In Laos, however, she still finds a choice, and to eat well and naturally is a real option. Practically everything is grown locally, seasonally and without chemicals, and prepared in a traditional manner, she finds. Ironically, the main reason for this availability is lack of interest by the multinationals due to the difficulty of finding a profitable market in such a poor country.
Like the Laotians, du Pont de Bie takes a delight in food, in the nutritional value of mulberry-leaf tea (good for preventing diabetes, reducing cholesterol and high blood pressure), for instance, and in the river algae of Luang Prabang,
"supposedly one of the most nutritious foods for its weight in the world." She also displays a sensuous feel for the alchemy of smell and texture represented by a Lao chicken Laap "placed hot and steaming in front of you." She marvels at the taste of a baked potato, cooked in banana leaves in the embers of a fire,"small and hot and infused with the aroma of the leaves in which it was cooked."
Yet it's the Lao people who hold a special place in her heart. When she's given a child's flower hat as a gift from a woman whose baby she's been admiring -- grubby and missing its silver buttons, yet "exquisitely appliqued and topped with pom-poms" -- she reflects on the source of their generosity.
"Throughout my tour," she writes, "I found the Laotian people to be genuinely benevolent, rich or poor, Buddhist or Taoist. The idea of community lies at the center of this: the old and the very young are seen as valued contributors to society, familial and neighborly relationships are nurtured to the benefit of all, and people look beyond their own individual needs to help others less fortunate than themselves. My own culture began to look cold and self-referential by comparison."
That such people are in daily danger of having their legs blown away by cluster bombs and landmines manufactured by the world's most sophisticated industrial processes, and casually left uncleared despite the enormous wealth available for the job, makes me so angry I can scarcely read any book on the country without the blackest of thoughts.
Nonetheless Ant Egg Soup (which does devote a chapter to this terrible situation) remains a gift for anyone with an adventurous palette, and pure gold for those hungering to venture beyond the cheap allure of fast-food. In addition, the author's vigorous approach to whatever life throws at her makes, on its own, reading this book a memorable experience.
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