I've eaten a lot of food in my time. Some meals have been great; others, not so much. But I do know this: Licking the crusted cheese out of a can of jalapeño cheese dip can not be half as bad as eating live mangrove worms off of rotting wood pulp. Or could it?

That is the question and journey pondered in one of the Travel Channels most original and entertaining shows, “Bizarre Foods” with host Andrew Zimmerman. It airs Monday nights at 8 p.m. The show is in the middle of its second season. And no fooling here, dude eats the most disgusting things you can imagine. He travels the globe putting nasty bits and pieces down his gullet. Come to think of it, he's even eaten gullet. Of several species.

And it's beautiful. I am enthralled every time Zimmerman opens his mouth.

There is really no way to describe the feeling you get while watching him eat a half formed baby bird in a fermented egg. I know the initial reaction is barf, but no, not really. It's more similar to, “I have just been arrested and really have to use the restroom.” And anyone who has ever used the facilities at the Bexar County magistrates knows what I am talking about.

Yet there's also the travel angle to the program. You get a great feel for the whole experience as Zimmerman explains and often shows how each unique food is acquired and examines the particular culture and history associated with the food or entrée. What better way is there to get to know a country or culture than to know its cuisine?

Well, maybe their sexual habits might be more telling than their menus. But that would be for a columnist a few pages farther down. Not to say I wouldn't watch a show with people around the world having sex. Because I would. I mean, I have. I mean. Actually, let's get back to turtle foot stew and raw beef testicles.

And Zimmerman just chows down with a fearless zeal to see how many people he can make gag. He just closes his eyes and swallows. And that is not innuendo.

Let's end the column with a few of the more choice items he has eaten on the show: larvae; intestines; rodents; steamed whole baby chickens; rancid meat; fermented whale oil; a still-beating frog's heart; mosquito eggs; hearts; and eyeballs. And probably chilled monkey brains.

Sometimes, I expect him to just pick up some random animal turd and chow down.