Unlikely as it may seem, the above is a quote from a German friend who's currently living in Beijing!
My culinary adventures here have been not quite a daily thing, but nevertheless enlightening. The food is wonderful! It's easy to find really delicious food, both in restaurants and supermarkets, and the best thing is that there is absolutely tons of variety; food from all the different regions of China, local specialities and international food that's pretty reasonable. Of course, there's one golden rule; eat first, ask later. Which is easier than it sounds - I've unquestioningly eaten bullfrog and every kind of animal innard available without being nearly as upset by it as I imagined I would be. Thankfully I have managed to avoid dog and cat so far (I think), and I've yet to do anything other than take pictures of the scorpion, beetle, cockroach and whole snake kebabs that are on offer in some of the food markets.
Despite all the nice restaurants I've been enjoying cooking for myself most nights since I arrived, something that I've not given any time to since university if I'm very honest. Isn't it funny how much you can miss doing simple things, without even realising it? I've missed the whole process of cooking regularly - going to the supermarket and looking at all the fresh ingredients, buying simple stuff along with a few special ingredients, then getting home at night and deciding how I'm going to put them all together. The whole thing makes me very happy! And supermarket visits here are always a colourful experience - scores of people pushing and shoving, hundreds of kinds of fruit and veg across rows and rows, people cooking fresh food to sell, and of course the fresh meat and fish counters, which quickly give way to the ...live tanks, for people who like their food extra fresh. Huge fish, as well as turtles and frogs float around in crowded tanks looking miserable. If you get really lucky sometimes you even get to witness a particularly spirited fish make it's bid for freedom. If you're really really lucky it will smack into an unsuspecting shopper on the way and mayhem will ensue...
My culinary adventures here have been not quite a daily thing, but nevertheless enlightening. The food is wonderful! It's easy to find really delicious food, both in restaurants and supermarkets, and the best thing is that there is absolutely tons of variety; food from all the different regions of China, local specialities and international food that's pretty reasonable. Of course, there's one golden rule; eat first, ask later. Which is easier than it sounds - I've unquestioningly eaten bullfrog and every kind of animal innard available without being nearly as upset by it as I imagined I would be. Thankfully I have managed to avoid dog and cat so far (I think), and I've yet to do anything other than take pictures of the scorpion, beetle, cockroach and whole snake kebabs that are on offer in some of the food markets.
Despite all the nice restaurants I've been enjoying cooking for myself most nights since I arrived, something that I've not given any time to since university if I'm very honest. Isn't it funny how much you can miss doing simple things, without even realising it? I've missed the whole process of cooking regularly - going to the supermarket and looking at all the fresh ingredients, buying simple stuff along with a few special ingredients, then getting home at night and deciding how I'm going to put them all together. The whole thing makes me very happy! And supermarket visits here are always a colourful experience - scores of people pushing and shoving, hundreds of kinds of fruit and veg across rows and rows, people cooking fresh food to sell, and of course the fresh meat and fish counters, which quickly give way to the ...live tanks, for people who like their food extra fresh. Huge fish, as well as turtles and frogs float around in crowded tanks looking miserable. If you get really lucky sometimes you even get to witness a particularly spirited fish make it's bid for freedom. If you're really really lucky it will smack into an unsuspecting shopper on the way and mayhem will ensue...
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