Dwindling Supplies

When we first moved to Indonesia, there were some political changes going on that affected us mostly in the area of food.  For the first 6 months we'd find mayonnaise, boxed cakes, icings, all kinds of flours, a variety of imported goods and snacks, and then all of a sudden, everything stopped at the docks.  There were political red tape excuses keeping food stocks on the docks, typically associated with taxes, and so the ex-pats had to make do with local mayo (yuck), cakes from scratch (I prefer anyways), and learning how to either make do with what was out there, substituting local ingredients, or having a friend who was heading from overseas bring things in a suitcase.  I opted for the latter as we had a steady flow of visitors in our first year of living here.  Sadly, that has petered out a bit, with the odd visitor popping in...our last one stayed only 50 hours but it was worth it still.

Today, it's a treat to go shopping in Jakarta, and sometimes even at the local grocery store.  Once in a while we'll find a real treat and share the news with friends.  It was quite a delight when Snickers appeared on the shelves a few months ago, and now that there are Snickers bars commercials on tv, we figure they're here to stay.  Unfortunately, my gluten-free shopping experience is a big similar to my earlier one, where when I first was diagnosed in January, I found gluten-free goodies all over the place.  Now, it seems stocks have dwindled and am I forced to make my own treats.  Not a huge deal, though, because as I settle into this life-style, the 'overwhelmingness' (new word!) of it all diminishes with each new successful gluten-free/dairy-free recipe. I haven't thrown anything into the garbage in over 2 weeks, and the banana cake I made today actually smelled delicious as it came out of the oven.  I have sweet friends who, when we get together, actually research how to make a gluten-free treat, and bring it along just so I can eat with the group.  One even had a boxed brownie mix sent from the United States.  Needless to say, I made it immediately and it sits, pre-cut, in my freezer.  I dive into it every few days and the chocolately-ness of it all just makes my day:).

A trip home to Canada is on the horizon, and growing closer each day.  I try not to think about it too much, but am excited at the eating-prospects (not quite as excited as seeing family and friends, though) and am already planning what I'll be bring back with me.

Thanks for reading.