To Eat or Not To Eat…

One of my favorite things to do when I travel is eat as much of the local food as I can. Having seen Anthony Bourdain eat from the tables of street vendors in Port-au-Prince, I figured I’d be fine. I mean, if he can do it, so can I, right?

Many of us know what it’s like to pick up a hot dog or knish from a street vendor in a big city. But filling a plate with rice and beans and the local chicken in another country is something completely different. It looked wonderful and smelled just as delicious. With so many food vendors on so many streets, how could I possibly choose one?

Not only are there vendors selling hot food at all hours, but there are even more tables set up with fresh fruit and vegetables grown in backyards and along the Haitian countryside. It’s possible to pick up everything that is needed to create an entire meal at just one of these stands.

Markets open as early as 6am so most begin the long and winding trek to their stand long before dawn. It is not unusual to see farmers walking to the local market or loading up the tap tap with goods at 4:00 AM. If you happen to be on a tap tap at this time of the morning, you are sure to be squeezed in between bags of meal and flour, baskets of fruits and vegetables, and live chickens, hopefully strung on lines along the outside of the vehicle rather than in a basket at your feet.

The traditional Haitian breakfast of spaghetti with hot dogs is a great way to start the day. I thought about this meal during lunch and dinner.

Rice is common. Spicy rice, beans and rice, seafood and rice…

My favorite dish was this homemade bouillon, which is a hearty stew with chicken, carrots, potatoes, dough fingers, and loads of spices.

So much food, so little time.