Another night on the town

I get invited out to eat a lot. I know the other foreigners here all have the same problem. The Chinese are wonderful hosts, but at times it can feel like too much of a good thing. Take my weekend for example, on Saturday night my friend invited me out for dinner. When I told her I had no preference as to where we went, she decided on hot pot. I like hot pot, but I would only eat it about once every six months if I had my way. It's greasy, it's hot, it gets all over your clothes, and it's not really satisfying.

My friend wanted to check out a hot pot place that she always walked past but had never been to. Every evening there is a line out the door and around the corner. She called to see about reservations and was assured that we could find a seat anytime before six.

Dinner was good. We didn't order enough to sit for hours and pig out, just enough to satisfy us. I thought it was great, I'd made it out of a hot pot restaurant not feeling overly stuffed. I thought the night was over and she was going to take me home. Having dinner with these people is fun, but it's taxing as well.

It turns out we had a date to meet my friend's mother later that evening. We arrived at her parent's new apartment and were ushered in by her mom. After we all sat down around the television, she came back in with cups of hot Tang orange drink. Chinese people will swear that they don't like sweet things, but they sure love their sweet drinks. The Tang wasn't diluted enough, and the sweet left my mouth feeling sticky. She kept insisting that I eat some fruit until I finally had to give in. I'll admit it was good, but by this point I was feeling completely full.

After the visit to her mom's house, my friend insisted that we go out for coffee. The Chinese version of having coffee usually includes a sickingly sweet beverage poured on top of a handfull of purple tapioca balls. The drinks are made in all sorts of odd flavors. The Chinese seem to be really fond of green bean and corn flavored sweet things right now.

The sweet drink at the coffee house was what put me over the edge. Any one of our stops up until that point would have satisfied my hunger. But nope, we weren't done yet-- what night would be complete without a stop at the Chinese bbq stand?

I don't understand how people can eat so much and yet remain thin. I try to limit myself to one Chinese meal a day, two just feels like too much of a good thing.