I am a horrible person to travel abroad with, as I’m always ducking in grocery and convenience stores to see what’s on the shelves. Learning about the history of cathedrals is fine and dandy, but I feel like I get the best insight into other cultures by learning more about their everyday snacks.
That’s why I loved the post about the international Skittles taste test, and I was fascinated by Serious Eats’s recent detailed head-to-head comparing German and American Haribo bears. The visual contrast in artificial versus natural coloring is really striking.
I actually think I’ve only had European Haribo bears before (hidden in their Starmix), as I associate Haribo bears with stiff and jaw-aching. Turns out the American ones are fairly soft. I guess I’ve been too busy exploring the plethora of gummi bear options in the US candy market (see above) to try out the classic on my home turf.
Varsha 
sophia cook 
Vishal