When it came to finding Locals to offer VoomaGo Experiences in Portland, Oregon, Debbie was an obvious choice. As Tyson’s mother and Antimo’s American adoptive mother (so to speak), and as someone who is passionate about her region and its bounty, she exemplifies all the traits of the ideal VoomaGo Local. Being of half-Italian, half-Hungarian heritage, she inherited her family’s great affinity and aptitude for cooking and baking. She, along with her husband, John, offer some fantastic Experiences involving food, wine and beer at their home in Portland. Beer is more of John’s thing who, like several Portlanders including his son, love to make home brew in their garage.

What about something like, “Her well-stocked kitchen enables her to create a myriad of mouth-watering dishes and baked goods from scratch. Many of her herbs and vegetables come from their own garden giving her creations a fresh and delicious flavor you can only hope to replicate when you return home. A meal at her house is not to be missed.

But it’s not just about the exquisite aromas and tastes; she will walk you through the process of creating each of these dishes so it also becomes a learning experience and makes you appreciate your meal even more. You may discover an entirely new world of epicurean delights.

During the summertime in particular when Oregon countrysides abound with huge varieties of berries, Japanese visitors love to come experience making a pie from scratch at Debbie’s home after having picked their very own strawberries, raspberries, marionberries, blackberries and more. Picking your own fruit is an annual family tradition in Portland and entire families set off to the countryside every weekend in the summer to do so. It’s cheap, fun, the berries are organic and fresh, and above all, Portlanders pride themselves on supporting local farmers. Nothing is more sublime than making and eating your own pie filled with fresh, hand-picked fruit. And doing so after enjoying a delicious barbeque in an American home is like getting a perfect slice of quintessential American culture.

Debbie loves cooking and baking which is reflected in her beautiful kitchen, which would be the envy of any true chef. She loves showing visitors her favorite kitchen gadgets and explaining all their varied uses.

Not only is Debbie a Local, she is a world traveler herself who has partaken of VoomaGo services on multiple occasions. This September, in fact, she and her husband will be enjoying a few Experiences in Puglia, southern Italy, cooking with Locals there and learning about Ricotta cheesemaking. Debbie and Antimo’s mum, Anna, have known each other for a few years now and, in spite of the language barrier, have managed to teach each other how to make each other’s style of pie. During her visit to Puglia in 2007, Debbie got to bake a couple of pies in a stone wood-burning oven out at Anna’s country house, a fun first for her.

Debbie, Anna (Antimo’s mum) and Cosimina (Antimo’s aunt) make frise, a traditional Pugliese bread.

Our Locals are real people with a love of life and they take pride in their part of the world and enjoy sharing. Whether it’s Tyson’s mom in Portland or Antimo’s mom in Southern Italy, or any number of our Locals who are friends, acquaintances, and family around the world, we only introduce you to people and experiences that we know are amazing and lead to stories you will tell for a lifetime.