I'm a food tourist. If I'm someplace unique, I like to try the most unique thing on the menu that the region is known for. I've eaten Dungeness crab in the northwest only a few miles away from the bay they were caught. I've had alligator tail and frog legs in Florida and grits and gumbo in N'awlins, Louisiana. I've also had the unique experience of sampling habanero (HAH-bin-yerro) salsa in the southwest. Jalapenos, even at their fire-roasted peak, don't come close to the heat and outright discomfort of those peppers. I still like local delicacies like elk, venison, and my favorite, buffalo jerky.
I don't travel as much as I used to, however, and my odds of traveling to Japan in the near future are very remote, so I availed myself of a sushi bar nearby when we went to celebrate a friend's birthday. I ordered sashimi, the real deal. No rice and fish skins, this was raw fish with wasabi (not likely hon-wasabi, though). I actually can understand those people on this side of the Pacific that enjoy such a meal, provided it's clean and boned well. Mine was, and it now has me wondering if I can make it back there some time to sample some more tasty fish. I couldn't help but think of the Lord of the Rings films and Gollum's preference for juicy, sweet fish.
Food tourist? Yep. Risk taker? Maybe. Gollum? No.
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