Fer les Compres
In which we cruise the grocery store aisles
Pictured here are seasonal fruit finds, variations on familiar things from home: the large yellow peaches taste almost apricot-like, the flat peaches have a small pit and flesh with a more plum-like consistency (but different from a nectarine). Many varieties of tomatoes abound.
As throughout most of Europe, wine and bread – necessities of life – are very inexpensive. This wasn’t surprising. It will be easy to get used to spending less than 2€ on a bottle of garnacha or tempranillo! Clearly chocolate is also considered an essential, priced at less than 1€ for a bar of 72% cacao.
I remember eating corn flakes while in Italy as a kid so I knew I would find them here, but sadly, real Cheerios are not available. This is a serious adjustment for Henry! I wrongfully assumed more American food would be available, given the ubiquity of most consumer goods today. Peanut butter also doesn’t seem to have made inroads into European culture since my childhood, so we’ll need to find an alternative to cured pork products for protein-rich sandwiches (though Mad disagrees with me on this point). And I have to ask, why can you get sour cream and onion Pringles but not these things? Maybe since Pringles aren’t really food, they have an indefinite shelf life.
