“eat local”
by Rachael
at the yacht harbour, Burgum, Holland
When in Malaysia, eat your fill of roti canai and durian.
When in Thailand switch to Pad Thai.
When you get to Laos, enjoy the BBQ-ed chicken (or bats).
When in Cambodia, appreciate the wide variety of cheap tropical fruit.
When in Vietnam, go for noodles…for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
When in China, noodles or rice will do.
When in Hong Kong, McDonalds will be one of the cheapest eateries!
When in Mongolia, it’s dairy all the way.
When you get across to Russia, the black bread comes out too.
By the time you hit Central Europe, there’s cheese and salami and cucumbers and quark to go on the wide range of breads…there’s creamy chocolate (and cheap)….. there are fresh cherries and cakes……
Holland holds fond memories for us. After two years of living on cabbages and carrots in Poland, Holland gave us our first taste of familiar yummy food.
One day we ate a litre of icecream between us at a bus stop (what was the point of buying the small portion when it cost as much as the big one? And living in a tent without any refrigeration facilities, it had to be eaten in one go).
Holland was also where we had our introduction to pommes frites with mayonnaise and curry ketchup. We’ve relived that memory a few times through Germany!
And Holland is the home to STROOPWAFELS, a gooey crunchy concoction, that we went looking for the first night we arrived….and have sampled again three times in as many days. They’re just as good now – only problem is, the children agree and so a packet does not go as far these days.
Years ago Holland also provided wonderful buttery pastry-like cases filled with almonds, and apple-strudelly cakes. They’re still here today, and again, we’ve tried them both.
We might all be losing weight still (Grandpa has gone in four notches on his belt since rejoining us, and sad-but-happy to say, both Rob and I have taken on the baggy look in everything, even down to sporting saggy underwear)….but it’s not going to last for long at this rate! Dutch treats are just too good. (Our theory is that we have been losing weight due to a) walking lots and b) eating no snacks apart from Grandpa’s after-dinner chocolate – but it’s hard not to snack significantly in Holland).
It started in Germany….just before our castle stretch up the Rhein we came across castle biscuits…we had to try them, didn’t we? I mean, it was appropriate and all.
Now in Holland, in addition to all the old-time memories, there are windmill biscuits….we’ve bought a packet of them too (and we got four more castle ones on our way out of Germany, because everyone liked them so much). No verdict on the windmills – we haven’t had a spare stomach moment to eat them yet!
Needless to say, the children are loving Mama’s resolve to “eat local produce”.
And tonight Kgirl10 will leave a little white tooth and a letter to The Tooth Collector on her bed….it will specifically request a one euro coin (crikey, she doesn’t understand the exchange rate!), or if that is not possible, 65 cents will do….guess how much Stroopwafels cost! Yes, 65 cents.
Tags: children, food, health, postcard: Holland
rayres
Stroopwafel!! Our fav. It wasn’t till a Dutch friend showed us last year how you are supposed to balance them on the top of your hot cuppa to allow the gooey to get more gooey that we fully enjoyed them!!
Stroopwafel. Is there anyone who has gone to Holland and NOT had them … oooh, yummy ….
I love the 65 cent request! That is priceless!!
I like the idea of eating local too 🙂
mmmm sounds great!! doesn’t take a master linguist to work out “46% coca filling” either 😉
What we haven’t pictured yet are the chocolate chip cookies with “40% choklad” – can you work that one out Nova? (We went back for four packets!!!)
I LOVED the food in Holland. Had no advance warning of how good the sandwiches were compared to bought food in England. I loved lunch there especially. Got to see the Girl with the Pearl Earring in the Hague (the Vermeer pictyure which the novel of the same name is inspired by) and loved our day in the Delft. And the doube decker trains. and and and … Sandra xx.
You ate durian in Malaysia? And enjoyed it?
Ugh, durian?? The smell is bad enough… my mum said it tasted like off tuna mournet!