I've noticed something odd about my behavior.
Occasionally I make a trip to Guilin because there is a European
grocery store there where I can buy things that are impossible to get
here in Yangshuo. So I go there - it's about a four hour round trip -
and I buy canned goods (soups, baked beans, pasta sauces, canned
tomatoes), all kinds of sauces (BBQ, Thai curry paste, satay etc),
packs of flatbreads, decent quality bacon, cheese. I usually end up
spending fifty to sixty pounds - 500-600 RMB. It's a lot more than
I'd pay either for more easily available stuff here in Yangshuo or
for the same stuff if I was back in England.
None of that is odd though.
The odd thing is that I bring them back to my apartment and put them
in the freezer or on the shelf AND THEN DON'T EAT THEM. The reason I
don't eat them is because every time I look at them and think of
eating them I know that I can't replace them by popping across the
street to Asda or Tesco. I have to make that four hour round trip
again and spend a sizeable chunk of my salary.
Then, about three or four weeks later, I think, OK now I can start
eating them. It's amazing how China can make you rethink your habits
on normal everyday stuff like buying food.
