Drinking

This post is the landing spot for a few interesting things about liquid consumption here in China.  

When you go to a restaurant they immediately serve you tea.  We always refuse the tea and ask for water instead. They bring out the steaming hot water kettle and pour you some steaming water instead. 

Mr. Hu told us that they think cold water is bad for your stomach.  Nicer restaurants have bottled water you can buy, mostly room temperature, but that is definitely preferred over steaming hot water! I've just learned to take my own water (and napkins) when we eat out.  And everyone else usually orders juice or soda. (Added note: just today in Sacrament meeting we learned that the Chinese think that drinking hot water heals many ailments; so I guess that is something you could try at home!!)

One evening after an adventure we were tired and didn't want strong opinions expressed by the girls as to what we should do for dinner.  Tom suggested we return to a place where we loved the deep fried pineapple.  (Yes, you should want to try it!)  The lady remembered us and welcomed us in and gave us a table.  Soon a very animated man came and started talking to Tom.  I couldn't tell what he was saying (I usually can't, but I can often pick out a word or two and know the topic) but he kept patting the girls on the head and shaking Tom's hand after Tom said we were from America. 

But the conversation kept going on and on and on.  I soon decided that he was drunk.  Turns out that he wanted to pay for our meals and he made each of us say 'okay' and agree that we would let him pay (even though none of us knew what we were agreeing to).  Tom finally agreed just to get rid of him.  It worked once.  But then he came back with the same antics.  And then he came back again and again.  The girls were so tired of it by the time we got out of there.  And Tom went up to pay the bill because he didn't know if he could trust the drunk.

Boba shops are everywhere and the girls love their boba.  I'm not a huge fan of non water drinks in general, but I really do not care for boba.  But it's one way we've been helping the girls cope with life here and I'm very good with that!

Jacky came to town one week.  The executives went out to dinner.  (At first I felt sad to not be invited, but after hearing the menu was frogs, jelly fish, cow tongue and duck tongue I was glad to have dodged that bullet! Who knew eating duck tongue was a thing? Not me.)  The drinking procedure was the same as at the gala.  And Jacky got a little drunk.  He was staying at the Hilton right next to our apartment complex so he was driving Tom home.  What did Jacky do?  He got on an app and called a guy to drive them back.  The guy showed up on a pedal bike, put the bike in the back of Jacky's vehicle and drove them safely to their destination, took his bike out of the back and pedaled back to wherever!  So if you're ever drunk in China, that's what you do!

One night we went on an adventure for Home Evening (maybe more aptly called 'family time' if we don't spend it at home?).  On the way back Tom asked if anyone wanted an ice cream.  We were passing a little shop near the apartment that had an ice cream freezer outside.  We picked one then went inside to pay.  When the girls saw they had a selection of Milkas and juices they decided they wanted a drink instead of ice cream.  They did have a few other things to buy, but a large part of that little shop was alcohol and cigarettes.  If I had momentarily forgotten we weren't in the US, I would have immediately been reminded we weren't anywhere near American thinking because a 12 year old was running the shop.  Oh my!  Hopefully it was quite safe for him because he had a phone that he was glued to so he didn't think much about the alcohol possibilities available to him.....

To end, here is are a few related pictures:

 Here are some of the many types of juice/milk drinks the girls like.

Interestingly, the local bar has the same name as the bar in my home town....

And finally an entry way to a little alcohol shop.  It's hard to tell, but those are all empty bottles of different types of alcohol....  It must be especially good at that little shop!