Growing up in the Mid-west, our meat of choice was beef. My mother also cooked chicken but very rarely made anything with pork. When I moved to Spain in 2001, I had to get used to eating more pork than I was used to. I also had to learn to like seafood, and a variety of other things that I had not acquired a palate for such as sardines and tomatoes. I learned to like some things I never thought I would and still detest other things, Murcia anyone? I never developed a taste for “the other white meat” but I learned to tolerate it.
Here is Germany they eat more pork than anywhere on Earth (this is just my opinion). Seriously, breakfast, lunch and dinner. I am totally porked out after 10 months! As a child, I refused to eat Bologna and choked down pork chops when I had to. I never liked anything pork, other than ham. Honey Ham was pretty good, especially as a family holiday tradition.
I can honestly say that I had no idea that so many things could be made out of a pig until i moved here. The deli counter is quite impressive so see but about 80% of it looks totally inedible to me. When I see other customers ordering things like gelatin round filled with pork tongue pieces, I want to hurl. How can they like that shit? I mean seriously, just my imagination of what the texture of something like that, is enough to make me lose my lunch. And it is a Bologna lover’s paradise here. There must be 10-15 varieties in every grocery store. From pistachios, to mushrooms, broccoli, and peppers, you can literally have Bologna with pretty much anything the heart desires mixed in.
I have joked with friends and family about how I will probably become a vegetarian by the time our contract ends, purely because I am in meat overload here. We have instituted meatless meals every week and I do not eat anything pork when we go out to restaurants. I dream of veggie wraps and burritos and long for the day when I can have traditional Mexican food again. Smoothie and juice bars are also things I lust after. I never knew how lucky we were to be in a place with so many healthy food options. I truly do miss the convenience and variety of American Life, black beans, salsa and 5 for $1 Avocados! Yummy!!!
Unfiltered Mommy 
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