Only some can say they’ve been to all 50 states. And very select few can say they’ve been to every city and town in the United States with a population more than 5,000. Daniel Seddiqui, however, can claim this title as of last October when he visited Allentown, Pennsylvania, the last town on his list. After all those miles, he chose Bend as his permanent home.
Seddiqui’s love for travel started at a young age simply by looking at maps. As he got older, he got the infamous “travel bug” as he puts it.
“And the curiosity just kept going and going and going,” Seddiqui told the Source.
Fresh out of the University of Oregon with a degree in economics, Seddiqui, who is originally from California, faced what every new graduate has to: the job market. After struggling to find a job and realizing his own west coast bubble was too small, he decided to try, well, a lot of different jobs.
“I came up with this concept to try finding a job in every state,” he said. “None of them had anything to do with my field of study.”
Seddiqui tried out just about every job under the sun, from a cheese maker in Wisconsin, to working on a lobster boat in Maine. Even being a wedding coordinator in the infamous shotgun wedding scene of Las Vegas. All of which were specifically unique to the culture and economy of each state.
“That changed my life because it really opened up my world,” he said. “It really honed in on my love for journalism and writing.”
So Seddiqui decided to write a book on it called “50 Jobs in 50 States: One Man’s Journey of Discovery across America”. Hands-on immersive travel and connection is the name of the game, setting his guide apart from others. Now, he has written nine books on American travel. His latest is called “Drinkin’ Up the Pacific Northwest: Washington, Oregon, Northern California.”
“Each book has a different theme…and in the Pacific Northwest, the beverage industry is very prevalent,” he said. “When you compare it to other places, sure there’s a beer scene in Milwaukee ….and bourbon in Kentucky but the Pacific Northwest has it all.”
Thus, the idea of the beverage belt was born. Kombuchas in Portland, coffee in Seattle, and of course, the craft brewery scene in Bend. The Pacific Northwest goes hard on their beverage scene.
“They’re all competing against each other…and they’re all good in their own ways,” he said, referring to the massive local beverage industry in the PNW. There are over 500 craft breweries in Oregon and around 30 in Central Oregon alone.
Coming to Bend seven years ago, one aspect of the beverage arena that stood out most to Seddiqui came to him simply by going to the grocery store.
“The abundance of different local beers, the beer cans, the bottles. You have so many choices. It’s insane.” he said.
He was most drawn not to the beers themselves but to the can designs. This is the inspiration for the Bend section in his latest book.
How does someone make the design? What inspires them? How do you make them stand out from everybody else who’s also trying to stand out? These were the questions that Seddiqui asked.
Out of the all the craft beer can designs in Central Oregon, Worthy Brewing created Seddiqui’s favorite.
“They make their own designs. They don’t outsource. They do everything in-house,” he said.
When picking his favorite brewery, Seddiqui looked past just the beer. Music, good food, outdoor space and a variety of events is what brings a great brewery all together. The overall atmosphere must be great.
Furthermore, Seddiqui mentioned that for a company to gain a place in his book, they must be open to having guests learn and share a hands-on experience. What makes it even better? Hopefully, a memento they can take away to remember their experience.
Seddiqui toured three breweries here in town – Deschutes Brewery, Worthy Brewing Co. and Spider City Brewing.
He’s particularly inspired by the people he’s met along the way and how they’ve branded their community by creating industries. People like David Schomer, a barista and coffee shop owner in Seattle, who was the first to bring latte art from Italy to the States in the 1980s.
“People who don’t chase money, they’re doing it because they’re passionate about making something,” he said.
“Learning for those who are carrying on tradition,” that’s what keeps Seddiqui’s endless inquisitiveness going.
“[I] like doing things that are different every day. Nothing’s too mundane…always being in motion is all I’ve known for the past 30 years.” he told the Source.
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