what I really miss now that im back in states

[sunkaer]

In the US you can find jiaozi of some kind almost anywhere, but I crave baozi, it was so gooooooood and you just cant find it anywhere in the US. At least not where I live.

[TSkillet]

Now that I live in a city (Houston TX) which has a much smaller Chinese community than the places I grew up and went to school (Los Angeles, San Francisco) - I really miss the good fatty char siu Cantonese roasted pork. I've found it to be really lacking here in Texas.

Of course my last point of comparison was Yung Kee in Hong Kong - where I ate lunch probably 5 times a month.

[Ian_Lee]

The stuff that I miss most is actually the most common and popular items in US -- soft drink.

In US, basically the soft drink industry is controlled by two giants -- Coca Cola and Pepsi. So these two giants dictate your choice. You just have limited choices like either Coke or Pepsi, 7-Up or Sprite, Dr. Pepper or Tab,...etc.

But hardly can you find any soda that is made by any other firms.

The soda I miss most is the one available in many parts of Asia -- Schweppes.

And the best product I love is Schweppes Ginger Ale. I miss it a lot when I am in US.

[xuechengfeng]

Schweppes? Really? It's all over Ohio.

[Claw]

I guess it might depend on the state... when I lived in New York, there was Schweppes available everywhere as well. But now that I'm in Washington State, I don't see it anywhere.

[sunkaer]

yea I forgot about sodas, I really liked Smart

[bhchao]

Schweppes are easy to find in southern CA, especially in the high-end grocery stores.

[Jo-Ann]

For me it would have to be Jian Bing. There are recipes out there for this delicious snack, but I would love to see an enterprising entrepreneur making them in NYC's Chinatown. More like the real experience instead of from the kitchen stove.

[Ian_Lee]

What I missed most are snacks.

In US, practically there are not much variety on snacks -- always chips.

When you go enjoy movies in the cinemas, they only got hot dogs, pretzels and popcorns which are always well prepared in advance (I really miss the scene that popcorns climbing out of hot pot when I was a kid).

And I can't stand the American style of popcorn -- pouring a scope of liquid butter onto the popcorn which makes it soggy and makes your hands greasy inside the dark cinema.

Moreover, why don't American cinemas assign seats when they sell their tickets?

In some premier showing, you have to wait an hour or even longer outside the cinema in order to get good seating. A waste of time. Real dumb.

[runner]

To Ian-Lee, Have you ever been to America??? Reading your two posts makes me assume you haven't. Schweppes is all over. The supermarkets I go to in the US have seriously more than 200 different sodas at the very least, representing 50 or more different flavors. And there are equal numbers of other non-soda soft drinks. Snacks are far more varied than chips. We have whole aisles devoted to it. Maybe you won't like the taste of American food, but you should at last visit the US before making your comments. You can get popcorn without oil in the movie theatre. I wonder if yo are from China or somewhere else. There's very little to drink in a Chinese supermarket and the crackers are all the same, literally. Taste is another issue, but there honestly is almost no choice in a Chinese supermarket. Where are you from? What are you talking about?

[Ian_Lee]

Runner:

Though I hesitate to release personal information, I also doubt where you are from.

I have lived in US for over a quarter century -- longer than any other places that I have lived.

In my school years, I enrolled in ROTC. And I got one bachelor and two master degrees, all from universities in US.

And I currently work for a government job which is federal-funded.

Hmmm....And I try to add up all my days I spent in China -- less than 3 months in my whole life.

By the way, don't you think it is real dumb to line up outside theater for an hour during premier showing?

[Lorenzo]

Runner and Ian: No need for bickering. It does seem odd, though that in one post Ian says "when I am in the US," implying that he currently lives outside the US, then in another post says he lived in the US 25 years and spent a total of less than three months in China. It also seems odd that someone who lived in the US that many years would not know that the Schweppes brand of ginger ale, tonic water and club soda is perhaps the most popular premium brand of those drinks sold in the US. They may not be found in every corner grocery store, but most major chains have them. I would venture to guess that most every decent liquor store carries them as mixers. But whatever. Odd, but unimportant.

I DO like the idea of assigned seats in the movies (cinema). Is that what they do in China? In fact, I have long believed the theaters should charge for a ticket an amount proportional to the quality of the seat, just as concert venues and performance theaters have long done for live concerts and other performances.

[Ian_Lee]

Lorenzo:

I don't know which state you live in. But in the Safeway Supermarket and Walmart Stores in the city that I live, I can't find any Schweppes products.

[Lorenzo]

I've lived on both the east and west coasts, and I have never had any problem finding Schweppes products. If Safeway and Wal-Mart don't carry them, I'm certain you can find them in other grocery stores. Sorry if I questioned your post.

[Ian_Lee]

Lorenzo:

I live in neither East nor West Coast. I live in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.

[xuechengfeng]

That could be the problem then.

[runner]

Lorenzo is one sharp cookie

Ian Lee, Honolulu is, has always been, and may always be an island unto itself in many ways.

Yes, if I went to theatres, I would prefer numbered seating.

[bhchao]

Yes, if I went to theatres, I would prefer numbered seating

I agree. Sometimes moviegoers already seated in the cinema tell late arrivals that the empty seats next to them are taken, and end up no one sits there.

Numbered seating would make waiting in line unnecessary.

[xuechengfeng]

The only problem with numbered seating is someone who gets there first and gets what are considered the "good seats" may not necessarily like sitting in those seats.

[legolad]

The reason you have trouble finding Schweppes is that Schweppes is an independent soda producer, not part of the Duopoly of Pepsi and Coke. It is also considered a "premium" brand so you will not find it in discount stores like Walmart.

That said, in Honolulu look in your local liquor store or an upscale grocery if you have one.

P.S. I too would love to see assigned seating in theatres, but I'd be even more excited about "ushered" screenings where talkers and other noisy folks got shushed and booted out. I hate wasting $8 dollars to listen to the running commentary provided by somebody who doesn't seem to mind preventing me from hearing the film.