Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Friday, September 21, 2007
Postscript China
This site as well as all of blogspot.com is blocked from view in China but not in Korea or Mongolia. The funny thing is that one can post quite easily although the template is only in Chinese!
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Food For Thought
Foods:
1. The restaurants in Beijing vie for a “Wow” factor unknown in DC. I went to lunch in one decorated as a temple with votive candles, music to match, and a vegetable nori roll (see above) to die for. The “Romeo and Juliet” dish was made with blood red baby beets swimming with some chestnuts and fake abalone. That one didn’t taste great but it still looked great.
2. The Peking Duck (never had it here before) we had in Beijing was not any more delicious than the Peking Duck we have in Falls Church. Except for the first bite. Dip a little piece of skin into the coarse sugar. Place in mouth. Salty! Sweet! Crunchy! Yum! The condiments not only include the usual hoisin and scallions but little cucumber batons, garlic paste, and some other unidentifiable items as well.
3. All our fast food places are in Beijing including Starbucks and more (Haagen Dazs).
4. The yuck factor I didn’t have to face: poor J. had to eat some kind of albino frog-fish. Whole. I think he just tasted it.
Thoughts:
1. The hotel in Beijing reminds me of the hotels (the Peninsula, the Mandarin) of yore in HK. I especially liked it when we first arrived both times and were whisked through Reception to register right in our suite. And I was met with a big bouquet of lilies and orchids!! Now that’s service. To say nothing of the 20 piece orchestra in the lobby playing “The Merry Widow.”
2. The old men in Beijing still bring their caged pet birds to the parks.
3. I can’t figure out what those people in Lhasa are praying for.
4. What’s with Tibet?
5. I am spoiled but at least I know it.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
Buy, Buy Beijing
Back in Beijing...
Hong Qiao Pearl Market
Near the Temple of Heaven is a heavenly place for those of us who like to shop. Here you can find the (fake?) Polos, purses, parkas, etc. On the third and fourth floors you can buy pearls at the same place Colin Powell and Bill Clinton shop.
Ikea, Beijing-style
Since our last trip to Shanghai we’ve been wondering what the Ikea in China is like (we saw the sign but didn’t have time for a visit). Now we know. Sunday was not the smartest time to go but we had no choice. As we all know, Ikea prides itself on its “store-flow” setup. It’s a maze you go through to get to the Marketplace section. Well, the arrows here are on the floor, too, but no one pays them any attention. It was so crowded with under-30s that we had to squeeze our way through. A glimpse at the cafe (huge) revealed some concessions to the local food- rice and stew- alongside the mandatory Swedish meatballs. Overall, though, pretty much everything else was the same at the same prices. Now everybody’s house will look the same.
The Bird, Insect, Fish Market
All the different kinds of turtles and fish make up for the fact that there are no birds at the Bird Market. I suspect it’s due to the Avian Flu scare. There are also rodents, rabbits, tarantulas, puppies, and kittens but the market is mostly filled with crickets and cricket paraphernalia. The crickets are sold by their individual weight and each one comes in a little ceramic bowl covered with a tin lid held in place by a rubber band. The surrounding sound of all these caged crickets is wonderful (my opinion) so I can understand why someone would want these little guys. Not only do they sell various little houses for them -ceramic jars, stick cages, little ornate boxes- but they also have itsy-bitsy food and water dishes (I bought some!) and training sticks, a long skewer with some string at the end (like a lion tamer has, only smaller, much smaller).
Hong Qiao Pearl Market
Near the Temple of Heaven is a heavenly place for those of us who like to shop. Here you can find the (fake?) Polos, purses, parkas, etc. On the third and fourth floors you can buy pearls at the same place Colin Powell and Bill Clinton shop.
Ikea, Beijing-style
Since our last trip to Shanghai we’ve been wondering what the Ikea in China is like (we saw the sign but didn’t have time for a visit). Now we know. Sunday was not the smartest time to go but we had no choice. As we all know, Ikea prides itself on its “store-flow” setup. It’s a maze you go through to get to the Marketplace section. Well, the arrows here are on the floor, too, but no one pays them any attention. It was so crowded with under-30s that we had to squeeze our way through. A glimpse at the cafe (huge) revealed some concessions to the local food- rice and stew- alongside the mandatory Swedish meatballs. Overall, though, pretty much everything else was the same at the same prices. Now everybody’s house will look the same.
The Bird, Insect, Fish Market
All the different kinds of turtles and fish make up for the fact that there are no birds at the Bird Market. I suspect it’s due to the Avian Flu scare. There are also rodents, rabbits, tarantulas, puppies, and kittens but the market is mostly filled with crickets and cricket paraphernalia. The crickets are sold by their individual weight and each one comes in a little ceramic bowl covered with a tin lid held in place by a rubber band. The surrounding sound of all these caged crickets is wonderful (my opinion) so I can understand why someone would want these little guys. Not only do they sell various little houses for them -ceramic jars, stick cages, little ornate boxes- but they also have itsy-bitsy food and water dishes (I bought some!) and training sticks, a long skewer with some string at the end (like a lion tamer has, only smaller, much smaller).
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