Who We Are

Cuisine Adventure Tours, Inc. is a family-inspired business created to help others share in our passion of travel infused with our curiosity-driven love of food. The essence of travel and food merge together to bring an enriching experience of all the senses. By traveling throughout Vietnam, we have experienced a vibrant culture, full of new sights, smells, and tastes. As with every trip, we always find that food comes to the aid of our learning adventures.

About Tan

Tan’s Story

Tan was born in 1962 and spent his childhood in a rural area of Vietnam about 150 miles from Saigon. While the Vietnam war raged around them, Tan’s parents and grandparents tried to keep life as normal as possible for Tan and his siblings. Still, the threat from conflict was ever present.  Soldiers from the local militia patrolling the perimeter of the village were a part of daily life, as they tried to keep the village safe from attack. At bedtime, Tan’s grandfather would tell him where the current hiding and rendezvous spot was, in case they all had to flee their beds in the middle of the night.

A Stroke of luck

Living in the middle of a war-torn country was becoming increasingly dangerous and Tan’s parents began looking for a way out. They contacted a Vietnamese naval friend. In a life-changing moment, the friend was able to secure safe passage for them on a navy ship bound for the Philippines, which eventually ended up in the U.S. Territory, Guam Island. After a long and harrowing journey, the family became refugees in a strange land. When they finally settled in Owen/Withee, Wisconsin, Tan, now 12 years old, became an American sixth grader.  He spoke no English when he arrived. To this day, the family is grateful to the Americans and church groups that helped with their transition to a new life. 

Resilience

Carried by a positive attitude, Tan began to learn the language, made friends, and did well in school.  He went on to graduate from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with a degree in computer science.

Grown-up life

At a regional accounting firm, Tan met Susan Niedzwiecki, who shared his interest in travel and visiting areas off the beaten path. He took Susan to Vietnam where they visited many of the places of Tan’s childhood. Tan and Susan married, had two children, successful careers, and continued to travel. In 2017, he retired.

Encore Career

Tan loves to eat, travel, and plunge into the local culture. He speaks English and Vietnamese fluently and he wishes more people could experience Vietnam today, a vibrant yet humble nation no longer under the ravages of war.

With that, Cuisine Adventure Tours was born. Tan now owns and operates his own tour company. At least twice a year, he takes groups no larger than 10 to his homeland. They see famous cities and sites from the Vietnam War, but they diverge from the main tourist sites and spend time getting to know people in smaller villages.  

Depending on the interest of the group, they may tour by bicycle, take part in a cooking class, or ride through the streets on a motor scooter. Tan deftly navigates the route, the language, and the food. He personally selects a variety of street vendors and mom-and-pop restaurants that offer fresh, authentic Vietnamese cuisine.

Final thoughts

“Every trip to Vietnam is emotional for me,” says Tan.  “I miss my grandparents and remember some of the hard times during the war. But I’m also proud of the country I was born in. The people do the best they can with what they have. They are humble and do not expect help from the government.”

Vietnamese typically love tourists and are very friendly. Locals in the small villages are always intrigued to see a group of tourists walking in the streets. Sharing this experience with a tour group is a big part  of what makes the tours so rewarding for me.”