Okay, I said I wasn't going to write again, but I lied. Something interesting happened, so I'm going to capitalize on it.
So today, I got localized ... I was taken to a restaurant that is right next to my apartment. In general, that is not a good thing. I love Wan Chai, but I swore I would never eat any of the "street meat" that was within several blocks of where I live. But I'm too polite to say anything, so we proceed.
Nothing is in English, so the waitress reads the menu to me from the wall. Dish 1 - Chicken Wing. I was a little scared she actually meant "chicken feet, so I said,"keep reading." Dish 2 - BBQ Pork (literally pronounced "bee-bee-que pok ... mit et." The last three dishes all sounded like curry fish something-or-other, so I went for the pork. It came out in like 30 seconds, and looked interesting. It was the fattiest pork I'd ever seen, served over rice, with a soft-boiled egg on top and soy sauce. It was actually really good. The fat was a little much for me, but I kept looking around at all this rail-thin people and thought ... how bad can it be? The also served this tea which was killer. My coworker brought me to the supermarket and I bought some. It basically looks like jam that you put in hot water. Ingredients are "Korean citron, fructose, sugar, honey." No wonder I like it. As we're leaving she kept shouting "see them cook the food? Look at them cooking the food!" Ah, no. That's okay ... All I saw was sweat and no hair nets. *gag*
So after work I was supposed to go to the convention center and check out the Chinese New Year Bizarre. I just didn't feel up to it and went straight home. I ran into one of my co-workers right next to my house (and was SO GLAD I recognized him. I'm petrified I'm going to bump into somebody I "know" and they'll simply be another short brown person in the crowd. But he's actually tall, which was probably my saving grace). I turned on the TV, started to pack, and was instantly going out of my gord. I just had to get out. I pulled on some jeans and headed out the door. Right after having a cup of hot sugar water. I felt like a humming bird ...
I wanted to check out this candy store down the road and it was totally cool. They had lots of Chinese New Year stuff, but also some weird treats. Prawn rolls, for example. Only they're not refrigerated. Not quite sure how that works. Seaweed wraps, chocolate covered sunflower seeds, something called egg protein something ... you name it. I made a little friend who talked me into buying a crap-load of candy. As she pointed to the chocolate hearts for v-day (not even on sale!) she says, "maybe a heart for your girlfriend at home?" I assured her he was no girl, but I swear she was flirting. Probably works on commission. As I was checking out, I asked them how to say 'happy new year.' She said it like a million miles per hour, so I repeated it the best I could. The lady behind me in line taught me something much easier. Kong Hei Fat Choi (it can be spelled a million ways in English text) means you're wishing the person lots of wealth. Sounds good to me! I had the nicest conversation with her outside about San Francisco, and how I love Hong Kong but miss the US. We must have talked for like 10 minutes - complete strangers.
Anyway, so after saying goodbye I strolled around the open market, kinda hoping to catch a glimpse of the English bulldog that hangs out there. I stopped by this cute little card store and picked up some Chinese New Year Cards (what the heck am I going to do with all the crap I'm buying?). I stepped inside to find an entire family eating dinner at their table. I was in their dining room! It was the weirdest thing. The lady didn't even get up from her noodles to check me out. So on my way out, I gave them to 'ol "Kong Hei Fat Choi!" To which they all busted out laughing. The kid spit his noodles back in the bowl and sounded like he was going to choke. Hey, at least I tried.
So today, I got localized ... I was taken to a restaurant that is right next to my apartment. In general, that is not a good thing. I love Wan Chai, but I swore I would never eat any of the "street meat" that was within several blocks of where I live. But I'm too polite to say anything, so we proceed.
Nothing is in English, so the waitress reads the menu to me from the wall. Dish 1 - Chicken Wing. I was a little scared she actually meant "chicken feet, so I said,"keep reading." Dish 2 - BBQ Pork (literally pronounced "bee-bee-que pok ... mit et." The last three dishes all sounded like curry fish something-or-other, so I went for the pork. It came out in like 30 seconds, and looked interesting. It was the fattiest pork I'd ever seen, served over rice, with a soft-boiled egg on top and soy sauce. It was actually really good. The fat was a little much for me, but I kept looking around at all this rail-thin people and thought ... how bad can it be? The also served this tea which was killer. My coworker brought me to the supermarket and I bought some. It basically looks like jam that you put in hot water. Ingredients are "Korean citron, fructose, sugar, honey." No wonder I like it. As we're leaving she kept shouting "see them cook the food? Look at them cooking the food!" Ah, no. That's okay ... All I saw was sweat and no hair nets. *gag*
So after work I was supposed to go to the convention center and check out the Chinese New Year Bizarre. I just didn't feel up to it and went straight home. I ran into one of my co-workers right next to my house (and was SO GLAD I recognized him. I'm petrified I'm going to bump into somebody I "know" and they'll simply be another short brown person in the crowd. But he's actually tall, which was probably my saving grace). I turned on the TV, started to pack, and was instantly going out of my gord. I just had to get out. I pulled on some jeans and headed out the door. Right after having a cup of hot sugar water. I felt like a humming bird ...
I wanted to check out this candy store down the road and it was totally cool. They had lots of Chinese New Year stuff, but also some weird treats. Prawn rolls, for example. Only they're not refrigerated. Not quite sure how that works. Seaweed wraps, chocolate covered sunflower seeds, something called egg protein something ... you name it. I made a little friend who talked me into buying a crap-load of candy. As she pointed to the chocolate hearts for v-day (not even on sale!) she says, "maybe a heart for your girlfriend at home?" I assured her he was no girl, but I swear she was flirting. Probably works on commission. As I was checking out, I asked them how to say 'happy new year.' She said it like a million miles per hour, so I repeated it the best I could. The lady behind me in line taught me something much easier. Kong Hei Fat Choi (it can be spelled a million ways in English text) means you're wishing the person lots of wealth. Sounds good to me! I had the nicest conversation with her outside about San Francisco, and how I love Hong Kong but miss the US. We must have talked for like 10 minutes - complete strangers.
Anyway, so after saying goodbye I strolled around the open market, kinda hoping to catch a glimpse of the English bulldog that hangs out there. I stopped by this cute little card store and picked up some Chinese New Year Cards (what the heck am I going to do with all the crap I'm buying?). I stepped inside to find an entire family eating dinner at their table. I was in their dining room! It was the weirdest thing. The lady didn't even get up from her noodles to check me out. So on my way out, I gave them to 'ol "Kong Hei Fat Choi!" To which they all busted out laughing. The kid spit his noodles back in the bowl and sounded like he was going to choke. Hey, at least I tried.
4 comments:
Leave it to your ignorant brother to ask... but how does Chinese new year work if the calander starts over in Jan? Tyson
Sometimes I wish you had a helmet camera on you that streamed online.
Our Western calendar goes by the sun and the Chinese Calendar goes by the moon. That's why Chinese new year is often called Lunar New Year.
Isn't it Gung Hei Fat Choi? Preschool teachers know these things (: Anyway, I am eagerly awaiting your next post. It's hard to wait. It's almost as hard as waiting to see who will be voted off American Idol!
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