Bat Invasion - Culinary Delights Part 1

Every day around 5pm, droves of fruit bats fly over my ‘hood heading north after spending the day in the centre of Accra around the 37 Military hospital. I really do not have a clue where these bats lodge for the night but aside from giving Accra an eerie gothic feel, they populate trees around the military hospital and occasionally pelt cars as well as pedestrians with their droppings.

If you pass through the 37 area during the day, you are likely to hear the eerie chatter of the bats..

The bats phenomenon has been around for years. Legend has it that these bats accompanied an ailing Akyem chief from a village in the Eastern region of Ghana when he was admitted to the hospital years ago. Unfortunately, the chief passed on but the bats are still waiting for him to be discharged so they can accompany him back home.Waiting for Godot. Over the years, there have been several attempts to drive away the bats. The military launched an assault that involved shooting at them as well as chopping up trees in the area. Alas, all to no avail because the bats still prevail!

Don't get me wrong, bats are not hated by all Ghanaians, apparently they are quite the culinary delight for some people in our fair country especially in the hinterlands from which I hail. Apparently, bat soup is quite the South East Asian delicacy. Although I have never had the pleasure of indulging in bat soup and would be a little wary of some the zoonotic diseases bats may harbour, the sunset migration of these strange creatures yesterday afternoon got me thinking about a number of extraordinary culinary delights I have encountered. So, I think I will spend the week chronicling culinary delights and of course avoiding work.

Palau Style Bat soup - Polynesian Culinary Delights