Two years ago when I had my visit at Jakarta, Indonesia for the ASEAN Bloggers Fest together with fellow bloggers ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, I remember talking about going beyond on what we usually post on our blogs and websites. Here in the Philippines, it is not new for everyone who loves taking photos of their food and uploading it on their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts using different hashtags where they can easily reach their fellow foodies. Food is one of the major contributions on how a certain country make a tourist enjoy his or her visit especially in South East Asia where they have diverse cuisine not to mention the extreme flavors that everyone will never forget.
Social Media is one of the primary tools in getting information outside and one the best example is Aseanita. A Twitter and Facebook account that encourages foodies to share their favorite dishes that can be found in ASEAN countries by mentioning the Twitter account with the hashtag #AseanitaFoodie or sharing it on Facebook by tagging the account. Aseanita is an online female character or should I say the masscot of the campaign to encourage everyone to share their favorite dishes through social media. I want to call it the ASEAN Foodie Exchange where it gives everyone the opportunity to share their favorite dishes online and letting everyone knows about it and response with their favorite dishes too.
But it is more than sharing, the best term I can describe this food and cultural online advocacy is Culinary Tourism. Through the use of social media we can promote the delicious dishes like Kare-Kare of the Philippines, Phat Thai of Thailand, Sate of Indonesia, Bún bò Huế of Vietnam, Khmer Red Curry of Cambodia, Nasi Lemak of Malaysia, Kaeng Nor Mai of Laos and more. With this all the photos uploaded can be an online portfolio featuring the delicious South East Asian cuisine to encourage more tourists to visit ASEAN countries that will contribute to tourism and economy as well.
So next time you dine in your favorite local restaurant try taking photo of your respecting local dishes and share it online either mention ASEANITA on Twitter with the #AseanitaFoodie also on Instragram and of course tagging the official Facebook Page. Together let’s strengthen culinary tourism through the concept of the ASEAN Foodie Exchange.
