Chinese Friends

Sunday, October 17

We began the day with the most unusual breakfast. It was served in our hotel buffet style therefore, we expected the word “buffet” to have the usual western fare; pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, coffee, milk, juice, etc. Not so my dear friend, instead there was chicken wings, spaghetti, rice noodles, fried rice, weird sautéed vegetables and a sorry version of corn flakes. Coffee and OJ was the only saving grace.

Our adventure for the day was the Panjiayuan Antique Market. There were over 1000 little vendors set up selling all kinds of knick-knacks. We were told to treat any claims of antiquity with skepticism and to bargain hard. Robert was bargaining for some old coins when an adorable older Chinese woman came up behind me and gave me council if the price was still too high. She didn’t speak one bit of English but through hand signals and facial expressions we communicated just fine. She led us around and pointed out good areas to shop and areas to avoid before saying goodbye. We listened to her advice and had a blast exploring the narrow, crowded, cigarette filled, trash strewn, filthy rows.

After spending most of the morning and early afternoon at the market we headed Jingshan Park. The park has a large hill made from earth excavated during the construction of the Forbidden City. On the hill there are five pavilions. Each one had huge a gold Buddha until the 1900’s when four of them were stolen during the Boxer Revolution leaving only the Buddha at the top. OK, enough Chinese history, you can read about that any day but our adventures and antics you cannot.

Upon our entrance to the park we struck up a conversation with two mid-40’s Chinese men. As usual our three boys attracted their attention. “Three boys yours?” is the usual start to any conversation. They told us they were both educators in town for a conference and doing some sightseeing before meetings began on Monday. One was a Chinese history teacher and the other an English teacher. When I heard that, I asked if they would give us a “real tour” of the park. They said they would be honored to.

Fascinating doesn’t even come close to describing the wealth of information they had to share. Being with our boys brought them “much joy” and kept calling Cameron "clever", Taylor "smart" and Ryan "so happy and smart".

Turns out, the history teacher is the keynote speaker at the conference and that this conference is for the “most excellent teachers in China.” Upon learning that, Robert took the opportunity to ask all sort of great questions that delved deeper into Chinese history.

For their time, we invited them to dinner. They took us down a back alley Hutong (neighborhood) for a hot pot dinner. The walk down the alley was surreal, with weird, unusual smells and sounds, neon lights gleaming illuminating the darkness so you could at least see where you are walking. The alley was barely wide enough for two to walk side by side.

The restaurant was what we would call a “hole in the wall.” We were the only English speaking white folk for kilometers around. On our table the server placed a large copper pot with a ring of boiling water on the outside that was heated by a big piece of charcoal on the bottom. Our friends ordered for us and the party began. Four LARGE beers were placed in front of the adults and sprite for the boys. The drinks were poured into small white ceramic glasses about two ounces. Every time one person would say “compay” (incorrect phonetic Chinese spelling, translated, “bottoms up” you would drink the whole glass. When someone would say “e-dare” (incorrect phonetic Chinese spelling), translated, “drink a little” you take a sip or two. This custom got quite lively, as the evening progressed.

Dinner was out of this world delicious. I likened it to Chinese fondue. Beef, chicken, lamb, fish and shrimp dumplings and a variety of vegetables were served raw. Our friends put them in the boiling, seasoned water to cook. At the appointed doneness, we removed the food and placed it into our individual bowls of peanut-cilantro sauce. Taylor really liked it, Cameron, ”sort of”, but that’s the usual response from him, and Ryan lamented the hot dog we denied him earlier. But Robert and I, for the first time ate too much in China. “Compay!”

With a full belly we exchanged email addresses and said goodbye to our new friends. This experience was the insider, locals, tour I had been hoping for somewhere along the way.