eating well

Tacaca - traditional amazon soup made with Tucupi, prawns, Jambu and Goma. (2.50$)

Fried fish, salsa and a big bowl of fresh Acai(4$)

With a cup of Mango juice(50 cents)

The local cuisine is ultimately exotic, amazingly weird and healthy. Yesterday, I finally had my first taste of Tacaca, which is a traditional soup from the natives. The locals always warned me not to trust street food (Even though the whole city is full of street side make-shift restaurants) But after searching endlessly for Tacaca in licensed restaurants, I discovered that the most traditional cuisine is only found on the street. Tacaca is a hot soup made from tucupi broth, with jambu ( a leafy green that numbs your tongue) plenty of garlic, prawns, and the ultimate surprise - GAMU. I really enjoyed this hot soup, even though it is 35 degree weather. But when I got to the bottom and saw this strange jelly fish bobbing around, I felt like running to the toilet. At first I thought it was a dirty joke, to spit in my soup. Then I noticed it was too big to be man made, and thought it was a jellyfish, which was causing the extreme numbness in my mouth. I left it in the bowl. I later discovered it is actually a gelatin made from the Madioca root, like a tapioca. I am still unsure if I would eat it, but at least I dont need to get my stomach pumped. yummy.

in other news, I eat acai daily, and I will surely have withdrawals from this powerful nutritional berry when I return to snowy montreal.