Thanks Erin for the recent comment on the We Miss page. You reminded me that I should probably revisit and update that page. Unfortunately, since it was a solo trip this time Laura still REALLY misses U-Village.

Here’s the original with the update posted below:

Milk – I really miss the milk from the states. I don’t know if it’s more fresh or maybe I’m just used to it. Either way I really miss the taste of milk from home. Secondly, milk here is $8.50 per gallon!

HDTV – You all know that I’m a huge tech geek and the fact that we left the states just as HDTV was becoming mainstream has been tough to leave behind.

Taco Time/White Castle/Steak-n-Shake – We have the usual places like McD’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut, but I miss the beef burrito at Taco Time, the cheese burgers at White Castle, and the Chili Mac at Steak-n-Shake.

Border’s – We have a pretty good book/cd shop, but it’s not the same as walking into a Border’s with a Starbucks and browsing for a couple hours.

TIVO – I never got a chance to ‘tivo’ any shows, but from what I’ve heard it’s the only way to watch TV.

Finding Places – I miss jumping in the car and being able to get somewhere easily without guessing where I should go. Understanding Mandarin is one thing, but being able to read the road signs is a whole other thing.

English – Although we can just barely get by with our very limited Mandarin, and some merchants speak English, we do miss being able to converse fluently in English when we are looking for something or trying to find a particular product.

Update: Jan ‘08

After a quick trip home to surprise my dad for his birthday I was able to take care of some of those things I miss.

Milk – Drank a little too much of that while I was home.

HDTV – Got to watch a little.

Taco Time/White Castle/Steak-n-Shake – I made it to Taco Time once, and managed to choke down a couple White Castles (of the frozen variety).

TIVO – Didn’t get to mess around with that.

Finding Places – Had fun jumping in the car and running up to U-Village and Fry’s. (Getting rear ended by a big ‘ol truck and trailer on I-5 was something I wasn’t planning on).

English – Used it.