In Thailand, people do not eat with chopsticks, which is different from China, Japan and Korea. They use spoons and forks. People will cut most food before meals. If you need to cut food during meals, use the side of your spoon first and then use your fork.

The spoon is more important than the fork. People in Thailand use spoons more often than forks. If you are left-handed, keep the spoon in your left hand and the fork in your right hand.

People in Thailand like eating rice. The rice is not on the same plate with the other food. Each person eats rice on his own plate. It’s not necessary to finish all your rice or all your food. It is good to leave a little on your plate. If you eat up all the food on your plate, it means you want more.

You don’t need to worry if your food on the plate is not enough. Because the host will ask you twice or three times if you want more food. It’s the same as drinks. During the meal, never empty your cup or glass. When it’s less than half full, your host or neighbor will fill it again. Never fill your own glass. It’s polite to fill the glass for your neighbor. That means you must keep an eye on your neighbor’s glass during the meal.

Foods that are well known to you may not be familiar to people from different places around the world. Travelers often get to try some unfamiliar food. That is part of the fun of traveling. Here are four people’s experiences with foreign food.

David King is a Chinese student in France. “I never had cheese or even milk before I came to France. Cows are seldom seen in my part of China. So there is no milk or milk products. I drank some milk when I first arrived in France. I hated it! I tried cheese, too, but I didn’t like it. I love ice cream, though that’s made from milk.”

Birgit is from Sweden. She traveled to Australia on vacation. “I was in a restaurant that was special in fish. I heard some other people order flake, so I ordered some, too. It was delicious! Later, I learned that the flake is an Australian name for shark. Now, whenever I see a new food, I try it on purpose. You know why? I remember how much I enjoyed flake.”

Chandra is a dentist in Texas. She is from India. “I’m afraid to try new foods because maybe there is beef in them. I’m a Hindu(印度教信徒) and my religion(信仰) stops me from eating meat from the cow. That’s why I can’t eat hamburgers or noodles with meatballs.”

Nathan is from the United States. He taught for a year in China. “My friend gave me some 100-year-old eggs to eat. I didn’t like their appearance at all. The eggs were green inside, but my friends said the color was normal. Chinese people put something on fresh eggs. Then they put them in the earth for three months. So the eggs weren’t really very old. Even so, I didn’t want to touch them.”