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| Burma: Rivers of Flavor & Taste of Persia by Naomi Duguid |
Sam Cooke sang through my earbuds as I put the chickens in for the night.
My senior year in college I was thinking about joining the Peace Corps, then I met my future husband. His anecdotes about traveling throughout Central and South America, and later South East Asia, had me convinced that sticking with him, I'd have plenty of opportunities to see the world. Such was not the case, he had come back to Japan to settle down and make pottery. After moving to Suzu, it was seven years before I left the country for the first time, and that was to introduce my one year old son to family in the U.S., not a visit to those far away places I'd been burning to see. Twenty five years later, I find myself back in "forever Suzu" mode. It's been almost five years since I was last out of the country. Both my passports have expired and friends' travel photos on social media have been making me particularly envious.
However, a very special encounter earlier this year has given me ample inspiration to let my mind meander in far away places, especially in the kitchen. I had the honor of showing Naomi Duguid around the Noto Peninsula during her trip to Japan for work on a book about salt. Our time together was profoundly stimulating and by the end of her visit, it felt as though I had been awakened to the core. I now have a brilliant new friend and so many new flavors to discover! Thank you Naomi.
