Hooray World Cuisine: 10 Fabulous Feasts from Around the World for Under $2.00

Two bones. Two bucks. Gimme two dollars and I can eat like a king. I can eat like a queen. It’s just a matter of knowing where to look.

For all the great food that we eat and food porn we post across Facebook, Twitter, and our website, the prevailing wisdom might be that we’re rolling in the big bucks. Alas, no. But if there’s one thing we’ve learned while traveling the world: culinary delight need not be achieved on the back of an empty wallet.

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The Fairy Chimneys of Kandovan, Iran

The Kandovan fairy chimneys in northwestern Iran.

Upon hearing the news of the recent earthquakes near Tabriz in Northwest Iran, my mind went immediately to the time we spent in that region last November. This includes a day trip from Tabriz to the village of Kandovan where people live in fairy chimneys, caves made from volcanic ash deposited thousands of years ago.

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Fantasy Meet Reality: An Afternoon at a Japanese Maid Cafe

I’m about to try to explain why, together with the woman who does the English language voice of Hello Kitty, Audrey and I stalked a couple of girls in rabbit suits, only to end up in a big pink room eating scrambled eggs and ketchup served up by teenage Japanese girls in French maid outfits singing high-pitched children’s rhymes. A G-rated reality wrapped in the potential for a XXX-rated fantasy. As Bill Murray said in Lost in Translation, “This is hard.”

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Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo, Where Sushi Gets its Start

Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo, Japan

A visit to Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market is a rite of passage for sushi enthusiasts. For those of us who bow at the altar of raw fish, it's truly a must-see.

After you've visited Tsukiji, you may never look at that piece of tako (octopus) or toro (tuna) in quite the same way ever again. Outside of the seas themselves, it doesn't get any fresher than this.

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Fushimi Inari Shrine and the Vermillion Gates — Kyoto, Japan

Torii at Kyoto fushimi inari shrine

Walk through the tunnel of ten thousand vermillion torii (gates) snaking their way up the mountain at Fushimi Inari Shrine outside of Kyoto and you’ll soon realize that no two are exactly the same. Look one way and you’ll see bare, unadorned orange posts. Turn the other and you’ll see the names of all the businesses or individuals who donated each gate as a sign of gratitude for their prosperity. Among the thankful, a range — from men of small business to giants of Japanese industry hailing from companies like Hitachi or Panasonic.

No business is too big to be thankful to Inari, the Shinto god of rice, sake and prosperity.

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Japan Travel First Impressions: From Remote Control Toilets to Konbinis

Japanese tea ceremony in Kyoto

Travelers and tourists are often taught to look to historical sites for cultural insight, but Japan evinces plenty of culture in the seemingly everyday. It’s clear that the country has a long and deep history — complex, with nooks and crannies, cultural twists and turns, and sweeping evolutions.

However, while I’m tempted to share my first impressions of Japan’s Buddhist and Shinto shrines, I’ll instead first share fifteen impressions of the cultural bits in the current, the white spaces of travel.

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Daisho-in Buddhist Temple on Miyajima Island, Japan

Heniyokutu Cave at Daisho-in Buddhist Temple - Miyajima, Japan.

When you enter Heniyokutu Cave at Daisho-in Buddhist temple, pause for a moment. As your eyes adjust to the darkness, details begin to appear — prayer offerings and written wishes tied to the base of Buddhist statues, Japanese characters tracing the bottom of the lights, faint smiles on many of the icons. In the dim light, there’s a feeling of peacefulness amidst it all.

Take a look at the fisheye photo below to see for yourself.

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