and i say eat, that you may live

Because eating is so important to life I’d like to take a moment to describe the way I eat here. One word. Rice. A lot of rice. I like rice, but that’s not the primary reason for the choice. It mostly has to do with economics. In a few places I’ve mentioned the cost of living being almost criminal. And it is. So I went into the store and tried to figure out how I was going to eat without going broke. Cause you can easily go broke trying to eat in this country. Economic Example: the exchange rate is currently 6.3 Norwegian Kroner to the Dollar. Great. In a vacuum, that’s a fantastic deal. in the gravity of reality, it is only marginal. Because at the store, when I want to buy .5 liters of water (like 12oz) I have to lay down 25kroner. That is roughly $4.00 a bottle. I buy them, I open them I start to drink them and then I do the math and my stomach tightens. “How can I drink this? If I drink on of these a day I’ll spend more then a thousand dollars on water alone. Maybe I should buy something with taste at least.” I knew before I came that it was expensive. And I’m not complaining, I’m just talking about how to deal with it. So meat is off the menu for the most part. Meat is relegated to luxury. One meal in ten, say. Eggs, I thought eggs would be a good value and source of protein, but not at $6 a dozen. Now I love a good piece of cooked flesh, don’t get me wrong. But Rice is simply more economical. Rice and vegetables. Rice is $4 for a bag. Good substance. Fill you up. Add some vegetables, which are pricey in their own right, but there is economy of nutrition that makes it worth it. Add some protein in the form of salami slices. I can make a meal for $5 total. That’s good value. At the same time I feel that it will be important to eat out in the world every now and then. A meal at a restaurant will make me feel good every once in a while. And that’s the plan. Here is what I ate tonight:

Rice. Peas. Salami sandwich. Tap water.