Turkey and Grease or Turkey and Greece Quiz

Answer: Qatar

To get my ingredients for my machbous, I traveled to Qatar on the Arabian Peninsula. I found a nice little market in the country's capital, Doha. It cost a few riyal (Qatar's currency) to purchase my supplies, but before long, I was ready to head to the next country to get more ingredients.

Machbous is a rice-based dish that can be found in many countries from the Arabian Peninsula. Some countries call it "kabsa", but a few, such as Qatar, call the dish machbous. Machbous is made with rice, meats, vegetables, and spices. Recipes can vary greatly; different spices, meats and vegetables, as well as the addition of sultanas or almonds.

Answer: Bahrain

Since I was in Qatar previously, it wasn't too far a trip to head to Bahrain to learn about Dilmun directly from the source. Bahrain is found in the Persian Gulf, and is a small island just northwest of Qatar.

According to legend, it was actually the site of the Biblical utopia known as the Garden of Eden. However, according to Genesis chapter 2, the Garden was located where one river became four; namely the Pison, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates. Likely, then, Eden was not found in Bahrain, but rather in a place such as Turkey, Ethiopia, or India (where there are actually four branched rivers within). But, hey, who doesn't love a good legend?

Answer: Taiwan

My airplane landed in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, and I headed to the Keelung Temple Night Market right away. To reach it, I would have to travel to the Dianji Temple, where this famous night market is located.

The famous Night Markets of Taiwan include many stalls that sell all sorts of stuff; clothing, goods, xiaochi and other foods. Xiaochi are not usually cooked within the home or even at restaurants, and are most commonly bought from stalls on street markets. These Night Markets are generally rather crowded with people and very loud; music plays and vendors shout.

Answer: Seychelles

Arriving in Victoria, the capital of Seychelles, I noticed it was packed with people. Imagine my surprise when I learned later the country has a smaller population than any other in Africa. It just happens to be a very small nation made of dozens of islands. Seychelles is found in the Indian Ocean.

If you do an online search for a black terrapin, you will learn that their shell is what is black, but I believe it is their sky blue skin that is their most distinguishing feature. Not much is known about the Seychelles black terrapin, except that it is endemic to Seychelles, and quite possibly now extinct.

Answer: Cuba

The capital of Cuba is Havana, which is also located on the main island of Cuba. Perhaps, like me, you did not realize Cuba consisted of more than just one giant island; there is also the Isla de la Juventud as well as a number of archipelagos.

Cuban cuisine has many delicious options, such as pastelitos (fruit-filled flaky pastries), croquetas, and, my favorite, fried plantains. Croquetas, or croquettes, are little fried delights with mashed potatoes or ground meat, bechamel sauce, vegetables, fish, and all sorts of other ingredients. Possibilities are endless. "Croquette" is from a French word meaning "to crunch", which is fitting, since the fried foods have a crunchy exterior.

Answer: Laos

I once had a friend who was from Vientiane, which is the capital of Laos. The country is mainly bordered by Vietnam and Thailand, though it also shares a border with China, Burma, and Cambodia.

The khene is a mouth organ made of bamboo. Lam is a style of music where someone will sing extemporaneously while the khene is being played. One story as to how the khene came to be was a woman trying to imitate the garawek bird.

Answer: Syria

To make my yabra', I arrived in Damascus to get some Syrian ingredients. Damascus, the capital of Syria, has been populated for centuries, dating back possibly to the seventh millennium, in 6,300BC. It was also mentioned in the Bible a number of times, such as Genesis 14:15. In the Scripture, it was referred to as Damascus, so it can be assumed the city has been populated at least that long.

Yabra' is a Syrian dish made with grape leaves. It is one of the many varieties of Balkan and Middle Eastern cuisine known as dolma, which are vine leaves stuffed with many sorts of foods. Yabra' is from the Turkish word yabrak which means leaf.

Answer: Belize

I know a lot of people around the world, and one friend of mine moved to Belize, a beautiful Central American country with a wonderful climate (I've seen pictures and heard stories!). It is the home to the Belize Barrier Reef, the second largest in the world, second only to the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. The capital of Belize is Belmopan.

The goblin of Belize known as the Tata Duende is a short creature with a beard. He protects the jungle and the animals of the Central American country, and also appeared on a postage stamp from a folklore series. Perhaps he would have enjoyed some of my escabeche, an onion soup of Belize (though originating in the Mediterranean, as a dish containing fish).

Answer: Egypt

Egypt is, of course, home to famous cities such as Cairo (the capital), Luxor, and Alexandria, to name but a few. It is also famed for its pyramids, in Giza, the Sphinx, and the Nile River. The country has been populated for millennia, but was declared its own nation only in 1953.

Ful medames (or medammis) is a staple in Egypt and Sudan. It is made with mashed fava beans and herbs and spices. Though ful medammas (yet another spelling) is quite popular in Egypt nowadays, it was not necessarily always the case. Some scholars reference Herodotus as saying Egyptians in the 5th century BC did not sow beans, and if wild beans would be found, they would not even eat them.

Answer: Greece

Greece is located in the southeastern part of Europe. I arrived in Athens for my ingredients; Athens is the country's capital and largest city. While in Athens, I visited the Parthenon, a temple devoted to Athena.

Baklava is a sweet dessert that is phyllo pastry filled with nuts and covered in honey. The dessert is very sweet, but for a delicious end to a wonderful night, I couldn't imagine any other dessert.

I also served another Greek dessert known as galaktoboureko. This is made with custard inside of phyllo pastry. It is soaked in a syrup made of lemon and honey. It is similar to mille-feuille, though the custard is baked inside of galaktoboureko instead of added afterwards.