Trial and Error

There’s definitely a learning curve for life in China. Lots of aspects of living here just don’t translate well to suburban America; where to buy things, how to buy them, how to cook, where and how to spend your time, is all fit into a strange network of customs, traditional venues, foreign businesses and trends.

Airline tickets get cheaper as the date approaches; you’re better off buying about a week or so before you want to leave. I’ve seen people buy shoes from street vendors, electric bikes from supermarkets and fruit from outdoor pushcarts and market stands. The several large supermarkets in the city are much more like your typical superstore, with everything from school supplies to clothing to electronics to food. Still, there are fruit vendors and convenience stores everywhere, and if you know where to look you can also find outdoor food markets and indoor markets that sell everything from snacks to clothing to furniture, all out of small stands where you negotiate your prices with the shopkeepers.

The first week or so I was here, I could post to this blog but couldn’t read it or anyone else’s because the “Great Firewall of China” has blocked blogspot, along with wikipedia and a few photo-sharing sites. Luckily I’ve got around it with the help of a handy-dandy proxy site provided by the ever-helpful Jeremy, but I’m not sure I would’ve figured it out otherwise.

On Tuesday I didn’t start class until 2:00 (because I’ve changed from my discussion class to a newspaper reading class, which believe it or not includes more discussion about more interesting topics), so I decided to go to the nearest supermarket, which is a comfortable walk away, to buy a few necessities. Pens seem to be expensive, but I found a relatively reasonable singly packaged one, because one of my neuroses involves running out of ink in my favorite pen. I also bought a folder for the above mentioned newspaper class. I then perused the food choices, hoping to get enough to cook some sort of meal later in the week. I found some promising looking fresh pasta, and bought to go with it some veggies, garlic and (to my surprise and delight) parsley. I also chose a promising looking stuffed bun for lunch, yogurt for breakfasts, and a loaf of bread. I then spent a good bit of time perusing and considering the numerous choices of frozen dumplings, microwavable steamed buns, and countless sweet hard biscuit pre-packaged biscuit things. The Chinese seem to stick to what they know in terms of condiments, which were limited to oil, soy sauce, sesame oil and the really harsh rice vinegar that is pretty much ubiquitous. In order make my food taste less like Chinese food, I found a 12 yuan bottle of red wine that I’m sure is horrendous but might be a close substitute for red wine vinegar. I waited in line for about half an hour, despite the fact that there were only about 4 people in front of me. Only too late did I discover that when buying non-prepackaged produce, one must label the price oneself. I watched in helpless disbelief as the woman at the register confiscated my parsley, my garlic, my pasta and (alas!) my lunch. The line was getting longer and I had to get back to school, so I now find myself with a head of broccoli, some carrots, a bottle of wine, and no clear opportunity for another excursion.

Sometime last week, I decided to get some work done and then grab a quick dinner at the cafeteria. Around 6:15 I entered the cafeteria, waved to my classmates finishing their meals, and walked the long path to the other end where the register is, only to discover that they were cleaning up for the close of their shift. I asked hopefully if there was any food left, and was returned an amused negative. Now I know, if you want to eat dinner on campus, you’d best get there before 6.

Ordering food is definitely a shot in the dark, though I enjoy the element of surprise. Generally I make someone give me a recommendation, but the problem is that I generally have no idea what the food will look like when it comes, even if I can read the name. Once at a Sichuan restaurant I saw an item called “Water-boiled Fish” and eliminated it immediately as sounding thoroughly unappealing. One of the roommates ordered for us and the dish was among the choices, but when it came it turned out to be a really rich, spicy fish soup. I’ve encountered several times when I could read something along the lines of “pork ____ soup” or “dry stir-fried chicken _____” which I try to avoid because you never can be sure whether “____” is some cut of meat you’d rather not eat. I definitely once saw pork stomach on the menu. Luckily, to end our menu illiteracy, we have a twice a week dinner with our elective classmates at a nearby restaurant, at which we take it in turns to order dishes for the table. That starts next week, so I’ll be sure to report back. In the meantime I’ll have to keep practicing being in China, yes?