Behold the Power of Cheese

One of the things I missed most from home was cheese believe it or not (the other one is a secret). I love cheese. Stinky cheese, soft cheese, hard cheese, fondues, I love it all. Heck even that processed cheese that you put on nachos I have this weird obsession with. I love that crap (although legally I don't think you can call it cheese). The cheese in South East Asia though is a little lacking. It's not their fault really though, I mean cheese just isn't a part of their culture. It's hard to find milk, and yogurt is a pretty new thing to find, but who can blame them, refrigeration isn't that common in most homes.

There is some cheese though. The unfortunate part is that it’s that crappy La Vache Qui Rit, or Laughing Cow Cheese. You know that crap in the foil wrapper that comes in a wheel? Yeah, you can get that anywhere, and I hate it. I did love it after Tet when it and a loaf of bread was all we could get to eat at 6am, but that was a one time only love. Again though, who can blame them, it requires no refrigeration, and its pretty conviently packaged.

This longing for real cheese though is why I completely flipped out in Na Trang when in a Super Market I found some Emmentaler. I bought a package and some crackers and rushed up to my room to eat the whole damn block. It was not the best quality, but man was it good.

Then as I strolling along the boardwalk in Ao Nang I spotted this:



A Swiss restaurant? In Thailand? Maybe they have Fondue! They didn't but they did have other Swiss dishes, and then I saw it: Assortment of Swiss Cheeses.....170 B. An assortment! Of cheese! Awesome! And that when the drool started. So I walked in, and ordered some, and received a plate of Appenzeller, Emmentaller, and some Edam (which isn't Swiss, but whatever). Man, I just stared at it for awhile before digging in. I have to say, I don't think I've ever been happier eating cheese. I mean I've had much better cheese, but this came at jus the right time, so it's definitely one of the best cheese experiences of my life. That right folks, I actually have cheese experiences which I keep track of. I'm Swiss, what can I say. I refuse to apologize for it. All that being said, if the restaurant did have fondue on the menu, I think I would have had am orgasm, so I think it's best for all involved that they didn't have it.