When I think about Anthony Bourdain, I think about sardines (he has a great episode about canned fish on the NW coast of France). I think about how I quit smoking before him, but seeing his struggle to quit play out after mine helped keep me strong and off those calamity sticks.
Anthony taught me to travel hard. He taught me there might be a better glass of wine or a more savory pot of stew if I was willing to venture into that darkened ally. He put the cool in food, and helped guide me to give up cheeseburgers and instead switch to street food and to accept invitations into strangers’ homes for a meal, and boy have I eaten well.
Though I never met him, he was a mentor for my travels and on how to be thoughtful with experiences of food, people, and place.
Tweet from one of his last Parts Unknown episodes:
Being inspired to travel hard, but eat well led to some of my all time greatest travel experiences. Anthony, I will always think of you when I think of these meals:
These are just a few of my top food journeys, but my whole life is guided by sense of wonder, desire to see more, and to be taken on curated journeys by locals. I’m so glad I’ve had a companion like Anthony (in spirit). He will be sorely missed.
It was announced today that Anthony, age 61, died at his hotel in France.
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-Nate
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Hi Nathan, thanks for sharing your appreciation of Anthony Bourdain. It’s good to think of how he influenced many lives in his too-short time on earth. I hope you and Sarah are well and happy in your Portland life.