Hào Chī - Good Eats!

We have made many great friends while living/working in China, many of which are Ford International Service Employees and their families such as ours.  One of our good friends, Carol Johnson, also maintains a blog to document her adventures in Nanjing China.  I recently read her recent blog which touched on how all of our knowledge of the Chinese culture is growing.  One of the most interesting observations we all have made revolve around the topic of Food and Meals.  No surprise in a culture where eating is the center of socialization, family and business transactions.  I would like to thank Carol for allowing me to post her observations which we completely and 100% can relate to thus far in our time spent in China.  If you are interested you can also check out her blog at:  http://cricketsvoice.blogspot.com/2012/04/hao-chi-good-eats.html?spref=fb. 

Here are some of the conclusions that have surfaced through many China restaurant meals:

·         No one will DIE of a dreadful disease if we share our food.

When ordering from a menu, the custom is to order several dishes that are placed in the center of the table or on a large "lazy Susan" and then to share them with everyone at the table. This works well, unless a certain someone is in the habit of guarding and protecting their meat. If this is the case, it is wise to order a duplicate dish ;)

·         Dig in while it's hot.

In a restaurant an order does not arrive all at once. Food arrives as the cook prepares it and is often 'checked' off of the bill as it's plopped down.  Dishes are not held in the kitchen until the entire order is ready.  In other words, being Western-polite and waiting for everyone at a restaurant table to be served together, just is NOT going to happen.

·         Wait-staff only come when summoned.

The fúwùyuán (attendant) arrives at your table to take your order, bring you food, and bring your bill but ONLY when summoned. A very loud shout of "Fúwùyuán!" will bring her/him your way.  They aren't working for tips (they don't tip in China) and they figure if you want them you will call out to do so. This is very different than the USA.  It would be considered VERY rude to call out "Waitress!" in a US restaurant. 

·         Special orders

Ordering a dish say, without mushrooms or mayo, or with cucumbers instead of pickles, etc. will get you looks like you just jumped off the wrong bus on the wrong street, in the wrong city, naked.  In other words, how they prepare the listed dish is the ONLY way it comes, so save your breath.  Oh, you can try to customize.  But for the most part the order taker will suddenly appear deaf in both ears to your request.  We've learned to pick out what we aren't interested in eating.  Another successful strategy is to frequent your favorite restaurant often, this way over a long period of time they grow accustom to your request ;)  A restaurant owner asked me once, "Why is it you Americans want everything 'special' or 'without this or that?'  Can't you just order what's on the menu?".  I remained mute.  But I wanted to defend the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave and launch into what it really means to be a US citizen and the privilege of choice and the cost of freedom, etc. :)

·         Bring It, Baby

This culture is very aware of rank.  Higher rank, higher status, means more influence.   In entering a restaurant for a meal you will most likely interact with all of these folks during your food break:  Greeter or two, Hostess to Seat You
Drink Menu and Food Menu person, Order Taker, Beverage Toter or two, Food Toter or two, Dish Clearer & Back to the Order Taker.  Each task is performed by someone in a uniform determined by their job and rank.  I know this isn't that foreign in fine restaurant dining in the USA, but I'm talking about Pizza Hut, here.

·         Are they open or what?

It is not uncommon to approach a restaurant about 1:30pm and be shoo-ed away.  That's because at 2:00pm the lights will go out and the entire staff will put their heads down on the table to nap before the dinner hour which begins a couple hours later. I liken it to the Siesta in the Latin American countries where it's just too dang hot to work so a break is imminent.

·         Míngpiàn?  - (Business Card?)

The wait staff won't approach you with your bill until summoned. "Fúwùyuán!" - remember? Upon arriving with the bill she'll announce the total and she won't go away until you pay her, right there on the spot, in CASH.  As you waddle out, because, yes, you ate too much, be sure and stop at the entrance desk for a míngpiàn so that you can show your taxi driver how to get back at some future date.  Oh, heck, take a few and give one to your friends when they ask, "Where did you eat this weekend?"

·         Do you have a “Cha”? - (Had to add this one Carol, sometime you just want a fork!)

Although we are becoming more proficient with chopsticks, the mastery of this utensil can still become frustrating!

Hope you have enjoyed reading, many thanks to Carol!

Phuket Island, Patong Beach, Thailand

We have returned home after our first vacation while living in the Asia Pacific region, in summary of the seven days we had a blast!  Our vacation was at Phuket Island, Patong Beach, Thailand.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn Resort which was located directly across from Patong Beach and in the heart of the community.  Much of the gathering areas of the resort were open to the outdoors such as the reception desk, restaurants, bars, etc.  The food at the resort was very good and surprisingly reasonably priced, we enjoyed the Thai food and also western dishes that we don’t have the luxury of while living in China.  As for the weather each day was right around 90 degrees (F) and we only had a few days where we saw a very brief shower followed closely by the sun reappearing (we did not even bother to leave the pool).  As a result we were able to enjoy the resort’s three pools (our favorite was the one with the swim-up bar!).  Patong Beach is a very picturesque area located at the base of one of the mountain ranges which are characteristic of the island.  There is one main route that leads you to the various beaches on the island as you wind thorough the coastal mountains.  Just as you would suspect in a resort and tourism driven economy, the streets are lined with small family run shops that sell largely the same items (ex. hats, t-shirts, shorts, sunglasses, imitation watches and purses).

While enjoying the resort each day we also had some great highlights within our trip.  One of the most beautiful days we had we went island hopping via a speed boat on a day excursion.  Our first stop was at Phi Phi Ley Island and enjoyed swimming at Maya Bay.  With the bright blue clear water, white sand beach, and mountains surrounding the bay it was an amazing place to experience!  On the same trip we island hopped to other locations.  We stopped at Phi Phi Don Island and fed the monkeys that lined the beaches, Brady loved doing this!   At lunchtime we ate at the same Island on a hillside restaurant where we could see the beach and the islands in the distance.    Next the speed boat stopped at Hin Klang Reef and we enjoyed snorkeling within the beautiful coral reef and tropical marine life.  I cannot express how much Cooper enjoyed looking at all the fish while snorkeling; he has not stopped talking about it!   Our last stop was Bamboo Island were we relaxed on the beech while Cooper and Brady found coral on the beach. 

 

Another amazing day for our family was an elephant safari.  We were driven to a tropical part of the island high above sea level.  It is here were we climbed onto our elephants for a 45 minute ride through the forest, at times overlooking the ocean and the islands on the horizon.  How often in a lifetime do you get the opportunity to ride an elephant!  On this same trip the boys got the opportunity to feed the elephants and also see a small show.

Our animal adventure was topped off with a visit to the Phuket Zoo.  This however was not your metropolitan zoo by any manner!  This was a zoo where you not only got to see the animals but you got to hold, interact, and have your picture taken with the animals.  As a family we got to hold baby monkeys, put our arms around a chimpanzee, hold tropical birds, sit next to a tiger, and also ride elephants all by ourselves!   We took some amazing photos!  We also were able to see an alligator and elephant show, we even brought home a painting an elephant made for the boys!

Lastly we visited “Phuket Phantasea”.  Here we saw a great show that highlighted Thai folklore, amazing acrobatics, illusions, and many animals native to the region.  This was a great way to end our trip.

The boys summed up the trip in the best way imaginable, “this is our best vacation ever”!  This provided our family a great “recharge” as we head back to China and the busy schedule we hold with work and school.  I am thinking that Cooper had the best idea while we were on vacation, we would live on the beach and open a magic shop for a living….  Next on the horizon for the family in four weeks is our trip to Hong Kong Disneyland!!!  Even a bigger milestone is our trip home in a few short months to see our family and friends who we miss very much….