Archives for April 2015

While I occasionally get a little too into the “treat yo’self” mode when I’m traveling (and my budget suffers), my travel guilty pleasures, a.k.a.the one thing I can never say no to is FOOD and DRINK. Especially in the form of…SNACKS!

With the budget in mind, since I do need to stick to one on most trips, I tend to eat small meals or snacks everywhere, rather than just one big meal. I like to try crepes and macaroons and more crepes and a baguette and wine rather than have one big meal. I’ll eat a slice of pizza followed by gelato followed by an espresso, rather than spend it all in one restaurant.

I think it’s so much more fun to try small bites at a variety of places (although there is something to be said for a giant meal!). Here are some of my favorite small bites/drinks/snacks I’ve tried from all over the world.

ITALY

I could rave on and on about the food in Italy. It really has earned it’s reputation for eating, I can attest to that! However, it is also ideal for snacking (keep your eye out for this idea I have, because everywhere is ideal for snacking) because the food is not cheap. We found a pizza place with incredible 4euro pizza and went every day. We found a place that served free potato chips with our wine and I could barely contain my excitement. And, let me say that I skipped at least one meal in favor of gelato. I mean, it’s Italy. One of my favorite things about Italy, though, was that a giant and delicious breakfast was included in our hotel stay. I still dream about that breakfast.

THAILAND

The wonderful thing about Thailand in regards to food is, not only is it delicious, but it’s so inexpensive. So even when I had a “big” meal it was about the price of a snack. My favorite dessert was from a cart, called “roti,” kind of like a crispy crepe. I’m a total Thai food snob after going to the country–the pad Thai just isn’t the same as it is in the actual country!

SCOTLAND

I mostly remember hearty meals from Scotland, but I did sample many things: cider, haggis, whisky, cheese. It’s a great country for sampling!

CANADA

My favorite Canadian snack we tried in Victoria, British Columbia was hands-down poutine. Poutine is essentially fries with gravy and cheese curds. I know. I was a bit skeptical because I don’t love gravy all that much, except at Thanksgiving, but I looooved poutine. Even gravy can’t ruin the combination of fries and cheese curds.

CZECH REPUBLIC

My current host country is not known for its snacking culture, but rather it is known for having one of the most rib-sticking cuisines in Europe. Never fear, however: I’ve put my genius snack-finding abilities on the case and I’ve managed to find a variety of snacks and small plates all over the country! One that has eluded me photographically wise that I have to tell you about is topinky: fried bread with garlic cloves. Yes, that’s right–you rub the clove right into the toasty bread, and it’s so simple yet so amazing.

^^Jan’s is a fantastic place for snacks, as they are famous for their inexpensive open-faced sandwiches–cheap enough for you to try at least two! ^^sampling mead in Český Krumlov.

CALIFORNIA

A quick weekend in Northern California a few years ago involved wine, sourdough bread bowls, clam chowder, Ghiradelli’s shakes, and more wine. When in Napa, right?

GERMANY

Germany’s Christmas markets are a paradise for someone like me, who loves to try a variety of small tastes and many drinks. We had fantastic food at the markets–but of course what I loved the most was, you guessed it, the mulled wine and hot eggnog.

CHINA

My favorite thing about the Chinese culture has to be their habit of communal eating. I can’t even name or number the many dishes I tried, just because someone ordered them and they were on the table. One of my favorite dishes from the Sichuan province is called hotpot, where everyone has a giant pot of soup, and then they can choose what to cook in it, from veggies to meat to spices. After enough time, everyone digs into the broth for the cooked food. Again, I can only name about half the things we actually ate in the hotpot, but they were so good!

^^you have to try dumplings while in China, of course! ^^this rice porridge was one of my favorite foods in Beijing.

FRANCE

France, and Paris especially, is a great place for snacks, not only because it’s the land of crepes. It’s also because it might be the most expensive city, food-wise (and in many other respects) that I’ve ever been too. Luckily Paris is full of crepe stands and bakeries and cafés to help you taste a variety of small foods and attempt to keep your budget in check.

 

MEXICO

It’s probably a sad state of affairs that while I loved the food in Mexico, I hardly remember what we ate–but I do remember the drinks!

BELGIUM

Belgium is the land of snacks. The first time we were in Belgium, besides a few pasta dishes, all I wanted to eat were snacks, mainly fries, waffles and chocolate. Oh, and beer. Does beer count as a snack? Maybe it does when you drink little samples of it?

ENGLAND

By far, my favorite “snack” to have in England was afternoon tea. There are so many options–and I loved all of the tea services we had. The Orangery at Kensington Palace is amazing if you want something fancy, but I also loved the simple ones that just had tea and scones and, most importantly, clotted cream!

^^and you can’t forget fish’n’chips with mushy peas!

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What’s your travel guilty pleasure?!

Linking up with Emma, Kelly and Rebecca for their monthly Travel Link-Up.