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Showing posts from 2010

Yunnan Biayo

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As some of you know, I took a trip in October 2010 to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I stopped in Hong Kong on my journey - in both directions. On the way there, my layover was fairly short, so I had time to do not much more than a little shopping and grabbing a cup of Starbucks. My shopping included - of course - toothpaste. Yunnan Baiyo is a herb used to stop bleeding. It also is a brand of Chinese health products. I had no idea of the anti-bleeding properties when I bought the toothpaste. And I must say that I have had no bleeding since I started using it. (Smile.) Anyhow, it's a basic white paste with a mild minty flavor. I like it. If you click on the image, you can see a few interesting uses of English on the instructional sheet that came in the box. Amazon sells it , but I'm not sure if what they sell is the same paste. (The package is different.)

Chocolate Closeup

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You know the brand - but not the flavor. I bought this in Nairobi, Kenya. It was made in Egypt for the African marketplace. You won't find it in North America or Europe! It says on the tube, "Limited Edition" - so my guess is that it did not survive as a long-term flavor. Another sales point is that it is labeled "Flavalicious". There is a tension - if it tastes too good, then kids will eat it! And not to worry - it did not taste too good. (But then, I'm not a kid.) There is a small hint of mint. The paste is very light brownish white. And there is a helpful diagram on back showing how good it is to brush your teeth.

Vicco

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Vicco is one of the more unusual pastes I've had the pleasure of using in many moons. India is the country of origin - though it came to me via my sister's visit to England and then her return to Belgium (where she lives)... thank you Amy! As you can see, it's powder. The bright container has a sufficient quantity to last several years, I'd suppose. The flavor is unique enough that I can't use it for my everyday paste. (Also, I like to use a fluoride paste somewhere around half of the time, and Vicco has none.) What is the flavor like? It's very hard to describe. If I were a wine snob, I'd have the right terms to use, but I kind of like to avoid that territory. It has herbal notes - or entire stanzas. There are hints of licorice. Not a trace of sweetness is to be found. (I doubt if any kids would enjoy it.) Ingredients include bengal madder (which sounds like a snake to me), common jujube (as opposed to the un common jujube), bishop's weed and sarsapari

Herbal from Thailand

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A really fun paste! You can tell from the color that this is not your ordinary toothpaste - it's the color of a baby's poop after she has eaten several jars of finely ground spinach. For those of you who don't speak Thai, it says, "Herbal, Twin Lotus". One of my favorite things with products not normally sold in America are the translations into English. On the English side of the label it says, such lovely and helpful phrases as, "With over 10 natural herbal ingredients keeps gums and teeth healthy firmly." Flavor? Medicinal. Astringent. Strong. Bitter. I like it! This is not my daily paste, but it makes a very nice change from the other pastes I use. Kids would probably hate it. Mine won't even try it. Special thanks to my sister Amy, who bought it in her homeland of Belgium.