The next 'hotdog stand' does have a grill, placed over a large bin of charcoal, with flattened chicken quarters sizzling on sticks that you eat like a Popsicle; next door to that is yet another steel cart heaped with fresh, ripe pineapple, mango and papaya, and sporting a huge mortar and pestle for transforming greener papayas into a crunchy, sweet-sour-spicy salad with morsels of shrimp or squid, chiles, garlic and sugar.

What makes Thai food so delicious and distinctive among other Southeast Asian food is this unique blending of fresh herbs, spices and other ingredients that combine for a perfect balance of sweet, sour, salt and heat that leaves your mouth feeling clean and your tastebuds popping in afterglow.

Fresh fruit, salads and even soups and noodles are ladled into plastic bags with a skewer, fork, spoon or straw for eating on go or perched on a folding chair at a nearby metal card table in market.

Thai buses and trains become moving picnic grounds, with everyone chatting, eating and sharing fare hawked through vehicles' windows at roadside stops and terminals: Gai Yang, flattened barbecue chicken on a stick, skewered meat and fish balls and sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves.

Carnivals and markets feature huge woks at knee-height, bubbling with deep-fried critters of all sorts, many unidentifiable. Are they grasshoppers? crickets? spiders? baby birds? small frogs? -- my mouth and eyes were constantly wide open in wonder and amazement!

I spent an inordinate amount of time in fresh produce and night food markets -- exuberantly fascinated and often visibly discombobulated, to great amusement of vendors and shoppers.

After traversing every aisle of food carts and woks on my mission to find freshest, most interesting and tasty-looking dishes, I was often met with earnestly shaking heads or "No, you don't want that - that's Thai food!" by English speaking cooks or bystanders when I pointed and gestured and tried to ask for a meal I knew I truly wanted. On my first such adventure, I did not know that custom was for cook to show ladle with amount of garlic and chili for you to indicate how much you wanted: thinking she was simply asking if I wanted those Thai ingredients, I nodded vigorously at heaped display, and in it all went! Yes, it was Thai food, and I enjoyed every sizzling touch to my lips under watchful, laughing eyes of vendors and bystanders who had gathered.

1. Swap homes with other vacationers If you prefer to mingle with locals rather than other tourists, look into a home exchange vacation. One couple spent their eight-week honeymoon touring Europe without ever staying in a hotel; instead, they stayed in private homes while their European hosts stayed in their New York City apartment. Sound risky? Maybe—but tens of thousands of people have exchanged homes since 1950s. For an annual membership fee (usually around $50), home exchange clubs help members arrange exchanges, as well as offering tips to make exchange go smoothly. According to ExchangeHomes.com, a home exchange can cut travel costs by as much as half. More importantly, though, a home exchange vacation makes it possible for you to live like locals, and perhaps make some life-long friends.

2. Rely on hospitality of others In a slight twist on home exchange idea, look into joining a hospitality club that will hook you up with people willing to host you on your next vacation. The largest hospitality club has more than 23,000 members in 148 countries. Membership is usually free, although members are asked to provide hospitality to others (on a voluntary basis) in return sometime in future. In addition to saving money, staying with others is a great way to meet locals who can give an insider’s perspective on your destination.

3. Stay in a monastery or convent Monasteries and convents have a long tradition of providing hospitality to travelers. Aside from being a lot more interesting (and affordable) than local Holiday Inn, a monastery can be a great place to explore your spiritual landscape. Many monasteries and convents ask for a donation of $40 to $80 per night; others only ask for a free-will offering. In addition to simple accommodations, monasteries and convents often offer their guests simple meals as well as opportunities to participate in daily prayer and work. Reservations may be required in advance. You can research this vacation idea by looking up individual monasteries or convents online. Or get a guidebook such as “Europe's Monastery and Convent Guesthouses: A Pilgrim's Travel Guide” or “Sanctuaries: The Complete United States: A Guide to Lodgings in Monasteries, Abbeys, and Retreats.”