Close. But no cigar.

Things here are not as they sometimes seem. Remember the logic free zone? Yeah. Well, I have no answer for you. It's just how things go here. Like food.

The package says, OREO. It should be and Oreo, right? Wrong. It's not. It's LIKE an Oreo. Looks pretty close to the same. Not as dark of a cookie, though. And the inside is white, but about half as think. Certainly a bummer right there, I know. My friend says, "Why would I waste my calories on a FAKE Oreo?!" I don't know, I'm a food tramp, I guess. I'll take what I can get. I'm what you call easy when it comes to food.

And the candy bars aren't the same either. There's something about the Milky Way, it's like a Three Musketeers. Something about the caramel. And TWIX, my sweet beloved candy bar, is just not quite the same as well. I'm not real sure what it is, I think it's the cookie. Anymore, though. I can hardly tell. Like I said, I'm easy. On the up side we have tons of international candies and cookies. Chocolate covered HobNobs. Oh mama! And Aero Bars, LOVE em! My kids love these crackers from the Philippines called SkyFlakes. Kinda reminds me of dandruff, (you know, flakes, on your head, sky...get it?) but they like em. (the box is white and blue with red and white stripes - funny how American they make things look)

We got Pizza Hut the other night. I can't remember if I wrote about it. If so. Tough. Read something else if you already heard it. (Haha, just kidding. It's been a LONG day!) Anyway, they obviously don't have real pepperoni here. It's beef. But I have to tell you, it was really good. WAY better than I thought it would be. And Peter also ordered a Hawaiian. I was like, "Yum!" Then I said. "Wait. How are they going to fake Canadian Bacon?" They didn't. They just put crumbled beef sausage on it. Not so good. But, it wasn't terrible. Wanna hear the price? WAY too much. We got four total, because if we're going to get it, why not GET it? Right? Plus, we had it delivered. But they can only deliver to the gate, so Peter had to ride my bike (the SUV bike) to get it. The pizzas are 15 dollars each. No matter what goes on them. Delivery? 52 cents. Funny, huh? So we spent 60.52 on four pizzas. I guess it would have been 40 at home, but still. It seems like a lot.

We also got Krispy Kreme recently. Which was delish! But again, not quite the same. It was a really small store, and like a little cafe. I'm not going to complain though. They were yummy. And they had several kinds I'd never had before, but I'll admit I haven't had any in the U.S. for a long time anyway. So maybe it's the same here as there.

And tonight I got a call from an angel. Like I said, LONG day. Crazy kids. I yelled WAY too much today and feel a little bad. Just a little, though. Most was deserved. (haha) Anywho...a friend in the Branch called and asked how my day went. She raised her kids here, and they are grown and gone. She asked if she could bring the kids and I McDonald's. Now. Before you start thinking, "McDonald's? Are you kidding. That's practically rude!" I was THRILLED! We haven't had McDonald's in over two months. Which for my family, is a LONG time. Well, not just McDonald's, but a fast food restaurant. You know those evenings where one kid has baseball, another ballet, you have a meeting and your husband is late from work? So you just grab something for dinner? Yeah. Well, that's not really an option here. I guess if we had a car, it would be more of one. But nothing is easy here. Like tonight, they called and said they were leaving right then. It's not too far from here. More than 45 minutes passed before they arrived. Why? Prayer. They got in line, just before prayer time, and had to wait. Nice of them though, wasn't it?

My kids were SOOO excited. They got Happy Meals! (which I NEVER get in the states, I'm mean, I know) They said thank you to me after dinner, which was nice. But I told them that Brother and Sister Larson had gotten it for them. And Sam said, "They did? That was nice. It's just like what Grandma and Grandpa do for us, huh?" That was a favorite treat for them with their grandparents before we moved. (Grandma and Grandpa, don't worry, we're already planning a date to McDonald's when you come!)



Sometimes things are better away from home. (NOT usually though) But remember when McDonald's used to DEEP FRY their apple pies? Mmmm. And they were all hot and crispy? And you just about burned the heck out of your mouth when you bit into it? Guess who still fry's their apple pies???? Hooray for us!! Sorry, about the half eaten picture. But see the super crunchy bubbles on the crust. Jealous? Don't be. Nothing is worth 120 degrees and giant desert.

Happy Meal box. They got a clock that's a robot. This seems to be some kind of toy line you can collect. A clock that is a "robot". Or toaster, or rice cooker, or air popcorn popper. You have to pump air into them with a little nob, then as they decompress they more. I said to the kids, "Funny. In the U.S. we have this little thing called A BATTERY!" Honestly, I was happier to see this than all the movie garbage we're always seeing at home. At any rate, the kids liked them.

For a country that doesn't seem to really like Americans. They sure like American stuff.