Lessons from the Dinner Table (and sometimes my dorm room)
One of the places you’ll notice the most differences than what it’s like at home is at the dinner table. There are so many foreign part to eating in a new place. From the times that people eat, the utensils people eat with and of course the food they eat can all be drastically different than what you’re used to at home. I believe the reason there are so many differences when it comes to eating is because it is a deep reflection of the culture. The way people eat reveals values such as the importance of time, who we see as family and how we treat the body as a temple.
My food adventures in the Philippines have been quite extensive. So here’s 3 things I’ve learned while eating in the Philippines and what that reflects about my travels.
Lesson 1: Eating alone is okay
I learned this one the quickest.
The first day I arrived I knew no one. I was shown around and then left to fend for myself still with three meals ahead of me. For breakfast I wandered into the cafeteria, aimlessly walking around trying to figure out what I was doing. I left the cafeteria unsuccessfully, with no food and no idea what was going on. Between the hours of breakfast and lunch, while munching on granola bars, I made a game plan. I wanted to make the process as quick, painless, and less embarrassing as possible. I would go in there, put down my water bottle to mark my territory at a table, pick up a tray, read the menu and decide what I want, quickly make it down the actual food aisle-minimizing embarrassing human contact - and pay for my food. Come lunch time I bravely step into the cafeteria ready to brave the new territory and I flopped. I carried my clunky water bottle with me and it made it impossible to hold a tray. I couldn’t read anything on the menu. Instead of just pointing to the food I tried saying them out loud and ended up butchering the names of the food rendering me incomprehensible. And I only had huge bills to pay with so I fumbled for a couple minutes at the register with all my change. And when I finally got my food I turned around to face the eating area. The only people in the cafeteria were speaking in languages that I couldn’t understand so I shamefully took a seat at an empty table and ate my lunch in silence.
Traditionally sitting down and eating a meal with someone is one of the most familial things you could do. And eating meals by yourself is often times interpreted as a lonely and isolating activity. And oh boy did it feel like that the first couple times I ate by myself. I thought people were staring and pitying me as they walked past, I would eat as fast as I could to avoid being there by myself, and it was just boring. So I tried to eat with my friends as much as possible. Because it was fun, but also because I was deadly afraid of eating alone.
Then… one night, sitting in my dorm room debating whether or not I should go down and eat by myself or sit in my room and eat mac and cheese, I had a sort of epiphany. Eating by yourself is okay. One of the wonders of travelling is you are put in an environment of entirely new people. So it’s totally natural if you are in a new place and eating alone! The world is an enormous place and being out of your comfort zone can feel quite lonely. But eating alone is not an embarrassing activity, it just means there are more amazing people in the world you haven’t met yet! So forget that you may be the only one eating without a group of friends, focus on the fact that you’re in a new place, and of course enjoy the food!
Lesson 2: How to make anything in the microwave
Google has yet to cease amazing. You can ask it questions such as “How to get rid of an ant problem”, “Will mosquito spray work on ants”, “Will I die of DEET poisoning if I fumigate my room with mosquito spray” and so much more.
There’s a kitchen on my dorm floor but I don’t want to buy pots and pans because I can’t take them back to America so the cooking supplies I have include a mug and a microwave. The cafeteria closes pretty early and sometimes I miss dinner or wake up too late for breakfast. So, I’ve figured out to make almost anything in the microwave. You can make pastries and pasta and even potatoes! Just poke a few holes in the potato with the plastic forks you stole from Jollibee and pop that thing in the microwave. Bam! You have just made a baked potato in the microwave in less than 10 minutes. It’s quite amazing. When travelling - not even to mention travelling to a developing country - you have got to be resourceful. The amenities we’ve all gotten used to won’t be around. Whether that be clean water, air conditioned cars or your mom (Just kidding to all the moms out there! We love and appreciate all that you do!). And faced with a lack of those amenities you’ll discover that you can do so much more than you thought you were capable of and also gain a deep deep appreciation for the resources you’ve taken for granted.
I imagine this ability to work a microwave will be useful in college also.
Lesson 3: ALWAYS pack snacks
Freshman year I lived for three weeks in France. I brought a couple bags of chips for me to enjoy on the plane but didn’t eat all of them so shoved the last two bag in my backpack. About a week later in France I started craving American food. Don’t get me wrong, French food is amazing. And that’s what made me miss my salty, greasy, carbohydrate filled Lays chips so much. I remembered the bags of chips in my bag and pulled them out like prized possessions. Then very strategically I estimated how many chips were in each bag and spread those out so I would get to eat some after every meal. From then on, I would eat an amazing French meal and then sneak away into my room to eat a potato chip-two if it was a Friday.
I was much smarter about snacks in the Philippines. I brought granola, mac and cheese, beef jerky and all my favorite snacks. But I’ve learned to take some snacks everywhere you go. Being in a different environment really makes you miss home sometimes and you never know that feeling will hit you. So I always have emergency Oreos in my backpack just in case. You always want to take a piece of home with you everywhere. And what better thing than food to take you back to happy memories?
