Last year when we were here, we decided to try a new kind of produce when we went to the grocery store. I think Eric chose some kind of tomato type thing, but it was a dark red, shaped like a skinny turnip, and it was hard. Not a good choice. Too dense for anything you’d usually use a tomato for and the seeds were bitter.
This week, we decided to continue the tradition of trying a new food every time we go to the grocery store. The first selection was raspadura. We had no idea what it was, but even though they looked like hamburgers, they were in the produce department. Subconsciously, I guess it sounded to me like raspberry + dura, meaning hard. Hard raspberry things? Sure. I was thinking it would be something like those yummy fruit strips you get at Trader Joe’s.
NOPE. Totally wrong. I think Eric took a bite before we looked up what it was. Turns out it was unrefined whole cane sugar. Not something you’re supposed to just take a bite out of. He said it tasted a little like molasses, but definitely wasn’t supposed to be eaten on its own. So we lost that one. To top it off, he/we left it on the counter without wrapping it up, and the next morning it was covered with ants. My immediate response, because I watch too much Archer, was “Do you want ants? Because this is how you get ants.” Yes, I realize that no one but Archer fans find that funny. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. If you don’t watch Archer, you’re doing it wrong. Watch it.
So the next thing we tried was Pitahaya, mostly because it looked cool. There are a few adventures in this game. First, we don’t know what the names of these things are in Spanish. Secondly, once we get them translated, they are usually things that we haven’t tried in their raw form. So here’s a pitahaya. Recognize it?
We started reading about it, found out it’s a fruit of a cactus, blah, blah, blah…then it said that it’s a dragon fruit! I’ve heard of that before! Cool. So last night we tried it. The inside is unexpectedly white and soft with small black seeds just like a kiwi. So we gave it a try…
And it was really good! Tastes just like a big juicy kiwi, without the trouble of cutting or peeling off all that annoying brown skin. Love it. Too bad they’re really expensive. Like $6 each! I think we got a deal on ours…$4. It’ll have to be an occasional treat.
Today we tried maracuyá. Eric picked this one on his own. Again, he didn’t recognize it by sight, nor did he know the Spanish name for it. Turns out it was a passion fruit. I’ve had passion fruit flavored things and don’t remember being a big fan, but gave this a try anyway. These were much more affordable – $2.50 for 5 of them. I can see why. Here’s Eric before he tried it. Check out the nasty color of the mush and seeks inside.
I should’ve gotten an after picture…maybe of me when I tried it. He said it was like a really strong grapefruit, and he was right. It was horrible. The seeds are crazy bitter and the juice is really sour. Awful. Maybe they aren’t ripe yet. We’ll give the rest of them a few more days to ripen and try them again, but I don’t have high hopes for the passion fruits. I’d rather save up for more dragon fruit.
As for the Spanish lessons, we hadn’t originally planned to pay for them. We figured that just being here, making friends, and me getting a job would be enough to get immersed in the language. After a few days of being here, however, Eric mentioned Spanish classes and I jumped on the idea. I hadn’t thought that he was a fan of the idea, so after hearing that he was into it, I scrambled to research schools. I visited two and last night we compared prices of three different schools. We also got the name of a woman who privately tutored the friend I know from elementary through high school, Brie, who has lived here with her husband for 10 years. Brie worked with this woman, Marianela, every day for two years, and Brie has since worked on Spanish language tv shows and done voice overs in Spanish.
Last night, Eric did some incredible negotiating to work out a GREAT deal, so now this woman will be coming to our apartment Monday through Friday for six hours. She’ll work with me for 4 hours, then with Eric for 2. He’ll have some long, hard days, first working his job at Red Hat from 9-5, then doing intensive one-on-one Spanish lessons for two hours. He has been taking on more responsibility and managing more people and more projects for the past year or 18 months, so I’m really hoping this isn’t too much for him. This is exactly why he didn’t continue taking Spanish 3 at NCSU, so we’ll see how this goes. At least there won’t be homework, I guess. I’m just praying that I can keep my anxiety to a minimum so I can keep that stress off his plate as much as possible.
We went to see a beautiful apartment in a really nice building today. It had three different balconies – one in the living room, one in the master bedroom, and one in the guest bedroom/Eric’s office. The problem was that it was a bachelor pad, so the furniture situation was not quite right. We need a dining room table, not a bar. We need a bed and a desk in the extra bedroom, not weird chairs and a fuzzy rug. I think we’re moving in the right direction though. The realtor that I’ve been working with is getting an idea of what I’d like to find.
The one complaint I have about her, however, is that her company has a strange way of communicating. First, a woman named Maria texts me via WhatsApp to tell me she found a place. We set up a time to see the place. At this point, the office assistant, Maricarmen, proceeds to call me to either set up the appointment, confirm the appointment, or reconfirm the appointment. If I don’t answer the phone, she will call back immediately. This morning, she called me 16 times in a row. That’s not a typo. SIXTEEN times in a row. WHAT IN THE WORLD!?! My phone was on silent and I took a shower, so I was away from it for more than 3 seconds, so I missed her 16 calls. She then texts me via WhatsApp. I then get a text from Gina, the woman that I actually meet at the apartment, confirming the appointment. Then, if the appointment is at 11:00, I’ll get another text and/or 5 calls from Maricarmen at 10:50 telling me that Gina is at the building. I’m about to have to find the realty office and have a face-to-face chat with this woman. It’s ridiculous. Love Gina. Maricarmen has got to go.
