Text 38740, 68 rader
Skriven 2010-06-07 21:39:00 av Glen Jamieson
     Kommentar till en text av Jim Weller
Ärende: RECIPES TO DIE FOR 00607
================================
 -=> Quoting Jim Weller to Lee Lofaso <=-

 LL> In this fast-food, microwave, soda-pop world of ours, with
 LL> everybody getting anything and everything they want whenever
 LL> they want, it is hard to imagine anybody being slim.
 JW> 
 JW> Ya know what? Nobody puts a gun to your head and makes you eat that
 JW> crap. The health people recommend a maximum of 30 pounds of sugar a
 JW> year; the average American eats 150 pounds of it, the average
 JW> Canadian 65 pounds and yet I go through just 10 kg (22 pounds) a
 JW> year. i don't feel deprived. One soda pop puts you over your daily
 JW> limit even if you don't eat another sweet thing all day. When
 JW> Michael Loo visited here he commented on how fit and attractive the
 JW> general population was.

Interesting observation.  Last week in Warsaw I was surprised.  Based
on impressions gained from past reading, I went there expecting to see
a population of stolid, solid farm workers fattened on huge, starchy
potato dumplings, but instead, apart from the few tourists, the city
was full of slim, athletic, smartly dressed young people who power
walked or ran everywhere. There were practically no people of my age;
perhaps they had all migrated post-war or been killed off by the
Nazis, as Hitler was upset by the Poles, and attempted to wipe Warsaw
off the face of the Earth, reducing 90% of the city to rubble.  All
the old, historic buildings have been carefully rebuilt, largely with
Russian aid.

Since the Russians left, the city has changed again, and huge shopping
malls carry all the top European and American fashion houses, selling
clothes and other goods.  Although most people travel by the excellent
and comprehensive tram and bus service, there are still plenty of new
private cars to cause traffic jams.  I only saw one Trabant, parked.
McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Viking and Subway fast food places were
everywhere, but avoidable.  It was sad to see them being
enthusiastically patronised by still-slim youngsters.

Our hotel, the Czarny Kot (Black Cat) was described in one of the
guide books as, "a candidate for Poland's weirdest hotel", and "This
turreted structure is labyrinthine in layout, and filled with mirrors,
chrome and quirky diversions".  In appearance it was rather like a
Disney castle.  When the taxi driver who took us from the station
dropped us off at the side entrance, he wished us, "Good luck!", which
I thought was ominous, but apart from the fact that there were no
lifts at all, and the reception desk and our room were on the first
(US - second) floor, it wasn't too bad.  The crazy patterned marble
stairs were very difficult for Leonore to negotiate, but there her
white stick helped a lot.

One evening we descended to the small, downstairs bar, where Leonore
had a beer (Zl 7.00) and I had a brandy, which turned out to be a
triple, or thereabouts (Zl 11.00).  At an exchange rate of about
Zl 4.00 = US$ 1.00, that was quite reasonable.  Good brandy, too!  An
enormous St Bernard or similar dog seemed to live there.

Favourite breakfast items were the "placki" - thin potato pancakes
spread with sour cream and folded twice, with tiny mushrooms and
onions fried in lard.  There were also the usual muesli, breads,
cheese, ham, eggs, kielbasa and yoghurt.

[Pause of several hours while I had my right eye slashed open and the
lens replaced by a plastic one.  I used the other kind of plastic to
pay for it.  Now finishing my post, one-eyed...]


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