From the Field: Eating Pizza in Haiti, Ants in Cambodia and Street Snacks in Mexico!

One perk of travelling as a Kiva Fellow is definitely trying new types of local cuisines all over the world. This week, we asked our fellows to teach us something about their local food scene. Here are some of their mouthwatering responses:

“To be honest, Kenyan cuisine is not that exciting. Ugali (maize flour cooked in water), sukuma (kale cooked with onions and tomatoes), kachumbari (tomato salad), chapati (fried bread), beans and beef stew. That's basically it. However, I had a great Sunday lunch today eating fried fish, sukuma and kachumbari. And of course a cold local beer called Tusker could not be missed. I have to stick to my German roots, I guess.”

- Victoria Ebert in Kenya

“I joined my field partner, MAXIMA, on a rural inclusion marketing day in a province outside Phnom Penh. What was on the Lunch Menu? Fried beef with extra Red Ants!”

-Kate O’Brien in Cambodia

“What Armenians DO NOT eat is probably an easier question to answer! Here we have pickled vegetables, yogurt salad, lavash bread, sheep's cheese, a stewed fruit juice called kompot, beaten beef boiled in brandy and served with bulgur wheat, aubergines stuffed with minced veal, a lamb stew (better known as Khashlama) and the essential apricot vodka which is to the meal as a chorus is to a song, bridging each course with a toast to your loved ones...speaking of song, you get plenty of that too during your meal!”

-Mark McDonagh in Armenia

“Caldo de Gallo. This is a traditional San Juan Compalapa, Guatemalan dish to celebrate a coworker's wedding anniversary.”

-Kelly Diggins in Guatemala

“Mexico City is known for its antojitos - street snacks in all shapes and sizes and flavors and varieties, from tacos stuffed with fried squash blossoms to quesadillas topped with shaved roasted pork to steaming bowls of stewed goat meat to fresh-squeezed watermelon juice to anything (and everything) slathered with avocado slices. But my absolute favorite is very simple and perhaps even a little strange-sounding: esquite, or boiled corn kernels spooned into a styrofoam cup and topped with lime juice, mayonnaise, chili powder and parmesan cheese. Delicioso, saboroso and very easy to eat on the go!”

-Carly Schwartz in Mexico

“This week we got to meet with Kiva Borrower Wilfrid (http://www.kiva.org/lend/728600) who owns a restaurant in downtown Port au Prince. He makes DELICIOUS pizzas from scratch. After the 2010 Earthquake, everything he had was lost, so he used his loan from Kiva to rebuild and buy the equipment to make the treats he serves at his restaurant. The pizzas were fantastic with homemade perfectly flaky dough (made on his new sheeter!), a homemade tomato sauce, and homemade smooth and gooey cheese.”

-Christina Marie Chambers in Haiti