Making friends and meeting family

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Sunday was the Mid-autumn Festival here in China. It is a day for travel and family outings. Gu Huang invited Travis, Marta, Steve and I to her parents’ house for the festivities. We arrive early and enjoy tea, moon cakes, and pomegranates. I had never tried a pomegranate. I have had it in juice from but never as a fruit. It is shaped like a pear but looks more like an apple. The inside is filled with hundreds of seeds. They are very sweet but a little difficult to eat. Actually, they aren’t that hard to eat you just need to develop the proper eating technique. Like sunflower seeds, you pop a bunch in your mouth and spit out the waste. Gu Huang’s mother arrived with a bag full of groceries. I am getting excited now. I can’t wait to find out which delicious plates we will be enjoying today.

So far I have sampled plates from all over Kaifeng. Each meal of each day I try something new. Kaifeng has not let me down. I can not think of a single dish that I have not enjoyed. The dumplings are awesome, the xiao long bao are awesome, the noodles are amazing, the meat on a stick is fantastic, and the soups are exciting. I will say that I am not a fan of the fish head soup. It is too fishy. No that I expected anything else from something called fish head soup. I even enjoyed the French Fries, I mean Freedom Fries, from KFC. I couldn’t help myself. They looked so good and everyone else was enjoying them. KFC has an excellent view of Gu Lo. It is the downtown area of Kaifeng, shopping central. Every night at 7p sharp the intersection below KFC transforms into one of the famous Kaifeng night market.

We watch with great anticipation for the clock tower to strike seven. Click, street vendors pour into the intersection from every direction and every ally-way. Only five minutes have passed and dinner is served. There is cart after cart of every type of food imaginable. There are soup carts, dumpling carts, seafood on a stick, and lamb on a stick, pastries, sushi, sweets, and pastries. Everything! It is heaven. Oh, and dinner will cost about 3 USD. That includes appetizers, drinks, and dessert. I love China.

Back at Gu Huang’s home, dinner preparations have begun. Her father invites us to join in the preparations. I am so excited to learn how to make dumplings. Everything is made from scratch; there is no creamed mushroom or tomato paste. The dough is mixed and rolled out into little circles. The filling is prepared by mixing pork, onions, and seasonings. I hold a circle of dough in my left hand and place the filling in the middle. There is a delicate balance of proportion. Too much filling and the dumpling has a blow-out, too little filling and the dumpling lacks flavor. None of us really perfect the technique but most of the dumplings turned out quite delicious. We return to the living room to finish the movie Sideways. If you haven’t seen the movie, I recommended renting it.

Gu Huang’s Mother and Grandmother finish the dinner preparations and set the table. Her father calls us back into the dinning room. I turn the corner to find a banquet feast which rivals that of Thanksgiving. I now understand why Mid-autumn Festival is compared to Thanksgiving. It’s not just the time of year. It is everything like Thanksgiving, friends and family come together to share a magnificent meal and share stories. I learned that Gu Huang’s Father is the head of the History department at my University. He has been there for more then twenty years. We chat for an hour or so and finish the case of beers. He told me that we had to finish the beers today because he doesn’t drink on a regular basis. This is a special occasion. I am happy to oblige.

After dinner, Gu Huang wants to take us to the karaoke bar in the center of town. We grab a cab and are on our way. Karaoke is serious business in China. If you have ever been to a swanky bar in downtown Chicago you will understand the setting. Everyone gets a private room. Beer and liquor are brought to your room. The room is dimly lit with neon lights. The couches are leather or pleather. I’m not sure. Regardless they look nice. The music box is filled with Chinese and American music. You get two microphones. It was the most fun I have had at a Karaoke bar since Primetime.

We leave the bar and cruise over to Gu Lo for some snacks and to find a bathroom. We head over to KFC to use the bathroom and as I’m walking in a group of my students come walking out. They wave and say, “Hi Michael.” I wave back and want to stop and chat but I had drank so much between dinner and karaoke I didn’t want to make an ass of myself so I ran. The next day I met up with Jane, one of the girls who had seen me at the KFC and explained the situation. I hope they were not offended.

Jane and Antonio took me for a tour of the new campus and showed me some of the sites Kaifeng has to offer. I’ll save that trip for another entry.

Sun Get Up, Mikey Get Up

August 26, 2008

This morning I am up with the sun once again but this time I decide to see the village in its waking hours. I began my day by visiting the street vendor Jackie took us to the day before. “Zao,” I say. “Ni Hao,” replies the man with dark hair and sun wrinkled skin. He works quickly, opening the pita, cracking the egg, and turning each over in a single fluid motion. It reminds me of my barista days. Amid the prep-work and finishing he looks up with a grin overcome by amusement. Certainly, he is just as entertained by my presence as I am with his daily grind. “Yi ge,” he asks holding up a single finger. I nod my head to confirm my order. His wife, already holding a pita, points to the toppings and asks, “yao la, yao ma?” “Yao, Yao,” I reply, gesturing that I would like all the veggies and spice. Quickly she spreads the spices on either side of the fold. In the center she places the veggies and I’m ready to go!

I return to campus while munching on this delicious food item. I know I’ve said it is delicious once or twice already, but seriously, it is so good. By far my favorite food item to date. Walking north along the east wall I pass the group of retired professors exercising tai chi behind my apartment. This is a patient martial art. They seem to stand around more than actually exercise. That’s my kind of work out. I will have to work up the courage to ask them to teach me one of these days. Continuing down the road I pass the sports field, track, and ball court. The sun is barely out and the track and ball courts are filled with hundreds of men, women, and children of all ages. I was thirsty now and decide to head out to the market where I had purchased soap and tissue the day before.

To my surprise the market is closed. In its place are farmers lining the street on either side for what looks like miles. They are selling fresh fruits, fresh or somewhat fresh vegetables, meats, and the occasional pair of socks. My favorite sight is the livestock. Like in the movies or Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations, the chickens are sold live and by weight using traditional scales. A man makes his purchase and hangs the chicken by bound feet over his handle bars. To my left are large wok-like bowls filled with fish. There are catfish, salmon, trout, and carp. Or so I think, I am no expert on river fish of China. They splash around fearing for their lives. Little do they know that the next Wok they experience will not be so cool.

Just then I encounter something very troubling. There is an older man hitting a young lady on the hand like one would discipline a child. All around me people are screaming. The man behind me is doing the old ankle-tap trick. Remember the one from the airport that accomplishes nothing but a sore on the back of my ankle. It still doesn’t work. In front of me, behind me, to my side, and in front of me again are little old people pushing and shoving and yelling. It is 6:30am and I have just encountered my first…

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!FARMERS MARKET TRAFFIC JAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is quite a terrifying sight and I am helpless to do anything about it. And just like in Chicago there are people diving in and out of traffic as if they are somehow magically going to get through the congestion. Today’s problem seems to have started when the young women, driving a walnut-cart, rear-ended the old man in his corn-cart. The impact sent him into oncoming traffic where he struck a moped head on. The .5 mph collision resulted in a 78 person/bike/cart/moped pile-up. The accident was sorted and I’m happy to report no injuries except for a couple scraped and bruised ankles.

After negotiating the accident sight I reached the corner and headed west towards the south gate. It is amazing that the streets are vacant of activity on this street, while just around the corner is near chaos. Feeling brave, I decide to explore the city. I venture further and further. Every street corner has a restaurant spilling out onto the street. The chairs are filled with people discussing the day’s activities to come. Old men and women sweep the ally’s free of leaves and soot. As I walk, I peak into the homes as the residents convert their bedroom into a kitchen and finally a shop. Living spaces are small and every inch of space is used for multiple purposes.