Sorry Tripadvisor
After weeks in Vietnam, talking too much with other tourists, I jumped at the invitation to join a local for dinner. I was the only identifiably foreign face in the crowd gathered around… Continue reading
Category Archive: food
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Eating the Winner
I want to thank everyone who voted on my Romanian food post, first because it’s always nice to hear from folks in this weirdly isolating place of e-connection, but also because the top… Continue reading
Merry Christmas and Happy Eating (3 min read)
Hello and merry Christmas my friends! I hope this finds you warm and cozy, as this year’s Once in a Lifetime Storm battles our coats and window panes, making America’s dogs wish they… Continue reading
My Friend Across the Table
The only language he and I shared was smiling. And food. So we did a lot with those. The backyard table was piled with freshly baked bread, homegrown vegetables harvested minutes ago, eggs… Continue reading
Tradition you can Taste
When my grandfather talked about wringing the neck of a chicken, we listened with moderate horror and more-than-moderate fascination. I was particularly confounded and titillated by his gesture of grabbing it by the… Continue reading
Different Holiday, Same Message
My favorite part of Thailand’s Loy Krathong festival wasn’t the enormous street market the first night, though the long rows of artwork, clothing, and sparkly souvenirs that filled the core of Chiang Mai’s… Continue reading
Tastes like Empire
My language acquisition usually begins on the menu. I don’t speak French but when it’s cold in Paris I look for a boisson chaude. I don’t speak Turkish but every morning in Istanbul… Continue reading
Nourishment
Thank goodness for the dog. My couchsurfing host in Vitoria, in the Spanish Basque country, was taking a class on medieval iconography whose final field trip was the next day, and she wanted… Continue reading
Dinnertime in Cluj-Napoca
Do you know that feeling, at the end of a great, but exhausting day abroad, when you’re deeply excited to be in a new place…but in your heart of hearts, what you want… Continue reading
A note on sauces, Romania
When Pulp Fiction informed me that people in Amsterdam put mayonnaise on their fries, I was cooperatively grossed out. Mayo was an acceptable ingredient for way down the ingredients list, but it should… Continue reading
