Tastes differ

One day a friend of mine from North Sulawesi (Minahasa) sent me a favorite dish, the ingredients of which consists mostly of bat's meat. Although the dish is considered a delicacy in that part of Indonesia, it is not popular or liked by the people on Java island. Perhaps it is due to the strange appearance of a bat which reminds people of a vampire, even though a bat feasts on insects and fruit and is therefore quite hygienic and nutritious. As I am well acquainted with a physician hailing from Minahasa, I presented the food to her. The next day she rang me up to express her gratitude for the special delicacy. Tastes do differ!

Some time ago, CNN aired the white population of South Africa feasting on termites and grasshoppers during a garden party get- together. They ate with relish and the CNN announcer explained that not only is a grasshopper burger very tasteful, it is a well-known fact that it is full of protein.

Another phenomenon was televised by CNN. In a remote village in Cambodia, there is a cow regarded by the people as being holy. The report showed a woman drinking the cow's urine as if she was drinking champagne, while her six-year-old son was preoccupied with gathering the cow's dung in a tin can.

Again, human palates differ!

A. DJUANA

Jakarta