24/03/10
Don Khon
I am in a little restaurant. 12 noon. It is very basic. 9 little tables on a verandah overlooking the Mekong. Chickens running around. Ducks in the water below. I am trying to explain to the owner that I just want some raw vegetables. It is easily over 30 degrees. My body is craving salad. People here eat salad with their noodle soup. I just want the salad. I go into the simple kitchen hoping to find what I am looking for. I point to the bean sprouts, the greens. I open the refrigerator and point to the cucumbers. They look at me perplexed. Finally I find Lao green salad with eggs on the menu. I point to this, my finger covering the eggs. No eggs, I say and hope for the best.
The orange juice I ordered has just arrived. They have added sugar. The salad finally arrives. It is slightly wilted. i think they dip it in boiling water. It is doused in a sauce which appears to be mayonnaise diluted with fish sauce. At least it isn't the well loved shrimp sauce which I find a little revolting.
No comments:
Post a Comment