A geography refresh on this gorgeous Friday. The Baltic Sea is nestled in the middle of Sweden, Finland, and Poland. Was cobalt blue named after the Baltic Sea because it was so blue? I have no idea where I got that from but it sounds like a good reason. Moving along...I read about a fantastic Polish market in an obscure area of town and because I embrace fear these days, (in such case: the area* and headcheese aren't really on the top of my list) I had to go.

I traipse into the Baltic European Deli and discover:

1) I am the only brunette in the store.
2) No one speaks English nor are the items labeled in English
3) Everyone looks like Elin. Even though Elin is from Sweden and we are talking about Poland. BOTH are NEAR the Baltic Sea.
4) I am fascinated by the meats and the very high cheekbones of the Elins.

I leave with rye bread, sausage (I just pointed at one), ham (I pointed at one and Elin said "NO!" and pointed at another), and pierogies. All were amazing. I went back today and although no one is seemingly nice because I am obviously not Polish, I think I will grow on them. So, the moral of the story is to embrace fear, taste something new, and if the aforementioned fails, you'll have a good story to tell.

For the record, after writing this, I did some research and Cobalt Blue has nothing to do with the sea, but the leading manufacturer was in Norway which is nearby. We had a geography and geology lesson today!

*Mom, if you are reading, don't worry. I go during daylight hours with a very tall bodyguard.