This Inspiring Instagrammer Travels The World One Snack at a Time

What’s even better than travelling the world?

Eating it, that’s what.

We may not eat a whole lot of street food in Toronto (apart from bolting down a hot dog outside the Roger’s Centre to avoid those sky-high prices inside the stadium). But when we’re travelling, especially in Asia, it’s time to forget about making reservations and grab some street food from a night market or hawker.

That’s what Melissa Hie, the girl in girleatworld on Instagram, is doing. After moving to Singapore by herself in 2009, she discovered her love for being on the road and travelled across Asia and Europe.

Having sampled all the delicious food from Bali, Korea, Switzerland, Greece, and more, Melissa decided that travelling solo wasn’t going to stop her from sharing all her adventures with the rest of the world.

???? A Sakura-flavored ice cream in front of Sakura trees at Arashiyama Park in Kyoto! I spy @op.118 ? hanging about in the background. Visiting Japan during Hanami season is a must-do! Everytime the wind blew into this park, sakura petals would fall all around us like pink snow. The sakura trees in Japan have probably thinned out by now, but I will cherish this moment forever ?? #ShotOniPhone6sPlus #icecream #icecreamking #eeeeeats

A photo posted by Food & Travel ❤️ (@girleatworld) on Apr 16, 2016 at 3:59am PDT

?? Hanami dango amidst sakura blooms in Arashiyama, Kyoto. There are Sakura everywhere in Japan right now! ?? I have always wanted to eat Hanami Dango myself and finally got the chance to do so yesterday. This rice cake snack is so important to japanese culture that there is even an emoji for it ->? It’s sakura season right now in Japan, which marks the beginning of Spring. Since sakura season only lasts about a month (usually April), it became an important tradition to go to the nearest park with picnic mats and some packed food for sakura viewing – also known as Hanami. Hanami 花見 means “watching flowers” (hana 花 = flowers; mi 見 = eyes / to watch) and Dango means “dumplings / rice cake”. Japanese eats dango as snack all-year round, but this variation with pink, white and green is traditionally eaten during Hanami season. The pink color comes from azuki (red bean) and the green is from green tea ?! ??????? #RealLifeEmoji #EmojiIRL #EmojisInTheWild #ShotOniPhone6s A photo posted by Food & Travel ❤️ (@girleatworld) on Apr 8, 2016 at 7:01pm PDT

? More emojis in the wild! This one is an Agedango at Ninenzaka, a picturesque shopping street in Kyoto. The style of old Japan has been preserved in this street and the area surrounding it. “Ninen-zaka” means “slope of two years”, which comes from the legend that if you fall down the steps, you will die within two years. So watch your steps and don’t fall down while admiring the beauty of this street. I found the lady selling agedango for 50 yen a piece right at the Ninenzaka steps! Agedango is a salty-sweet snack made of grilled rice flour and wrapped in nori (sea weed) ?. It was served fresh and hot right off the grill, so I had to wait a few mins before it cooled down ? delicious! #RealLifeEmoji #EmojiIRL #EmojisInTheWild #eeeeeats #ShotOniPhone6s

A photo posted by Food & Travel ❤️ (@girleatworld) on Apr 18, 2016 at 5:44am PDT

???? The cuuuutest handmade cat donut from Floresta Nature Donuts @floresta_nature_doughnuts at Shin Kyogoku 新京極 Market in Kyoto. These are called Doubutsu Donut どうぶつドーナツ or “Animal Donut”. I have wanted one since I saw them on instagram awhile back! These animal donuts became a sensation about 4 years ago, created by Floresta in Nara. Due to the massive success of the animal donuts, they now have branches all over Kansai region (Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, etc)! There are many different animal designs, but this cat donut is one of their original designs. The donuts are all cake-based and the ears are made of almonds. So adorable! Special thanks to my friend @soulstruck for the tips ❤️! @op.118 and I practically ran to find these donuts when you told us there is one near Nishiki Market! #ShotOniPhone6s #ShotOniPhone6sPlus #toocutetoeat #floresta #どうぶつドーナツ #donutscookiesandcream #eeeeeats #buzzfeedfood A photo posted by Food & Travel ❤️ (@girleatworld) on Apr 13, 2016 at 5:08am PDT

Eating kerupuk on board of MV Black Manta in Indonesia. Kerupuk is crackers made of deep fried starch that is wildly popular in Indonesia. I loooove dunking it into a bowl of Soto (a type of Indonesian yellow soup that is my faaaaaavorite) or dipping it in Sambal (indonesian chili) and eat with rice. The name “kerupuk” is an onomatopoeia of the crispy sound it makes when you eat it, which sounds like krupuk-krupuk-krupuk ??

A photo posted by Food & Travel ❤️ (@girleatworld) on Jan 18, 2016 at 3:35pm PST

Talking on her website, girleatworld.net, Melissa said, “I went on my first backpacking trip to Europe by myself. I didn’t feel like asking strangers to take pictures of me and I’m not too fond of selfies, but I AM always eating so I took pictures of food at whatever memorable site I was in. Then I posted these pictures to my personal Facebook where I received positive feedback from friends so I kept on taking one at every city I visited, for my own personal amusement.”

From Hello Kitty donuts in Japan to candied fruit skewers in China, Melissa has tried it all. (Perhaps we should introduce her to doughnut ice cream cones?)

The high quality food pictures in stunning locations – with some truly epic backdrops like the Sydney Opera House and the Eiffel Tower – has the combined effect of making us famished and igniting our wanderlust.

Need more inspiration? Check out these 30 places to visit before you turn 30, or 15 vacations to take before you have kids.

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