When It Rains You Get Wet. Or You Stay Inside and Eat.

Today I had the marvelous adventures of going to school, writing a paper, grocery shopping, and doing laundry. Yeah--it has been one of THOSE Mondays. And by the way, I didn't take my umbrella to class because it was actually SUNNY outside, but when we came out it was raining. Of course. Silly naive me to leave my umbrella at home after London's wettest April on record. And they've been keeping records for awhile. So what did I do? I got wet and squelched all the way home.

ANYway, since this is chore day and I haven't done anything particularly exciting (ooh, look--the red sock just came around again!), I thought you might like to know something about the food here. What I've learned, what I've been eating, etc. And I'm semi-loopy from being cooped up all day, if you couldn't already tell. So if I seem less lucid than usual, you'll know why.

So here we go.

1. Nutella is cheap here. And it is also good. We eat a lot of this stuff. There are probably 10 jars of Nutella in our flat at any given time. 

2. We shop at either Tesco Express or Waitrose, and I just went to Waitrose for the first time today. I don't know why I haven't been there before. It has a much bigger selection of stuff than teeny little Tesco. Better stuff, too.

3. I got a loaf of whole wheat bakery bread for a pound fifty today. Not bad.

4. This is squash. Basically, squash is concentrated juice, and it's easier to find than normal juice. You see, a lot of Londoners don't have much space, so they 1) go shopping for food every day, or 2) buy things that don't take up much space. Don't drink it straight--some girls tried that (before they read the label that says to dilute with one part squash to nine parts water) and it was kind of gross. I think I'm finally figuring out the right dilution that takes the edge off the tartness.

 

 5. These, my friends, are crumpets. As in "tea and crumpets" that you read about sometimes in books. They're kind of a cross between English muffins (which are very common here too, as you might imagine) and baking powder biscuits. Very good toasted with strawberry jam or (you guessed it) Nutella. And when they're warm, the Nutella melts down into the holes and makes it all melty and gooey... Mmmm.

6. Fish and chips. Classic British fare. I've already introduced you to these here.

The pasty shop in King's Cross Station

7. Pasties. Pockets of pastry that contain meat, potatoes, and vegetables of varying kinds. All the kinds I've tried have been delicious.

8. There are lots of little restaurants that serve food from all over the world. In our particular part of town (South Kensington) there seem to be a proliferation of Indian and Italian places. By the way, I learned the other day that we apparently live in a pretty posh area of town--people pay a lot of money to have our zip code, and you even get your mail faster just because you live here, so I'm told. I also learned that it's not quite correct to say "posh." Oops. Why? I have no idea.

9. Quickie marts. They're everywhere--little street shops that sell everything from fresh fruit to toothpaste. You met one of these in the Quest for the Muffin Man post.

10. Chocolate croissants. So, so good. I have been craving pastry lately, and these are the pastry of choice so far. 

Of course, until I find something else I like better. :)

If you have any questions or would like me to tell about something in particular, leave a comment and I shall do my best to address it as soon as possible.