Food

In our short time here we have discovered that food is simply not the same as it is back in the States.  We've attempted two Mexican-themed meals, enchiladas and tacos, and the enchilada sauce and taco sauce were not impressive.  The sauces were sweet with tomato chunks, not spicy and smooth like we are used to having back home.

One of the most notable food differences is the lack of yellow cheese.  Almost every cheese you'll find in the grocery store is called "tasty" cheese...and according to Erik it is not that tasty!  I don't mind it, but I wouldn't complain if someone offered me a bit of sharp cheddar or white American. :)

On the other hand, one of the cool things about buying food here is that there are actually butcher shops all over the place where you can buy different cuts of meat.  As I was strolling by one of those shops the other day, I saw this in the window and couldn't resist taking a picture:

That's right folks, Maryland is famous for their chicken...even in Australia!  So I was being a typical American and trying to be totally discreet about taking this photograph when the lady behind the counter spotted me and asked if I needed help.  I sheepishly told her that I was from the state of Maryland and I had never seen "Chicken Maryland" before.  She was very kind and proceeded to tell me that it refers to the cut of chicken (the leg and the thigh) and that many people use it for soups and stews.  Clearly I need to give it a try sometime!

All of this "new" food stuff isn't necessarily bad though.  We are learning that most foods in Oz do not have added sugar and I'm not sure I've read any labels that say "high fructose corn syrup", so that is certainly a good change.  If we do get a craving for American foods though, I've learned that there is a USA foods store not too far away from us, which is where we'll have to pick up the Crisco to make our soon-to-be world-famous chocolate chip cookies!