So where do you go to get these authentic experiences? While you can certainly hit up mainstays like London and Rome, Bourdain suggests getting out of your comfort zone. “We tend to be overconcerned with safety and with cleanliness in ways that stand between us,” he says. That sounds all too familiar. My mother has threatened to disown me if I book my dream trip to Egypt anytime soon. She swears I would get kidnapped or mugged or blinded by sand. Yet there are edgy destinations you can still visit that won’t cause a family feud. Take Uruguay, for example. Was that ever on your radar? Certainly not mine. But perhaps it should be. “Affordable, great food, great people,” Bourdain raves.
