A John Deere Expat Picnic

This past Saturday, the 30-some expat families that work at John Deere

got together here at Warner Garden for a picnic and get-to-know-you.  

The employees already know each other, 

so this was the opportunity for the spouses to connect.  Some have been here

for a couple of years, and some arrived just a week or so ago.

We are beginning to feel like seasoned expats since we have been here 2 months.

 It was a potluck, so the Mexican families brought great food, and

the Chinese families brought great food,

and the American families brought great food AND desserts.

Chocolate chip cookies!  Brownies!

(I finally bought a package of chocolate chips this week--$8, and they look all chalky.
They get hot during shipping and lose a lot of their quality.
Guess that will be something we bring back in our suitcases when we visit the U.S.)

I made chicken enchiladas with homemade tortillas.  I found sour cream

at an import store along with a can of green chilies and a can of cream of chicken soup.  

Alice has been begging for this dish, and I finally found all the right ingredients.  

And they were very good.  The pan was totally cleaned out!

 One thing EVERYONE appreciated was the pizza from Papa Johns.

There is one here in TEDA, about 15 minutes away.  Have I mentioned

that there is also KFC, McDonald's, Subway, and Starbucks?

The menus are more than slightly different from the U.S. though;

some familiar menu items, some not.  A pastry at Starbucks probably
isn't a bear claw--more likely it's fish with squid ink.
And I'm sure you'll taste the difference.

And, speaking of unfamiliar food, there are at least 5 varieties of pears that I have never

seen before.  One Chinese sister at church gave each family a bag of these

pears last Sunday, and we ate some on the ride home.
(And there is always the dilemma--do I dare eat this without washing it?
Don't worry.  We washed them.)

They are dense and crisp, almost like an apple, 

and not as sweet as the pears at home

but definitely refreshing and delicious!