Food

I am finding it really hard in Beijing to cook at home.  The main reason being that the water is not safe. Our drinking water comes from one of those office style water coolers that sits in our dining room.  I'm OK using that water for say, boiling pasta, except we have been here for 2 weeks and already gone through 2 bottles of water, which is our monthly free allowance of water.  Granted, extra bottles are only about 20 RMB (about $2.30), but I just feel like we are flying through it.

Because of the water issue, I am terrified of even a drop of water being consumed.  Everyone who lives here washes their veggies and fruits in the water, they just make sure they are completely dry before eating.  I made a salad for my family the other day and practically had to get out the anxiety meds for the 4 hours after we ate to make sure I didn't poison anyone.  I purchased a water filter for the kitchen sink, which would make me feel soooooo much better, but I can't install it because I can't find the right size adapter to hook the filter mechanism up.  I even dragged Oleg out to B&Q (Chinese Home Depot) to try to find the right size and totally failed.  I'm hoping the problem is just a lack of plumbing skills on my part and Steve can hook it up this weekend.  He's been at a seminar all week in another part of town and has been staying in a hotel there.

The second reason I am having trouble cooking is sourcing safe ingredients.  I am being very careful about the purchase of meat.  Luckily, there is a German butcher shop chain here that seems to have nice fresh meat in a clean environment as well as a small selection of organic fruits, veggies and other products.  I did purchase chicken at the wet market (market where fruits, veggies & meats are sold) but I was really unsure as the meat tends to sit out.  The girl who sold it to me did take the chicken breasts out of a refrigerator and they were fine, but I think I'm going to stick to the butcher shop.  Let's just say I've been eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches.  Fruits & veggies are really good, super fresh and usually local.

The third reason is the availability of fresh, yummy, cheap food!  Most of which can be delivered right to my apartment door for no charge.  I've done a pretty decent sampling of a lot of the restaurants in our neighborhood and have been so happy with the variety and quality of the food.  Why cook???

I know I need to get over this and start cooking to make us feel more at home.  I think this is just part of my culture shock and if I keep trying, it will pass.  Steve is seriously going to freak if I tell him I got take out all week.