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Foreign Culture Mixed RelationshipAn Innocent Gesture Can Turn into an Embarrasing Moment.As many visitors in China know, its long history has produced many styles of cooking and types of food, enough to satisfy any palette. How does an expatriate choose?
Goose is the main dish for Chinese New Year. Of course, the dinner would be embellished with an endless assortment of accompanying entrees. But, it’s not uncommon to find confused expatriates on the mainland during this festive time who have not yet assimilated into the culture and take it upon themselves to explore other possibilities of Chinese cuisine. Puppy-love diningThe Chinese, in their long history, will eat anything that turns it back to the sun. That’s a direct quote. There’s a story of one fella who was overtaken by the charms of a beautiful girl from a country town. This particular town was famous for its specialty of serving dog. Since this young woman lived her entire life in this village, he thought it only natural she was accustomed to dieting on dog. And, he was of the mindset that, perhaps he had the chance to win her charms over a pleasant evening dinner away from the festivities of her parents’ home. A few days after the New Year began, the young lady was finished with all mandatory entertaining of relatives as described by custom. She accepted an invitation from the foreigner. Together, they chose a restaurant that advertised the specialty and were politely seated at a table in a crowded dining room. After a few minutes of reviewing the menu, they ordered the house dish with vegetables on the side. The waitress served tea and they chatted as best as they could under nervous conditions. When should you skip the main courseWell, the waitress finally arrived with a huge plate of crispy, dark meat, placed it in the center of the table, said a few words in Chinese and left. The starry eyed couple sat in a less than romantic dining room looking at stacked portions of crisp meat. No one moved. Long black silk curtains covered the windows. He looked at her and smiled, then looked at the serving placed on an unsoiled linen table cloth. She returned the smile and followed his eyes to the center of the table. He looked back at her, she looked back at him. They looked back and forth at each other and still, no one moved. Finally, the young man said, “Are you going to eat?” She replied, “I don’t like dog. I never eat it.” The man was floored. He was willing to eat dog to woo a girl. He glanced around the room at tables filled with people engrossed in licking their fingers and wiping their mouths on long sleeved shirts. This was not a candle light dinner. He felt embarrassed, empty, yet relieved. The young lady knew and smiled kindly at him. They both rose and he followed her out of the restaurant. As they strolled down the main street, the young man couldn’t help thinking, when the goose is cooked, it’s best to eat it.
The copyright of the article Foreign Culture Mixed Relationship in China Travel is owned by Peter Luca. Permission to republish Foreign Culture Mixed Relationship in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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