Chewing the betel nuts (seeds of the areca palm) is an ancient part of the Micronesian culture.
Spitting blood red betel nut juice is culturally acceptable here on Pohnpei. For young and old ladies, men and kids to spit near you is commonplace. An expert chewer could spit the butt off a termite; their force and aim are that good.
That is something I'd like to see.
I did try betel nut one time. The buzz is like a cigarette. I can't say that I enjoyed it, I just thought I should try it if I was going to make an opinion of it. It was acidic, bitter, chlorophylly, hard and stringy. I am culturally trained to not spit in public, but my saliva glands went immediately to overflow-rinse-out mode. I had to spit red staining juice off the mat at a cultural event where not a few eyes were on me to see how the white lady is going to do with the betel nut. I did make it a troubled 10 minutes before taking the two-year-olds to the bathroom and then spitting the mouthful out behind the building. It was such a relief. I realize this is not enough to form a solid opinion, but I've now had a taste of it and that may be enough.
Chewing is part of the culture. People sit around, tell stories, chew and spit, chew and spit. Many long-time chewers have the most amazing ability to simultaneously chew a large wad of betel nut and talk without drooling on themselves or spraying spittle.
The betel nut grows on palm trees and is sold in almost every small store.
The waxy green seed pod is bitten in half with a crunch, sprinkled with ground coral (yes, coral!) known as “powdered lime” and frequently topped with a half of a commercial cigarette and then covered by a pepper leaf.
Mouth cancer is prevalent here and between chewing betel nut and eating a diet high in sugar, soda and salt, hardly anyone's smile is looking healthy. Even young kids have rotted out teeth. The people who do not chew frequently and bush their teeth and eat healthfully have great teeth and great smiles.
I did try betel nut one time. The buzz is like a cigarette. I can't say that I enjoyed it, I just thought I should try it if I was going to make an opinion of it. It was acidic, bitter, chlorophylly, hard and stringy. I am culturally trained to not spit in public, but my saliva glands went immediately to overflow-rinse-out mode. I had to spit red staining juice off the mat at a cultural event where not a few eyes were on me to see how the white lady is going to do with the betel nut. I did make it a troubled 10 minutes before taking the two-year-olds to the bathroom and then spitting the mouthful out behind the building. It was such a relief. I realize this is not enough to form a solid opinion, but I've now had a taste of it and that may be enough.
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