As much as Rajasthan is famous for its beautiful palaces, majestic forts and colorful folk dances, the state is also a food lover’s paradise. As I write this post, my heart is longing for all the Rajasthani sweets I have grown up eating!

Rajasthani cuisine has a variety of delicious and lip smacking sweets and snacks. So, if you have a sweet tooth, try out “Makhaniya Lassi” or “Mawa ni Kachori“; if you are a brave heart and cannot resist spices, then go for either “Bikaneri Bhujiya” or “Mirchi Bada”.

If you are not aware of any of these, don’t worry. Just read on :-

Makhaniya Lassi

Made up of sweetened yogurt, with a dollop of cream, this is my personal favorite. A pinch of saffron here and butter there - the drink is ready.

Makhaniya Lassi is a cool drink to beat the extreme summer temperatures. For added flavor, a host of dried fruits are sprinkled on the top.

The Lassi is easy to prepare at home - takes a few minutes and is generally had after the meal. Photo credit

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Thanks to a friend of mine, I have become a regular at the huge second hand clothes market. The taxi driver I always use is not only reasonable but is something of a mine for information on the history of Lusaka. When driving me to the market recently he mentioned that it is on a large compound called ‘mandevu.’ Now I know ‘mandevu’ means beard in the local language Nyanja, so I of course asked why the compound was called, well, ‘beard’. He explained that mostly Zimbabweans had settled there years ago and they had the habit of shaving their heads but leaving their beards to grow. Zambians would refer to Zimbabweans as ‘the ones with beards’ and as a result the compound where they lived adopted the name ‘beard’.

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So you have been in India for a little while. Learnt to do the namaste greeting, visited countless historical monuments, sampled fare at most of the ‘must eat’ places. You are now almost ready for the real deal: a meal at an Indian house.

Wrangling the invite

You would have made Indian friends by now. The trick is to lead the conversation to food, then to homemade food and then to the fact that his mother, wife or even the grandmother cooks like no one else you know.

At this crucial juncture, put on a suitably forlorn expression and declare: ‘Oh! I wish, I could have food like that, no restaurant food can compare to a mother’s/wife’s/grandmother’s cooking…’

There, it is done. From then on, matters follow a pre-determined chain of events and one fine day you are invited to lunch or dinner to your friend’s house.

Indian sweets come in a bewildering range of varieties. Enlist local help when buying.

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When I lived in the more rural area of Eastern Province in Zambia there was a nearby hospital that regularly had volunteers from abroad. We would often see them walking down the road, enjoying the sunshine in their shorts or mini-skirts.

One day a Zambian colleague came and asked why so many white women he saw would cover the top parts of their body but would show their legs and thighs in short skirts. This was not an unreasonable query for someone who comes from a culture where breastfeeding openly is not an issue but where if you are female you must keep everything covered from your midriff down to below your thighs. In Zambia this area of the body is seen as the erotic area and shouldn’t be shown, not even in trousers.

Ladies of the village sporting their chitenges

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Closer to Taipei than Tokyo, Okinawa is a chain of islands stretching from Taiwan to Kyushu. Once an independent nation, known as the Ryukyu Kingdom, it prospered as a natural sea lane between China, Japan and all of Southeast Asia and the influences of these cultures are evident today. (more…)

At PocketCultures we love to hear it from the locals. That’s why we’re building a team of regional contributors from all over the world to bring you insights into their countries and cultures.

And if you’re into travel, or just like reading about different places, here are two cool projects where you can get your city guide from the locals.

Spotted by Locals

Spotted by Locals is a network of city blogs covering 22 European cities. The regulars like Paris, Rome and Barcelona are there, but they also cover some cities that get less coverage. Ljubljana, Zagreb and even Antwerp are all places where knowing a local would definitely come in handy!

Each city blog is brought to you by a team of ’spotters’ who write about their favourite hangouts and travel tips. Because they’re updated regularly you can be sure of getting up to date information.

Metelkova, Ljubljana by Eva Taucar – Spotted by Locals

This is my City

This is my City is a trip by tv making duo Thomas and Tim. They’ve planned a world tour of 8 cities, and in (almost) each place they have managed to enlist a local who will act as their tour guide. They will be filming their escapades and you can watch the pilot (in Reykjavik, Iceland) here.

One condition of their trip? They will not refuse anything their host suggests:

Exposing yourself to local customs and really getting into the way of life might make you uncomfortable. But being a little uncomfortable is not a bad thing. Our rule isn’t about being stupid or reckless, it’s about being always open. If snorting wasabi naked in a snowstorm is something that the locals actually do, we’re up for it.

they said, in this interview with Matador. Sounds like they will be having some crazy adventures, but that kind of open mind is just what you need to get your head around another country’s culture.

Read more:
Sketching the World, one city at a time
A (photo) tale of 50 states - capturing the spirit of the USA
Favourite online hangouts around the world

Lonely Planet is well known for its travel guides to different countries of the world.

The Travel Book is a bit different though. It contains a two page summary for every country in the world! Along with stunning photos there is a mention for the main sights and experiences, tips on where to learn more about the country - books, films etc - and even a couple of words in the local language.

It’s an ambitious project but very nicely done, and a perfect (although obviously a bit superficial) introduction to all those countries you might have heard of but don’t really know anything about…

Lonely Planet’s online shop will ship for free to anywhere in the world, if you spend enough.