cheese

Yep, it's cheese. Two 5 kilo blocks of cheese (over 20 pounds!) I realized after I took the photo that I should have put something in the photo to help with scale - but you get the idea. Thanks to all who put in a vote - I don't think I've ever gotten so many comments! You must have been lured by the promise of a new set of chopsticks. If you guessed "cheese" then you can pick up your chopsticks the next time you come visit us :)

Of course, behind every 5 kilo block of cheese lies a good story. Well, at least if you try to buy it in China. [Where, now that I think of it, behind almost every purchase there is at least some kind of story - no bland, uninteresting, hum-drum shopping trips available here.]

Some friends and I have started buying cheese in bulk. The Chinese aren't big cheese eaters, which means cheese is imported, pricey, and not available at the corner market. Buy in bulk, shred shred shred, and voila, you've got a freezer full of shredded cheese ready for you at a moments notice.

This is only the second time we've done it, and I decided to go to the bulk market myself and check it out. I wanted to buy cheddar and mozzarella, and the conversation went a bit like this:

Me: Do you sell cheese?
Shop owner and her 7 assistants: Yea, we sell two kinds.
Me: Perfect, what two kinds do you sell?
Owner and assistants: One kind costs 270 RMB per block, and the other costs 310 RMB.
Me: Great, but what KIND of cheese is it?
Owner and assistants: There are two brands, one is 270, one is 310. The 310 is better quality.
Me: But what is the FLAVOR of the cheese?
Owner: Oh, well all cheese is the same flavor. The only difference is the brand.

Hmmm, only ONE flavor of cheese in the world? Needless to say, the shop owner is clearly not a cheese eater herself. I persisted in the conversation, just to make sure I understood her correctly. Yep, little miss shop owner is convinced that there is only one flavor of cheese available, and, lucky for me, in her varied inventory, she carries two brands.

In the end I bought both blocks. Turns out they are both mozzarella. No cheddar. Oh well. I haven't give up hope yet, the cheddar has to be somewhere out there.

My friend Erin Ashley said, "can you imagine telling a French person that there is only one flavor of cheese?" But, of course, every culture has its food fetish. For some, it might be cheese. For the Chinese, it's probably rice. Can you imagine telling a Chinese person there is only one flavor of white rice? Here's a photo of one of the rice vendors at the local market near my apartment:



What do you think America's food fetish is? My vote might be CEREAL!!! I mean, seriously, how many kinds of Cheerios does the world really need??