Misses and Hits

Some people here have asked me what I miss about the United States.  My list surprises them.  Maybe as I settle in, things will change.  At present, it's not a very long list.  Here goes:

Peanut butter....I know, silly, isn't it?  I can find small jars of sugar-loaded Skippy at exorbitant prices.  The equivalent of $5 US for a tiny jar?!!  So, yes, I confess to missing Adams No-Stir.

Cheap make-up prices.....I have yet to figure out why make-up and perfume are so expensive here, where they are produced.  But let me tell you, hell will freeze over and I will be skating on the ice before I ever pay $50 for a tube?wand? of mascara.  Besides, it makes my eyes itch.

Steel-cut oats.....cereals in the grocery stores are for children.  It's hard enough to find cold granola or muesli that's not full of sugar, and hot cereals are almost nin-existent.  I managed to find oatmeal, finally, in a health-food store out of town.  But they've never heard of steel cut oats.  Never mind, there are plenty of other things for breakfast.

Lemon-scented furniture polish....What I have managed to find here smells heavily of cinnamon, but it's not pleasant.  I will keep looking.  

I think that's about it.  I might say that there are people I miss, but technology allows me to call, write or video chat with them regularly.  It doesn't feel much different to me than when I lived on the West Coast. 

And instead of focusing on the negatives--the things I don't miss, I will make a list of the things I like about living here:

Fresh, flaky croissants, whenever I want them....they're not doughy, not greasy, and I have to run the vacuum after eat$ing them.  After that first frenzy of croissant-eating, I find that I now want one only occasionally.  Oh, and instead of carrying a $3 each price tag like those at Bakery By the Sea, these are only 85 cents.

Public transportation....oh, how I do not miss being behind the wheel of a car.  Maybe that will change one day, but I love hopping a train or catching the bus.  And, I love walking.  I get to interact with people on the street.  Just today, SNCF, the national train company announced that for FREE, their riders can download an app on their phones or tablet or access a website that will access books to read while on the train.  They are pioneering this project on several of the local lines I take.  How cool is that?  A country that promotes reading.  Imagine!

City encouraged recycling bins.....we are all encouraged to recycle and the city provides the bins to sort our waste.  Glass only in one, food waste in another and all other recyclables (plastic, paper, aluminum) in the third.  You put your things in at street level, but the material actually is stored underground. 

Fresh, ripe produce....either at the thrice weekly market, or from the fruit and vegetable stand right around the corner.  Bananas there were 99 centimes a kilo today--that works out to about 45 cents a pound. Cheaper than at Ray's back in Brookings!  And I don't have to buy a pallet to qualify for the price; two bananas, which are plenty for me as a single eater, cost me 24 cents.  

As I settle in to my new home and learn the ways of a different culture, I expect that there will be some things I shall indeed miss.  But for now, the list is small and insignificant.