Grocery Wars

The eating issue is by far the most difficult problem I've come across since I started travelling. Restaurants are hard to navigate (which are expensive, which aren't?) and menus are often not in English. I really need to buy some groceries so that I can eat at home. After my Old Town adventure, I find my way to a grocery store called "Kaubamaja" in the downstairs of the mall "Viru Keskus". I walk in, find a basket and to my relief, the store is organized like a North American supermarket with produce at the front, and milk in the back. I pick up what I think are normal oranges and grapefruit, and spy to my left some, wait for it, Chiquita bananas!! I smile in relief and pick up a bunch. The next parts are far more difficult. I only have a pan at the hostel, no pots or microwave so I need things that can be prepared in a pan. However, I can't read the cooking instructions! After some struggling, I manage to get what I need in terms of food stuffs. Now, for the milk section.

Far and away the most difficult part of my day was trying to buy milk. Do you know how many different kinds of white stuff come in milk-like cartons?? Cream, yoghurt here comes in cartons, and then full milk, half fat milk, and no fat milk. None of which I can read! I make a guess and hope for the best. God knows if it's actually what I want. I venture down to buy juice and some crackers and then make my way to the cereal aisle. And then, I saw Cheerios!! For the first time, Cheerios sufficiently cheered me. I stash the honey variety into my basket and move on to checkout.

The checkout was a tad bit stressful. The cashier didn't speak English and there was a line behind me of busy people getting food after work. I try to find bags but I can't see any, nor do I see where to put my basket. I find the bags eventually, hiding under the counter, move to the end of the checkout and start bagging my items. Everything else runs smoothly.

I get lost again on my way out but eventually find my trolley stop and purchase my ticket properly. When I finally find my way back to my hostel I am exhausted. I've been on hyper-aware for the last five days and I need to unwind. So, I call home and put a movie on and fall asleep. I had a productive day, but I don't think I'll move very far tomorrow.