growing.
Staying stationary is not just boring... remaining static does not teach us anything about the world... does not bring us closer to other people to build connections and create a better atmosphere in this world... closing oneself to change would only build walls between our cultures and increase the feeling of animosity, self-righteousness and exclusivity.... and this is why I find these videos so inspiring.
Have you experienced something that had such a profound effect on you or tried food that you thought you would never try?
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2 comments:
Sometimes when I feel down or tired and in need of some uplifting I gravitate towards a warm plate of rice and beans to keep me going.
Ah, traveling is something I do a lot locally (around Fl) but unfortunately for the last 10 years I've been a single parent so all my resources are for my daughters and sadly I haven't travel outside the USA or Florida. Hopefully this will change sometime in the close future.
Dear Ofelia... you are travelling the world through the Internet... and that is a good way to introduce yourself to the different cultures around the world... things have a certain way of working out for your own good... or for whatever is best for you!
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