The Half-time Show

Posted from Colva Beach, Goa, India

Before Lizzi and I first met, I had already visited well over half of the states in the U.S., and I was excited to see the remaining few on my list. Simply put, I loved the adventure of the national parks, the hub-bub of big cities, and hospitality of small towns. Like a kid staring at a plate of food, you could say that I had eyes only for the macaroni and cheese. But then I met Lizzi and we talked of travel and adventure worldwide, and it was as if someone had just revealed the largest dessert cart ever! My eyes grew huge at all of the possibilities. And here we are in India, having traveled through a good portion of southeast Asia along the way. I can comfortably say that ten years ago, I would never have imagined a trip like this.

But even with my newfound appetite for the tastes of the world, I find that I still miss the flavors of home. Not just the feeling of being someplace I know with a language I understand, but literally the tastes I've grown to know and love: the food! Being an adventurous eater, I never realized that I could miss food from home the way I have in the past few days. On the long bus ride from Margao to Palolem yesterday, I found myself drifting through daydreams of mouth-watering barbecue, whether Texas-, Oklahoma-, Memphis-, Virignia-, or Carolina-style; pizza with real pizza sauce bursting with garlic and oregano; and, of course, sandwiches, piled high with cured salami, rare roast beef, and juicy turkey.

Although I'm excited for the next 54 days and the tastes I haven't even imagined yet, I also can't wait to get home to some of my favorite foods that I've missed terribly over the past two months. Cheese steaks from Vino's in Philly, lobster rolls and spicy Bloody Marys from J's Oyster Bar in Portland, the Roma hoagie from the Italian Shoppe in Arlington, slow-roasted pork barbecue from Jammin' Joes on Route 29, a kielbasa sandwich with cole slaw and fries from Primanti Bros. in Strip. Oh, and salad! A fresh Greek salad full of red onions, feta, and ripe kalamata olives from any pizza joint worth its salt on the east coast.

But I digress. Being in India so far has been a great experience; we couldn't have picked a better halfway point. The food is familiar and delicious, a reminder of the many times we sought comfort in a tangy curry when schoolwork threatened to bog us down. We have 54 days remaining, which is not nearly enough time, but we will make do. There's plenty of new food to try, and as for traveling, my eyes are only growing wider.