Not Sold Here - Butter Dish

China is a modern country (like many others).  As a world(ly) person, I know that almost anything I really need, I'll be able to find.  It might be a little bit different but it will serve the same purpose.  Anything that really isn't available is usually because of some cultural bias (the locals don't like things like that) or just a pure oversight (the locals never realized they needed something like that).  Maybe this will be come a series of posts about what these unavailable things are.  For now, I have 2 items to share.

The Ice Cube Tray - The ice cube trays in China are just junk.  You can visit high-end apartments, low-end huts, local vendors and luxury department stores.  They are all the same.  I searched and searched and eventually had to bring ice cube trays from the US.  Someone said that it was probably because people don't use ice very much so they don't need good trays.  I'm not sure I believe this.  This is definitely a case where people just don't know how much their ice cube trays suck.  I have people visit and when they use the imported trays (imported? hah, they're probably still made here) they are astonished at how well they work.

The Butter Dish - You can look all over this great city and you will not find a proper butter dish anywhere.  Apparently, Chinese people don't need butter dishes.  I can't even find them in the imported goods stores!  Actually, this wouldn't bother me so much if they didn't also sell sticks of butter at all the supermarkets (what do they do with the butter sticks?).  For now, I've been using a plastic soap container (meant for the soap bars in the bathroom).  The humanity...