The Foodie International - The Woman Who Eats Anything. Whoopa! Finally, there is a woman after my own heart. And she will eat anything, just for the thrill of it. Have food; she will eat. This is Elyse Pasquale, 34, a theater producer from New York's goal. She calls herself as the Foodie International and wants to eat a gazillion different meals across 100,000 miles around the world before the end of this year. She just has about 5000 more miles more to go. I'm not sure how she manages to fund her trip, so I have asked her the same on her blog; foodieinternational.com. I don't know what her reply is going to be, but If I had that kinda of money, I would love to do something like that. I also like the fact that it is a woman who is doing this sort of traveling to discover and taste authentic local food. She thinks that food can be awesome even if it does not come from a Michelin-starred restaurant. I'm impressed already.

Elyse describes that food and travel are her leading passions and is a way of her life. In her website, she says that, in 2009, she had the opportunity to travel to fascinating places around the world, sampling some exotic cuisines. She witnessed a life altering moment when she saw a pig slaughter in her home town of Tuscany in January, 2010. And after that she just had to do the 100,000 miles/ meals project. There was no going back.

So when someone asked Elyse as to why she was doing this, she replied saying, “Some people travel the world to visit important monuments and historical sites, some visit museums and learn about diverse cultures through art. I'm interested in learning about various cultures around the world through their cuisine. I've found that one thing every culture has in common is a love for food!” She is quite right about that. Food for world peace!

Now, what exactly does Elyse mean by saying that she will eat anything? Does this include cats and dogs? That was a question asked to her by one of her readers in her blog. She replied saying, “In my travels I have yet to run into a culture where dogs or cats appear on the menu! I'm not trying to be "Bizarre Foods" here, but I do realize that some cultures may consider one type of food to be disgusting, where other cultures consider it a symbol of national culinary pride. I'm aware that in the past, animals like cats and dogs have been consumed world-wide in historically difficult times, but I'm much more interested in the dishes and foods that truly represent a country's culture. I've never heard of a culture where cats and dogs are considered the national dish! When I say I'll eat everything, I mean it in the context that if I'm at a family dinner halfway around the world, I will certainly eat everything that's served to me out of respect to my hosts and their traditions.”

I really hope that Elyse finishes her 100,000 mile journey before this year ends and I wish her good luck.

Image Courtesy: foodieinternational.com