So Why Aren't We Thinner...?

Beijing is a wonderful place for food ... if you know what to order -- and how to eat it.


We're getting the chopsticks thing down -- though we're not completely skilled. And even pointing at photos on a menu doesn't always work...we usually end up with a beige, bubbling cauldron of who knows what.

Our second visit to the Hot Pot restaurant was wonderful -- it was less crowded and the manager wanted to practice his English. So he came over and actually put the stuff in the pot -- and showed us how to use the broth as soup after everything was done. And this time, we knew enough to avoid the pig blood patties (which even most Chinese folks don't eat...)

Our next step was to try to learn the Mandarin phrase for "please just bring us something good to eat -- what's most popular" which sadly doesn't work because it makes the waitress uncomfortable. The other confusing thing is that most restaurants have their own signature dishes...so if you find something you love...you can't simply order it again and again.

Maybe we're fat because of my strange addiction to odd flavored Pringles chips...shrimp flavor...cucumber flavor...spicy pork. Or perhaps it's the cocktails that are required at the end of a day of intensive language training...

I hope versus I will ...

Every morning as I go to Mandarin language class, I squeeze into an elevator with Chinese people -- more than you think could possibly fit.

Today, for the first time, there was another foreigner -- weiguogen --next to me. He said, "Berlitz? Teacher or student?". I gasped, "Student...I hope I can learn Mandarin." He responded, "There's no hope involved -- you either do or you don't".

You either do or you don't.

I sucked in my breath, went to class and spent two hours being drilled on What -- How -- Which -- Where -- What time -- Who. The most fundamental basics...not unlike the multiplication tables we learned in 3rd grade.

I choose do.

I'm amazed at the patience and kindness of my professors (Laushe). Repeating things again and again. Correcting my pronounciation -- again and again.

Mandarin is less like a language and more like a song.

There's a beautiful symetry and poetry to the words. The grammar makes sense. There are no verb tenses. You start to see how words are built -- a cell phone is a hand machine...an airplane is a flying machine...with the same base. You can almost see how the characters come together.

On the left is the character for rabbit -- you can see the animal!

But pronouciation and tone are key. Imagine saying the word apple in three different ways:

apple APple apPLE

In English, those are all the same word... In Mandarin, you've just encompased an entire dictionary...it could be a verb...it could be a noun...it could be an adjective.

But the poetry! One of my professors first name means "pillar of nations" and his girlfriend is "small shining light"...

I love this language. And even as I bumble through, people are kind...and help me at every turn.

I do want to learn it.

Cooking in the Hutong

John plunged into his job today... with a trip within China. It made me realize what a wonderful time this has been...learning about China together...sharing Mandarin language training.

And now our lives begin. We live in China.

So what is my life going to look like? The language training is wonderful -- so exciting! But that's just the beginning.

So I signed up for a cooking class in a historic area of Beijing --in a traditional Chinese home called a Hutong.

Back home, this would be easy...here in China, it took every ounce of courage I have...courage to take a cab (we're always ending up in the wrong spot...abandoned). Courage to meet a whole new group of people -- alone. Things I took for granted back in the US feel like a huge success here.

It was a great night -- a cooking class with 14 people...we divided into 7 teams and each made a dish that was judged! I was older than everyone else by about 20 years... (I didn't realize what "Hook and Cook" really meant...) but it was great fun!

We drank wine...created a song about our dish, "I'm a little clay pot, full of pork..." And most importantly, my matchmaking skills were in high demand!

I met some terrific girls who reminded me of darling Andi. And a guy from Toronto!

My goal is to meet everyone in Canada -- there are about 4 million more people in Beijing alone than in the whole country of Canada!

I AM a Chinese claypot!