The Search for Chumatz

The search for General Tso was set aside last week as we prepared our apartment for Passover.  Basically the prep felt the same as at home in NYC with the exception of going to Ikea to buy some pots and pans.  Living in New York, we appreciate how easy it is to get kosher food not on Passover and now especially ON Passover.  Not having the ability to stop at the Kosher Market Place or SuperSol for take out is a big miss here from the Fischel's. So now we are Chez Take-out.  It's not that cooking and eating on Passover is harder than year-round, it just requires a few more added steps of thoughts and prep.  Also, going to the supermarket and not seeing a single Passover item, not even a token box of matzah was a culture awakening for me.  I have a new appreciation for American supermarkets.  For me it's more the feeling of being restricted of all the foods I can NOT eat to be the hardest part of the holiday. But in the meantime we are eating ALOT of fresh fruits and vegetables and chicken and eggs.

Friday night we attended the family seder Chabad had organized.  It had truly exceeded my expectations for entertainment, for the seder experience and for my child's involvement.  It was a great balance of child participation with the adults and the children having their own experience in another room so the adults can have a grown-up seder experience.  There were mystery boxes, pyramid building contests, puzzles, performances from kids, and delicious food. Having only experienced family/home seders, we wondered if this feeling of being in a ball room is what it feels like at the seder programs across the world?

It was great to reach the age to see my child sing the 4 questions and really ask questions and part of the passover experience and meet other families in the Shanghai community.  Chabad really went above and beyond and preparation for the seder and we were so excited to experience this and made being abroad a little less far away from home.

Not so great is the question every morning my child asks, can he eat granola bar or cliffs bar or favorite cereal and why not??? Finding food, that is not chocolate, has been a challenge for me.  Aversions to eggs and not having anything to spread on the matzah has been less than desirable for patrons at my restaurant.