What does travelling turn you into?

Imagine, you are somewhere in the streets of Beijing, late morning. You are very hungry. After looking at the trusty little travel research book which has 3 months’ worth of research (halal food shops/restaurants, prayer times, masjids), you finally find that little halal restaurant tucked along the street. The Islamic calligraphy at the entrance is distinctive with the word, “MaT3am – Hallal”.

You go in. The owners, ethnic Huis who are Muslims, greet you enthusiastically, Salam alaykom… and usher you to a seat upstairs. You look at the menu. Hmmm…not so bad. Like us, the Chinese too eat rice as a staple food. Well, we are Asians, so rice always is a feature in most of our meals. Almost an hour later, you sit down, sipping the last cup of green tea. You have had egg fried rice, some stir fried green vegetables and other stir fried dishes… and also fried milk dough. Yes, fried milk dough is very delicious! Alhamdulillah! It’d been a spread and delicious. Like how one would say in Mandarin, “Chen de hen hao chi”. It means, “Really delicious”.

Well, imagine if you are not open-minded to the cultures of other people. You want *nasi lemak, mee goreng, Lontong, Laksa, teh tarik* for breakfast, like what you normally have for breakfast back home. Well, then there is no enjoyment in travelling. Every country has its unique foods. One should try the foods unique to each country!

*These are mouth-watering local cuisines found in Malaysia and Singapore.

Travelling should/will make you more adventurous in gastronomic adventures! Trust me

Hallal hotpot restaurant in Hohhot

Hallal Mongolian hotpot in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia