It's Not What You Think

I have been having a great time in Austria going many many places and doing even more in those places, but all the adventuring aside there is one kind of adventure that all travelers understand. Not all places have castles, or big lakes, or oceans, or mountains, or expansive rocky shore lines. People in these unknown places travel in different ways. Some travel by bike, or car or foot, or cart and donkey.

However, most of us are prepared for those kinds of surprises. We know that there will be language complications and at some point we will falter and get rice instead of noodles in some back corner stall in the night market. All of these things travelers expect to see and experience, but if you find yourself traveling through a foreign land there is something that no matter where you go is universally strange. The food and let me tell you its not always what you think it is.

I have walked into a local market and been shocked to see that there is no shampoo, or toothpaste, no you get that at the apocathary around the corner. Better still I once realized that in one place all there produce was sold in market only twice a week. Even in the States in many places you have to go to a different store to buy alcohol. The buying of food is set by tradition. It can very from town to town even.

Well now that you have located the food what is it? That tea you are buying looks good. Just some plain loose black tea, tea is tea, right? Not always true, but you get lucky and it is. You look for things you might recognize. Brands that might be familiar to you and then you realize the world is being taken over by Nestle and Kraft. Their every where. The water you're drinking is Nestle water! But it doesn't matter, you don't know what you're buying even if you do recognize the logo.

The worsted is what has happened to me countless times. I think I am out buying something common, how silly of me, and see the word emblazoned on the front of familiar packaging. Zucker, you know what that is because its in your 15 word repertoire of this language. Excellent! You pick up the bag, its smaller than they are at home, but that is not surprising. On inspection you know its sugar, feels granulated (You remember that powered sugar incident, lets not repeat that one.) and you believe you are buying something to sweeten your afternoon tea.

Triumphantly you pay for it, take it home, and put the kettle on. Cheerfully, it comes to a whistling boil and you pour some gurgling water into your waiting cup with tea already inside. You add the zucker and ah, first hot sip. Strange did the tea taste like that before? *Sip* You ignore the strange flavor for the first cup because you believe its you. Its been a long day and you're tired. That's it, yes, tired.

You have another cup in the morning. Same thing. What is wrong with my tea? Its...sour. No. Not sour exactly. You try, but you can't shake it. This feeling its your newly acquired prize. You stick your finger in the bag and taste the contents. Its sweet for sure, but its sour too. Not like a sour you have had before. Its a good kind of sour. The sugar looks at you daring you to look at the ingredients list. You do and with a sigh you see there are seven very long words you don't understand. Sugar should only have one.

On a second inspection you realize your folly its made from fruit. That sour taste is the fruit showing you its there. You have a 1000g of it. You look at your tea. Take another sip. Its not so bad. You could get used to this.

Kettles whistling and I could use another cup...