Along the spice route

The geographer in me kicked in today while I was in the spice aisle at the Asian Supermarket. I was gathering spices for pho but realized quite a bit of overlap in the various cuisines I prepare, not just in Pacific Island cuisine but in many of the countries along the spice route.

As I walked down the aisle I thought of garam marsala, bizaara, and jerk chicken...the only significant difference between my biryani and pho is the anise...I already had the cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom at home.

It's textbook spatial interaction and diffusion...and it's delicious.