I am a foreigner.
I set my guidebook aside this weekend and went with the flow.
Friday evening:
I was invited to dinner by one of the Chinese teachers on my team. We went to her friend's apartment to eat with her husband and 16 year old daughter. Dinner was cucumbers and mushrooms, tomatoes with sugar, some sort of beans, rice, cherry tomatoes, some sort of sausage and beef (I passed). The nice thing is that at most dinners the food is served in the middle and shared by everyone. It feels a lot better than being handed a full plate and feeling like you must eat everything. They were so surprised that I know how to use chopsticks (but thank goodness they’re so forgiving when I spill food on the table). They were quick to pass me a tissue and when I apologized, they said, “It’s ok. You’re a foreigner.” If you’re ever in China, good luck finding a napkin- always carry your own. As nervous as we ‘westerners’ have been to ask about religion and politics, they were equally as hesitant to ask me about 9/11 in the US.
Saturday:
Hillary and I went with another foreign teacher and her students to shop. Bargaining is truly an art form here! We had a great time… the students were so helpful because they helped us bargain! It’s definitely helpful to have someone by your side who knows what a good deal is- because we could have easily said, “This is only $6 home, what a great price!” But when the students help you to get something down to the equivalent of $2, it’s definitely worth it (and fun!). Good bargainers are respected- can you imagine this happening at Macy’s? I think not. Afterwards we had lunch…once again we shared dishes, and I tried fried milk. Hmm… kind of like a mix between a Twinkie and a doughnut. It was about $30 for the 8 of us- and we were full! (I still can’t get over this) We spent the afternoon at the Temple of Heaven and exchanging slang words in our languages, then and then went to an orchestra concert for the senior students at Tsinghua.
Tonight I will have dinner at another Chinese teacher’s house. She’s getting pizza.
When we hang out with the students, they seem to think we’ll want to eat American food… It’s odd to me because if I had a Chinese guest at home, the last thing I would suggest would be Chinese food. Maybe they think it will make us more comfortable.
Friday evening:
I was invited to dinner by one of the Chinese teachers on my team. We went to her friend's apartment to eat with her husband and 16 year old daughter. Dinner was cucumbers and mushrooms, tomatoes with sugar, some sort of beans, rice, cherry tomatoes, some sort of sausage and beef (I passed). The nice thing is that at most dinners the food is served in the middle and shared by everyone. It feels a lot better than being handed a full plate and feeling like you must eat everything. They were so surprised that I know how to use chopsticks (but thank goodness they’re so forgiving when I spill food on the table). They were quick to pass me a tissue and when I apologized, they said, “It’s ok. You’re a foreigner.” If you’re ever in China, good luck finding a napkin- always carry your own. As nervous as we ‘westerners’ have been to ask about religion and politics, they were equally as hesitant to ask me about 9/11 in the US.
Saturday:
Hillary and I went with another foreign teacher and her students to shop. Bargaining is truly an art form here! We had a great time… the students were so helpful because they helped us bargain! It’s definitely helpful to have someone by your side who knows what a good deal is- because we could have easily said, “This is only $6 home, what a great price!” But when the students help you to get something down to the equivalent of $2, it’s definitely worth it (and fun!). Good bargainers are respected- can you imagine this happening at Macy’s? I think not. Afterwards we had lunch…once again we shared dishes, and I tried fried milk. Hmm… kind of like a mix between a Twinkie and a doughnut. It was about $30 for the 8 of us- and we were full! (I still can’t get over this) We spent the afternoon at the Temple of Heaven and exchanging slang words in our languages, then and then went to an orchestra concert for the senior students at Tsinghua.
Tonight I will have dinner at another Chinese teacher’s house. She’s getting pizza.
When we hang out with the students, they seem to think we’ll want to eat American food… It’s odd to me because if I had a Chinese guest at home, the last thing I would suggest would be Chinese food. Maybe they think it will make us more comfortable.
posted by Lauren at Sunday, July 03, 2005
1 Comments:
el bloggie- hey I love you're stories. it sounds like you're truly experiencing the what life is in China. I'm so happy for you!! You're missed.
Post a Comment
<< Home