Market in Vietnam
Right before leaving Vietnam, things started getting a little bit weird. I think it was because of our proximity to China, because China is definitely wacky. Anyhoo, we went to this market near the border and it was an experience for sure. I know that especially in the US, we are very distanced from our food. I learned this by seeing what being close to your food is. We were all prepared for some weird stuff at the market and we were looking forward to trying something new, but when we got there, we couldn't manage anything that we found. It was all noodle soup with goat or pig fat or things like that. Things that are a little wacky, but mostly just really unappetizing. The most interesting area of the market is where you buy the live food. At the end of the strip of looky-looky-land (the place where cute women grab you and start draping you in jewelry and scarves and whatever they sell in their stand) where the western people venture no further, is where you buy things that you plan to eat later- complete with goats, ducks, chickens, squealing pigs and even dogs. Yes, that is right, dogs. When you see the food that people will be eating and it's a live animal and the people don't even flinch at picking it up by it's claws, you realize how much we distance ourselves from our food. It was an eye-opening experience.