You have no idea how you'll miss the small stuff! (Patreon)

You may be wondering what this picture is all about and why I'm so happy, well I'm really happy because my friend "Brown-eye" has brought me some cheese all the way from the states! This stuff is hard to find in Mainland China! Now before people start saying that they can find brie cheese in China, let me stop you right there and say that yes, in some select supermarkets around the country you actually can find brie cheese (Beijing and Shanghai even have a good selection in some places), but you'll only find one or two brands elsewhere and they're only the small packages:

Also because cheese is considered a specialty item in China the brands that are available are usually the more pricy ones and also very overpriced as they import them in small quantities, worse you you have to start treating cheese as a luxury item! A once a month "let me splash out some money and treat myself" sort of item... And I'm not kidding, the price of this small wheel of ILE de France (125g) costs more than the Massive 600g Kirkland brie (and I prefer the taste anyway), so you can feel less guilty enjoying your cheese!

I know it may seem like a trivial thing to complain about, but this translates to pretty much any sort of dairy product and things like cold meats (also a specialty item in China), olives, pickles, breads and well anything that we commonly find in western cuisine... Sometimes you feel trapped in a Chinese food prison where you have no choice but to eat only Chinese food and use limited Chinese ingredients when cooking at home (just try and find Siracha or Ranch sauce in China, I dare you). Now "you moved to China so why are you complaining that there's only Chinese food" you may be muttering under your breath... But in my experience in Asian markets in the United States, South Africa and the UK (these are the main western countries I've spent any real time in) Chinese ingredients are plentiful and cheap and there's nothing missing, I visited a 99 Ranch store when I was last in California with C-milk and the selection of Chinese sauces, vegetables, meats, noodles and every conceivable grocery imaginable was outstanding! In fact there was more choice than in Mainland China as they included Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korean and Japanese products, I was absolutely stunned at the selection...... it just seems that Chinese people don't have to deal with food and ingredient isolation as much as us Ex-pats in China! 

Haha, anyway I'm busy working on the video where the guy tried to kiss me and that will be up latest tomorrow! As always...

- Stay Awesome 

SerpentZA