Hi JL and welcome to the "land of the free" ;)

>Arriving at the airport, I was a bit afraid that the customs would
>control my luggage, but they didn't (I brought a few cassia pods,
>and will soon experiment with that again; still haven't notice
>any "magical" effects, except from the laxative ones).

You can get cassia in the USA from Manis (mah nees) in Hawaii at (808)
965-6069.
Maine Coast Sea Vegetables (207) 565-2907 for "dulse"

>The weather at Philly is rather hot (up to 94 F), but I guess I
>shouldn't complain too much (in Paris, 63 F). For me, eating raw
>hasn't affected my thermoregulation (in neither way).

Wait till December--you'll not be able to remember "hot".

>The Chinatown was quite a disappointment. Very small (just a few
>blocks), and practically no exotic fruits (no durians, no jackfruits
>or rambosteens...). I found some fresh bamboo shots (available in
>Paris too), but are they truly raw?

I didn't even know that Philly had a chinatown. But, yes, say gooodbye to
jackfruit, mangosteens, etc which are so easily, if expenisively, found in
Paris. There may be a larger supermarket-type store which serves the Asian
community--and it may not be right in chinatown. It would probably have a
larger selection--who knows? but I used to get fresh mackerel from one in
Milwaukee, whereas most every other fish outlet didn't know what a mackerel
was!

>So far, I haven't visited many health food stores. Some of them
>should really be called "toxic fude stores"... but a few are
>quite satisfactory. I found a kind of mini organic food supermarket
>called "Essene Market" which, in quality and diversity could be
>compared to "Les Nouveaux Robinson" in Paris (I didn't forget...),
>although they don't provide in-shell nuts. Actually, I haven't found
>in-shell nuts, and only a very limited choice of organic meat (not a
>problem for the moment, since I don't like meat). I tried shelled
>walnuts and pecans, but they taste "cooked", and pecans seem the
>worst.

Most folks serious about their nuts get them mail order. I've given up on
them pretty much (and Melisa eat small amounts from health food stores) so
I don't have any specific contacts, but maybe some other listers will give
you some phone numbers...

>Globally, food is less expensive, with a few exceptions like
>avocados. Mineral water is expensive too, except if you buy bottles of
>1 gallon. Some fruits taste very different (strawberries...). Corn and
>oranges (sunkist) seem sweeter, but I am not absolutely sure (as my
>taste varies constantly).

They probably are. The current varieties of white corn are a bit
much--maybe we should get Guy-Claude to taste test them for "originality",
eh?

>There are two large markets here (yes, markets, like in Europe!).
>In the Reading terminal Market, some Amish people sell their
>fruits and produce (not "certified organic", but I guess close
>to organic). In the Italian Market, they do not sell organic food
>but one can find a lot of seafood. Their little crabs are a bit
>frustrating (almost nothing to eat, only a few grams). Maybe I should
>try the soft-shelled ones (and eat the shell).

I think oysters may be cheaper in the USA, but it ain't the season and
you'll probably have to contend with polluted east coast "bluepoints" when
it is.

>During the first days, as I didn't have any permanent address, I could
>only eat foods that could be eaten immediately in the street, such as
>(red) tuna steaks (taste about the same), fruits, and sunflower and
>the pumpkin seeds (which can be eaten without soaking). Now that I
>have a permanent address, I am trying to prepare sprouts... without my
>sprouter (most of it broke during the flight).

Well, you got some cassia through, so you're even ;)

>Next Thursday, I will have a barbecue... with ordinary and veggie
>burgers. Maybe I will eat their salad and bring an avo... There is
>certainly no advantage (regarding taste) to come back to cooked food
>when you live in the States.

Ha! Hope you get a chance to travel the country a bit while you're here.
It's pretty big and varied. The malls are pretty much the same in every
city, but there is plenty of interesting stuff in the country still...

And I hope the Americans are more friendly to you than the French were to
me ;) ;)

Cheers,
Kirt