Me (M36) and my partner (M34) have just traveled to his home country in SE Asia. He is from a country that has a vibrant food culture for locals, but is notoriously iffy for Americans like myself due to a difference in food hygiene and contaminated water. It's advised for foreigners to only eat hot and fresh, meats and vegetables from a stir fry, soup, stew, or peeled fruit. We spent a total of two weeks in Asia, both staying with my partner's large family and taking buses or short plane rides to two other countries. We even visited a different part of the country with his family. They were great hosts and I had a wonderful time overall, but my partner was continually frustrated in me with food I turned down. I want to make a few things abundantly clear: 1.) Any meal I declined was done with respect. I never complained, scrunched my nose, or made a face. 2.) I NEVER expected anyone to cater to my tastes or comfortability with food. If I turned down a meal, it was my own responsibility to find something else to eat, and I always did. I never asked for a separate meal to be made just for me, or to go somewhere else to find something I'd want to eat. 3.) Because we had such a busy travel itinerary, I wanted to adhere to caution because hopping on a 10 hour bus ride or an airplane with a foodborne illness sounds miserable. I would've been a bit more adventurous if we stayed in one place longer than two days so I could recover if needed. 4.) I'm sure some of you will think I was being TOO cautious and will likely share stories in the comments about how you ate everything you wanted in similar countries and were totally healthy the whole trip. While I believe you were healthy, that doesn't mean the risk wasn't there. A few meals I turned down include homemade soup and rice that was left at room temperature for 6+ hours, chicken from a street vendor that was hanging in the sun and had a waxy texture, and steamed unseasoned fish (I don't like fishy flavors.) Examples of food I GREATLY enjoyed include his mom's spicy beef stew, rice porridge with sausage, and a fish curry. I ate almost everything that was served to me piping hot. My partner would get angry and huff or roll his eyes at me if I decided to eat something else, and said it's weird to not accept food that's offered to you. While I understand and respect the cultural difference here, I asked if his family feels disrespected if I eat something else since they don't speak English and I can't speak with them directly. He confirmed that they're not feeling disrespected, they just don't know why I don't eat some of those things and he's tired of making excuses for me. At the end of the day, I feel like it's ultimately my choice to decide what I eat. And while I understand there's a cultural difference, I respect and don't judge it, even though I occasionally, politely, and discreetly opted out and inconvenienced no one for occasionally opting out. AITA?   submitted by   /u/Grand-Builder2650   to   r/AmItheAsshole [link]   [comments]