I will begin this journal entry with a disclaimer...... Pete and I LOVE animals, especially dogs. We have an old beagle named Petey, being cared for by Pete's dad, and who is eagerly awaiting our return (actually he's so melancholy he probably hasn't even noticed we are gone, but we miss him). We also had a great dane mix, Rylee, who followed a close second to Pete as being the love of my life. We had to put him to sleep in June and it was one of the worst things we have ever been through. We still miss him terribly. While in SE Asia we have picked up, cradled and kissed every puppy we have met, longing to stash them in our backpacks and take them home with us. That said.........
Before coming to SE I had heard that the Vietnamese eat dogs. I thought....naaaaawwww, that can't be true, but sure enough Google proved me wrong. It said it could be ordered at many restaurants, especially in northern Vietnam. We had several discussions about whether we would partake in a canine feast. Pete wavered, looking longingly into Petey's eyes, not sure whether he could or not. I on the other hand was all in, thinking of it as a cultural experience. But in the back of my mind there was always that little voice saying....Can I really cross that line? What if I really like it? Will I start adopting them from animal shelters, or kidnapping my friends pets to make doggie lasagna?
Our friend Lisa, who teaches English in Hanoi, confirmed what we had heard. The Vietnamese do eat dog. They eat them for good luck and only at certain times of the month based on the cycle of the moon. Our curiosity was piqued, but we never actively searched it out or came across it, until......
Pete, Tara, Tyler and I end one of our days of motorcycling through northern Laos in the small town of PhouKhoun. After checking into our guesthouse we search for dinner. The “town” is pretty much one street and we easily find the only eating establishment still open. It has a small buffet table with rice and various types of mystery meats. One of them we quickly recognise as fried rat; this and a stew with a very visible jaw bone in it make me lose my appetite. Tyler goes for the safe bet and orders some chicken, and the rest of us go with the always reliable Beer Lao and sticky rice. We make small talk with the sweet girl that works there and find out that the stew is none other than man's best friend. We all cringe and it unnerves me a bit, but we make the decision that this is something we have to try and just for good measure we throw in a rat. We only order a small bite of dog stew, but we have to order a whole rat because this is our only option and watch as the girl hacks it up into pieces like you would a chicken tender. We each only have a few small bites of both, with the exception of Tara who refrains and is probably the smarter of the four of us for doing so. We all agree that the dog is not so bad...actually its kinda good...a little gamey. I think the rat is disgusting, but Pete and Tyler think its ok.
As we sit and finish our beers a friendly cat jumps into Tyler's lap. Pete says “You know.... it would be really awesome if we fed the cat some dog.” Without a second thought Tara does the deed. It gobbles it up and I swear I see a sinister little smile cross its whisker adorned lips and can almost hear it laugh diabolically and say “Ohhhh the irony.....
Photo by Goingslowly