Nice to see ya!
Hey pinkdolly,
I gotta say I agree with everyone else! Great new avatar and you are a cutie! Can't wait to see some pics from the new camera!
As for the ulcers and spicy food, no worries at all! I cured myself of those problems years ago with the master cleanser and now that I am so much fitter and healthier I can eat food that would have hurt me to look at before... I bought a small jar of pickled peppers here the other day.... So cheap I couldn't believe it (and from the import store too!). When I eat these little things I am reminded of the old bugs bunny cartoons where the character eats something spicy and flames come shooting out of their ears..... Come to think of it, I haven't got any hair in my ears.... And what are those sotty black marks on the earlobes...?
I think thats great that there are so many steamboat restaurants there. I have eaten on the real deal so I am jaded now and miss that "real" Chongqing cuisine. But the thing I miss the most is something I am suprised I remembered. Of course in China it is no secret that men, especially doing business, LOVE to drink large amounts of alcohol. And usually it is that god awfull 50-60% Bai jiu (white alcohol for those who dont know). Back home we call it moonshine or more appropriately "paint thinner". Well, after a particularly successful business deal the boys took me out to show there appreciation. And though I did not partake in the "lovely ladies" that were lined up and offered to me (another story in itself...) I did "accidentally" let a bunch of bai jiu get into me. Needless to say by the time I was walking, no, staggering back to the hotel I was feeling no pain and could have been on the moon for all I knew.... Then I saw her... She wasn't beautiful, nor was she charming, but she had one of those little street corner BBQ's that many people shy away from. I had a peak and picked out a couple slices of paper thin bean curd. BBQ'ed with spicy sauce, stuck on stick for 8 cents. I then proceeded to continue back to the hotel with treats in hand.
Wow!!! Super spicy and SUPER DUPER good!!!!! I will remember those little street corner treats till the day I die and would go back to CQ in a second to get them..... And who knows, once the summer is over, I just might.
Forget the history and the shopping and the spicy food, I want THAT tofu again and again and again.....
sirant