Farewell Dinner!

Its almost officially summer vacation. One of my former students took us all out to dinner last Friday to celebrate and to say goodbye since he may not be returning next term. They introduced us to several dishes from their hometown that we had never tried. Namely, bamboo worm, bee larvae and crickets. I braved all but the larvae. They were all fried to a crisp and tasted like a chip but the plump larvae threatened a gooey center and I just couldn't do it. The calf liver and stomach with rice noodles, served cold with a spicy cilantro sauce was surprisingly addictive. I picked out the stomach parts. I had a bad experience once. The brown goop in the banana leaf was a sweet rice paste glob that tasted surprisingly like coffee. It was to thick to eat the whole thing and Frank wouldn't try it. He looked very sad as these strange dishes kept coming. He glanced at me as if to say, "guess I'm going hungry tonight." I think our student caught on and the final dish was a whole barbecued chicken. Without worrying about appearances, I speared the largest piece and put it on his plate. I enjoyed just about everything and it was just nice to have them feel comfortable around us, somewhat. I don't know if I will be coming back to this school once I start school myself but I know I will miss this great bunch of kids! Have a great Summer!
mandy