Many people agree that it’s important to immerse yourself in the culture and community of your locationwhen travelling, There are many ways to soak up the local flavour of a country, from travelling by public transport to learning the language to seeking out non-touristy destinations, but one of the best ways is by enjoying the local cuisine.
Food is sometimes the best way of experiencing the culture of a foreign land, because we can’t avoid it. All human beings have to eat, whereas we can choose not to leave the resort pool.
How will food immerse us in the culture of a land?
- Provides you with new flavours that you’ll want to taste again
- Introduces you to new ingredients that you may want to incorporate into your own cooking
- Allows you to interact with locals, especially if you dine in a non-touristyrestaurant,
Basically, it will sate your hunger at dinnertime, but leave you hungry for more.
American food and culture
The above infographic takes you through five of the greatest all-American dishes that aren’t available anywhere else in the world, from pastries to pizza and everything in between.
Some tourists believe that American culture is so prevalent on the international stage that we don’t need to make an effort to experience it, but that’s not true. Sure, we can get hot dogs in basically any city in the world and we can see American sitcoms on almost any TV channel, but that’s not all that America has to offer.
The USA is melting pot of cultures, which you can see in their foods, from the authenticChicago pizza created by Italian immigrants in the 1940s to the cranberry sauce present on every Thanksgiving dinner table.
That’s why it’s important to go there and experience it for yourself. Just get a US visa – Application-ESTA makes the process simple – and fly out. You’ll never look at the Stars and Stripes in the same way ever again.
One important thing to keep in mind is that you can never really know a country or its people from the fragments of its culture that land on your shores. As Anthony Bourdain once said: “I urge you to travel… Find out how other people live and cook. Learn from them wherever you go.”
Now, it’s over to you. Do you think that food is an important way to delve into a nation’s culture? What US dishes have we left off our list? Let us know in the comments.
