thanksgiving is the same in every nation

a few variables change, like, say, trade a large plate of fried thing with some corn kernels in it and topped with sugar for a turkey, but then you basically have it. everyone is irritable and sickeningly full, and the leftover fried thing comes home in a plastic bag that sits on the counter, from which host mom dutifully eats every morning and tries to rally support for.

Kunming Second Dog Show

This was the boringest 4 dollars I have ever spent. It's a good reminder that the things that China makes you buy a ticket for are usually way less interesting than what happens on the street. As I listened to the MIDI strains of "Havah Nagilah" being piped into the warehouse every four songs, I couldn't help but daydream about the things I could have spent my money on: An hour and a half blind man full body massage. An hour long foot massage in a room with a topless lady clock. 2-3 haircuts (include massage and deep ear hole cleansing). 30 mung bean peanut treats. 6 pappa roti. Or maybe a small down payment on this personal sweat machine.

What lies beneath.

Kunming's underground city:

two treats

I'm making the most of my time abroad by eating dessert after every meal. I have two new favorites.

1) "green-bean and peanut cake"

tastes like cookie dough but is made (what isn't here?) of powdered mung bean and oil.

2) Pappa roti

tastes like a delicate raised maple bar, only it's not glazed, and instead has a small crunchy sugary ring around the base (shaped and sized like a 3-D yarmulke), and the outside is the slightest slightest bit crispy. there's also a secret pocket of melted margarine somewhere. It's outrageously expensive by chinese standards (it cost as much as my lunch for one), but it was warm and gave me a priceless sugar high.

"I have a new cool favorite food that's probably too exotic for you to have tried before"

It's one of the specialties of Heijing, a salt manufacturing town a few hours outside of Kunming, and it's the poky part of the fruit commonly known as a pomegranate. It was more like my consolation prize for not being able to eat the real specialties, which were salt-something chicken and stone fish.

Good point, China

and then maybe some more jelly

with surprise ingredients, and surprising food methods

and then, in the interest of blogging, I ate some things made of jelly

I really thought this was a DIY jelly making machine cup, but it was just a catchy disguise for wasteful packaging. The little jelly cups were fine tasting, the only thing that seemed to be an excuse for the packaging decadence was the addition of "jellymate", which might as well have been desiccant for all the good it did the flavor.

Aisle 1995

The chinese year of the Orbitz.

nothing whets the appetite