Breakfast is Still the Best - Dalian, China

When my friends talk about their extended family, whether they gush or gripe, I can only smile and nod. I've been alone for as long as I can remember. An only child with the helicopter parents, always trying to escape. My extended family lives in China, and I left when I was five. The first time I went back I had forgotten them, and my 5-year visits wasn't enough to remember my roots. I recently increased the frequency to every two.

Now, at least I know them enough to miss them. An every-other-year acquaintance with all the nicer things in life isn't quite enough, but I do look forward to the chance to reconnect with the family, the friends...THE FOOD.

The only thing second to family is food, and they say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In Dalian, the best breakfast comes in a plastic bag. My favorite is the classic fried dough sticks with sweetened soy milk.

Tofu Porridge is a more savory option. We in the north make it salty, but the southern states make it sweet. The slices of silken tofu slide down a reluctant 6-AM throat, a perfect soup in a country that lets you slurp.

Street-cart pastries are a warm alternative, and the Egg Custard Tarts have no equal. The egg is so smooth it's practically pudding, whipped so hard they taste like flan.

Colder sweets are just as filling. You have your pic of danishes and turnover, but these were by far my faves. A perfect hand-rolled moon cake with dozens of discernable layers encases a sweet, almost-creamy red bean core. A puffier puff pastry with plump sunflower seeds studding the top.

When I sit down for my first meal of the day, with a family I'm seeing for the first time in years, it's not just the porridge that warms me to the core...But boy, that soy milk sure does help.