Wednesday, April 4, 2007

The Slow Descent Into Insanity

Posted By on Wed, Apr 4, 2007 at 7:27 AM

It was yet another beautiful day in Southern China, as our group woke up to a sunny day in Hangzhou. We headed off on a boat cruise on West Lake, and then went into a tea-farming area that was beyond gorgeous. After lunch, we went to Lingyin Temple, which is 1,600 years old and one of the coolest things I have ever seen in my life.

Yet what did we gringos talk about over dinner? How we are DYING for some good ol' Western food.

Lemme explain: At every lunch and dinner since landing in Beijing five nights ago, we have been seated at large, round tables and fed random Chinese food. No ordering from a menu. No options: We ate whatever our servers put in front of us to devour, family-style. And it's wearing on us. I have not eaten a McDonald's hamburger in probably a year, and I would KILL for one now. And though McDonald's are far from rare here in China, of course, there is not one within walking distance of our hotel.

Remember the lists of must-visit Tucson restaurants we published on this blog a week or two ago? Thinking of those lists makes my mouth water unstoppably.

In any case, we're in Shanghai tonight and all day tomorrow, before heading home on Friday.