Comments on: Thanksgiving In Changsha, Hunan Province http://myredchina.com/2009/thanksgiving-in-changsha-hunan-province/ An Ugly American In Shenzhen, China Mon, 09 Aug 2010 06:51:02 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Mr Taster http://myredchina.com/2009/thanksgiving-in-changsha-hunan-province/comment-page-1/#comment-55 Mr Taster Wed, 02 Dec 2009 07:57:08 +0000 http://myredchina.com/?p=104#comment-55 Two handy posts for you, chock-a-block with Cantonese dining info http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/670651 http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/670970#5220228 Does this help? Two handy posts for you, chock-a-block with Cantonese dining info

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/670651

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/670970#5220228

Does this help?

]]> By: Mr Taster http://myredchina.com/2009/thanksgiving-in-changsha-hunan-province/comment-page-1/#comment-53 Mr Taster Mon, 30 Nov 2009 23:12:03 +0000 http://myredchina.com/?p=104#comment-53 Taiwan is a fascinating place. I didn't quite appreciate it as much until after I returned from 2 months in China. Taiwanese people have their foibles, but all in all they just seem a lot more civilized than their mainland counterparts. Most of the stuff that's so funky and disagreeable about the mainland (e.g. loud loogie hocking, men jacking up their shirts over their bellies, unbelievably disgusting toilets, rude shoving and pushing, etc.) does not exist in Taiwan. Yet Taiwan is unmistakably Chinese... not a European hybrid like Hong Kong. To me it feels like a more "pure" China, a China that never forgot (or forcibly destroyed) its history and culture. For example, in Taiwan people actually pray in temples all the time on a regular basis. It is a common sight to enter a temple and see it filled with incense and smoke, 3 generations of family praying and burning paper money. Know why? Because there's nobody charging 10 fucking yuan at the door to go inside and pray, as they do in the mainland. Seriously, the only temple we ever went into which didn't charge us an admission fee was a Tibetan style temple waaay up in the Yunnan mountains, 6 hours on bumpy unpaved roads, near Lugu Lake by Tibet. It was so far out that the government just hadn't reached its tentacles into it yet. But in Taiwan (and Hong Kong) temples are a part of everyday life. In China, they are a tourist attraction. It's so sad. And you're totally right about not talking politics with Chinese people... even the mainland Chinese who escaped China to become students abroad or moved to the US *still* toe the Communist party line. It seems that after a lifetime of CCTV and China Daily media conditioning, the government really does control the opinions of the people. (if you've ever wondered why they post newspapers at bus stops, there's the reason why). By the way, I'm not saying that doesn't happen in the US, but at least there's some attempt made at counteracting the dissemination of talking points... free thinking is still encouraged, even if precious few people exercise that right. In China, free thinking hardly exists (though you'll be hard pressed to convince a mainlander that they're not making up their own minds) As for the cheat sheet, I'll ask my wife to jot down a few dishes.... though like I said, I'm not a huge fan of Cantonese food so I'm not a good guide as to what is delicious (other than the wonton soup, dim sum, bbq pork and roast duck!) Taiwan is a fascinating place. I didn’t quite appreciate it as much until after I returned from 2 months in China. Taiwanese people have their foibles, but all in all they just seem a lot more civilized than their mainland counterparts. Most of the stuff that’s so funky and disagreeable about the mainland (e.g. loud loogie hocking, men jacking up their shirts over their bellies, unbelievably disgusting toilets, rude shoving and pushing, etc.) does not exist in Taiwan. Yet Taiwan is unmistakably Chinese… not a European hybrid like Hong Kong. To me it feels like a more “pure” China, a China that never forgot (or forcibly destroyed) its history and culture. For example, in Taiwan people actually pray in temples all the time on a regular basis. It is a common sight to enter a temple and see it filled with incense and smoke, 3 generations of family praying and burning paper money. Know why? Because there’s nobody charging 10 fucking yuan at the door to go inside and pray, as they do in the mainland. Seriously, the only temple we ever went into which didn’t charge us an admission fee was a Tibetan style temple waaay up in the Yunnan mountains, 6 hours on bumpy unpaved roads, near Lugu Lake by Tibet. It was so far out that the government just hadn’t reached its tentacles into it yet. But in Taiwan (and Hong Kong) temples are a part of everyday life. In China, they are a tourist attraction. It’s so sad. And you’re totally right about not talking politics with Chinese people… even the mainland Chinese who escaped China to become students abroad or moved to the US *still* toe the Communist party line. It seems that after a lifetime of CCTV and China Daily media conditioning, the government really does control the opinions of the people. (if you’ve ever wondered why they post newspapers at bus stops, there’s the reason why). By the way, I’m not saying that doesn’t happen in the US, but at least there’s some attempt made at counteracting the dissemination of talking points… free thinking is still encouraged, even if precious few people exercise that right. In China, free thinking hardly exists (though you’ll be hard pressed to convince a mainlander that they’re not making up their own minds)

As for the cheat sheet, I’ll ask my wife to jot down a few dishes…. though like I said, I’m not a huge fan of Cantonese food so I’m not a good guide as to what is delicious (other than the wonton soup, dim sum, bbq pork and roast duck!)

]]> By: admin http://myredchina.com/2009/thanksgiving-in-changsha-hunan-province/comment-page-1/#comment-52 admin Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:27:39 +0000 http://myredchina.com/?p=104#comment-52 these are great tips.. thank you. Taiwan eh? I've gotta make a post about China's anger over Taiwan and HK. If you ever want to make a chinese person mad (esp at a bank, govt office, etc) say "You know in the country of Hong Kong things don't work this way". Furious they get. Can you tell me how to say the names of good food (phonetically or pinyin)? i usually just go into the restaurant and say "what kind of food do you have here?" if the menu doesn't have pictures. if i get served chicken assholes one more time i'll be really upset these are great tips.. thank you. Taiwan eh? I’ve gotta make a post about China’s anger over Taiwan and HK. If you ever want to make a chinese person mad (esp at a bank, govt office, etc) say “You know in the country of Hong Kong things don’t work this way”. Furious they get.

Can you tell me how to say the names of good food (phonetically or pinyin)? i usually just go into the restaurant and say “what kind of food do you have here?” if the menu doesn’t have pictures. if i get served chicken assholes one more time i’ll be really upset

]]> By: Mr Taster http://myredchina.com/2009/thanksgiving-in-changsha-hunan-province/comment-page-1/#comment-51 Mr Taster Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:39:12 +0000 http://myredchina.com/?p=104#comment-51 Love the blog. I'm a laowai married to a Taiwanese woman, living in LA for 13 years. I speak some Mandarin and have spent about 3 months traveling throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong and China. I must honestly say that your comment dismissing food in China because they don't make orange chicken comes off as wildly uninformed. Chinese food is incredibly diverse-- their are 5 major culinary regions of China where the food hardly resembles each other. In the warmer southerly tropical regions they tend to grow rice (more rice accompanying dishes) whereas in the colder northern regions they tend to grow wheat (noodles & buns). My taste is more towards the northern style. I have to tell you about a HUGE missed opportunity. You lived in Los Angeles, which has the largest Chinese expat communities outside of China!!! And your last meal in the USA was from some frickin' Ameri-Chinese crap in West Hollywood? Are you serious?!? Large expat communities means HUGE resources for trying food, and there is some awesomely delicious, authentic Chinese food just a 30 minute drive east of West Hollywood. Go to Arcadia, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Temple City, El Monte. You'll be able to sample Shandong style dough sliced noodles... Beijing style cumin lamb kebabs (hell, you can even get these in Koreatown now)... spicy Sichuan water boiled fish... Mongolian hotpot... Shanghainese xiao long bao, pork pump, spareribs. You can even get a 1 hour Chinese foot massage for $15 (they're all over the place). Or head further east down the 60 freeway to the Taiwanese enclaves of Rowland Heights and Hacienda Heights which is even more intensely Chinese... we're talking stinky tofu at "Stinky Tofu King", freshly made hand pulled noodles at Ma Lan (which is a Chinese-based chain-- try it in China knowing that when you come home you can have them here), etc. The thing we do NOT have a good representation of in LA is honest-to-goodness Peking Duck. If you go to Beijing, go to the original Qianmen Quanjude restaurant, south of Tienanmen Square... We had PD in 3 different places and this duck was by far the winner. Cantonese food is my least favorite of the major styles of Chinese cooking... something about the mucousy texture and sweetness of some of the dishes, along with the "exotic" ingredients. So I understand where you're coming from. But know that American Chinese food may be inspired by the original stuff, but by and large the food I ate in China was wildly superior to anything I had before I discovered the San Gabriel Valley in LA. If you get a chance, get to the Muslim (formerly Jewish) city of Kaifeng-- their night market is fantastic, unparalleled by any outside Taiwan. I had a corned beef sandwich on fresh made pita bread to rival the best delis in New York. Oh, and get to the city of Qingdao, where the beer comes fresh from the brewery in old barrels.... get that with a plate of cumin lamb sticks. The only downside is that for the rest of your life, it will spoil you for bottled Tsing Tao beer. Love the blog.

I’m a laowai married to a Taiwanese woman, living in LA for 13 years. I speak some Mandarin and have spent about 3 months traveling throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong and China.

I must honestly say that your comment dismissing food in China because they don’t make orange chicken comes off as wildly uninformed. Chinese food is incredibly diverse– their are 5 major culinary regions of China where the food hardly resembles each other. In the warmer southerly tropical regions they tend to grow rice (more rice accompanying dishes) whereas in the colder northern regions they tend to grow wheat (noodles & buns). My taste is more towards the northern style.

I have to tell you about a HUGE missed opportunity. You lived in Los Angeles, which has the largest Chinese expat communities outside of China!!! And your last meal in the USA was from some frickin’ Ameri-Chinese crap in West Hollywood? Are you serious?!? Large expat communities means HUGE resources for trying food, and there is some awesomely delicious, authentic Chinese food just a 30 minute drive east of West Hollywood. Go to Arcadia, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Temple City, El Monte. You’ll be able to sample Shandong style dough sliced noodles… Beijing style cumin lamb kebabs (hell, you can even get these in Koreatown now)… spicy Sichuan water boiled fish… Mongolian hotpot… Shanghainese xiao long bao, pork pump, spareribs. You can even get a 1 hour Chinese foot massage for $15 (they’re all over the place). Or head further east down the 60 freeway to the Taiwanese enclaves of Rowland Heights and Hacienda Heights which is even more intensely Chinese… we’re talking stinky tofu at “Stinky Tofu King”, freshly made hand pulled noodles at Ma Lan (which is a Chinese-based chain– try it in China knowing that when you come home you can have them here), etc. The thing we do NOT have a good representation of in LA is honest-to-goodness Peking Duck. If you go to Beijing, go to the original Qianmen Quanjude restaurant, south of Tienanmen Square… We had PD in 3 different places and this duck was by far the winner.

Cantonese food is my least favorite of the major styles of Chinese cooking… something about the mucousy texture and sweetness of some of the dishes, along with the “exotic” ingredients. So I understand where you’re coming from. But know that American Chinese food may be inspired by the original stuff, but by and large the food I ate in China was wildly superior to anything I had before I discovered the San Gabriel Valley in LA.

If you get a chance, get to the Muslim (formerly Jewish) city of Kaifeng– their night market is fantastic, unparalleled by any outside Taiwan. I had a corned beef sandwich on fresh made pita bread to rival the best delis in New York. Oh, and get to the city of Qingdao, where the beer comes fresh from the brewery in old barrels…. get that with a plate of cumin lamb sticks. The only downside is that for the rest of your life, it will spoil you for bottled Tsing Tao beer.

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