When it comes to learning about a new culture, I'm a big believer that food is a major part of the learning process. How, when, and what people eat can give you a lot of insight into not only their diet, but also their culture and beliefs.
But, I won't lie — some food traditions are just weird.
You've probably heard that bugs show up on the menu in many countries. As snacks, usually, but sometimes as regional delicacies, too.
Cambodia is one of the countries where you'll find bugs for sale at many markets. Not just any kind of bugs, though.
Cambodia's bug specialty is big, juicy, fried SPIDERS.
Now, I'm not really afraid of spiders. I mean, I don't particularly LIKE them with their too-many legs and their sinister way of scuttling across floors and up walls. But I usually don't scream when I'm around them.
But EATING a fried tarantula? I wasn't sure I could do it.
During my tour of Cambodia with Intrepid Travel, we had a planned stop in a town called Skuon in between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. The town is known for its touristy highway market where kids ply you with bags of fruit and other snacks — including bugs.
The village, often referred to as “Spiderville,” is a top spot to try Cambodia's delicacy of fried spiders.
The day before (when I let a live tarantula climb up my arm at a restaurant), I was fully prepared to at least nibble on a leg in Spiderville. They were crunchy, people had said. I could handle crunchy.
But a sleepless night spent hugging the toilet in my hotel room with a bout of mild food poisoning changed my plans. The thought of eating ANYthing that morning — let alone a crunchy spider leg — sent my stomach churning.
And so, I could do nothing but commend my fellow adventurous travelers and politely decline the snacks offered to me over and over by a persistent Cambodian girl with a live spider tucked into her shirt.
In this food battle, the food won.
I'll eat you next time, spiders. Next time…
What do you think? Would YOU try a spider?
*Note: I visited Spiderville as part of a complimentary tour of Vietnam and Cambodia with Intrepid Travel. As always, though, all opinions are my own.
If you're interested in the Cambodia portion of this same trip, check it out here.
Amanda Williams is the award-winning blogger behind A Dangerous Business Travel Blog. She has traveled to more than 60 countries on 6 continents from her home base in Ohio, specializing in experiential and thoughtful travel through the US, Europe, and rest of the world. Amanda only shares tips based on her personal experiences and places she's actually traveled!
Exotic Asian street food! I tried a few but I didn’t try spider. It feels creepy chewing them.Haha! Nice try Amanda!
The fact that “it feels creepy chewing” bugs might just put me off them altogether!
I’m a fairly adventurous eater and have tried a whole bunch of weird things during our time in Asia, but even I passed on the giant tarantulas. I’m not arachnophobic either, but I just can’t imagine those being delicious. I have heard the middle bit is squishy and has some kind of funky ooze inside of it… If I was with a local who felt very strongly that I try them because they personally loved eating spiders, I would probably have given it a try, but part of me wonders whether this isn’t just some big gag to see what they can get tourists to eat! (I definitely felt that way in Beijing, by the way, where they have streets devoted to selling the freakiest foods possible and honestly, only foreigners were buying and trying it!)
Hahahaha that’s an awesome theory, Steph! They’re probably just all laughing at us behind our backs. 😉
Gross!
Seems to be the common reaction.
Hahaha that music on your video just does it all:D
I have to say I read this entire post with a face that reflected disgust.
I know it’s stupid and that it’s a cultural thing, but yikes, that doesn’t look yummy at all:D
I think I’d try them, though. At least a leg or so:D
Haha, I had fun making the video, if you couldn’t tell. 😉
*Shudders* I stopped in Skuon during my very first week in Southeast Asia. I HATE spiders! I was terrified! I was also told that if I didn’t get off the bus the local kids would throw the spiders at me somehow. So, off I the bus I got and kept my distance from the spidery action. Eventually, a friend convinced me to at least taste the leg of one barbequed spider. It wasn’t great. I could taste the hairs on its leg! UGH! Blech! I’m all about trying new foods but spider is not one I’d snack on again!!
You could taste the hairs? Gross!!! Good on you for facing your fears though!
I wouldn’t call other different food cultures weird just because I am not used to them. I saw markets in Chiang Mai Thailand selling roasted bugs, crickets and worms and it was fascinating, but I could never eat them. I wish I had the guts to do it though. You are so brave with that spider, I scream for a microscopic one, and you have a huge one on your arm!!! That is amazing.
Well, they are weird to me! And, I haven’t met any non-local who would consider eating giant fried spiders normal. 😉 But yeah, always interesting to head to the market in this part of the world!
Wow, Amanda. Respect for even contemplating eating a spider. I will be in Cambodia this time next week and am considering this post to be a warning!
Hahaha, don’t visit Spiderville if you don’t like spiders!!
eeeeeew! Good on you for giving it a shot, I don’t think I could do that! I can barely even look at a spider that big from a distance without shaking in my boots! In NZ we have a wild foods festival, and they serve different random (and gross!) foods like that – some people are so brave!
I’ve heard about the Wild Food Festival in NZ! I think it would be fun to go someday.
I don’t blame you for not trying whether you were sick or not. I don’t think I could do it, well maybe a nibble on the leg but that’s it. I think I’d still be creeped out picking up the dead spider let alone eating it.
If I hadn’t been sick, I think I would have at least nibbled on a leg, just to say I did. But considering we still had a couple of hours to go on a mini bus, I didn’t want to risk it!
I was offered a bit of spider by a fellow traveller in Phnom Penh last summer. I’d already had a bit of frame grilled dragonfly in the jungles of Ratanakiri, so had one of the legs- quite chewy and didn’t taste of much more than the barbecue sauce. Nobody could face eating the body though!
At least two people in our group ate the body… *shudder.* The looks on their faces suggested that it tasted horrible!
Urgh! I’m absolutely TERRIFIED of spiders, so a pile of enormous dead spiders as a food option would be my hell on earth. The only thing that could make it worse would be if they were all alive and scuttling.
I like to think I would try most foods (and I happily took chicken essence when I had a bad knee in Singapore), but I would probably have to draw the line at this!
I can totally understand! Personally, the idea of fried scorpions actually freaks me out more than spiders, I think. They are scuttle-y PLUS have a stinger and pincers! Blech.
I agree with you about trying local customs but there are a few lines I just can’t cross. I have eaten bull testicles, octopus and fried rat but I really am terrified of spiders and I almost cried just looking at this. This is just a no for me.
Well I really appreciate you reading the post then! But yeah, I totally understand – there are some lines that it’s totally fine to refuse to cross!
I tried! My Intrepid tour leader bought one and doled out legs!!! I tried one and ended up spitting it out – it tasted horrible. Just before that I did manage to eat a deep fried cricket though. That market in Skuon was the stuff of nightmares.
If you are afraid of bugs, yes, that market is indeed the stuff of nightmares!!
Haha, the spider didn’t taste like chicken?!? I’ve been misled…
Just three words: Oh HELL no!!
Hahaha. Fair enough, Laura!
I think this is a post I will have semi-nightmares about for a while 🙂 I don’t have arachnophobia but seeing those images and knowing that people (willingly) eat them…too much for me! But to each one’s culture I guess!
P.S. I’ve been offered fried grasshoppers and ants when in Mexico…never tried, never will.I am not a fan of the insect variety!
Haha, sorry Julie! I think one of these days I’ll try fried bugs. But this day in Cambodia just wasn’t it!