peachy perspective

Ne how!

No, I am not asking how your knee is doing. But I do hope it is doing well. “Ne how” is “hello” in Chinese, which I think I am going to incorporate into my daily vocabulary.

It’s been seven years since I went to China – my first international travel experience. I think Chinese and other Asian cultures are fascinating, probably because they are so different from the daily culture I am immersed in. Oh, and I love the food. That’s a big plus. I definitely want to return to the vast country in the future!

My friend David just got back from a fun trip to China and has been craving authentic Chinese food since. (No, that does not include Americanized Chinese buffet food.) So what did he do? He invited along friends who had been to China (or at least appreciate the food and culture) for an evening of feasting.

What a feast it was!

We went to a place in Madison that serves one of China’s national foods called peking duck. I don’t remember if I had eaten it before, but I am usually up for trying authentic dishes like this, so I couldn’t turn down the opportunity. David had to order the ducks on Tuesday night so they could roast overnight. The waitresses showed us the roasted ducks before they cut it up, I guess so we knew it was actually duck. They looked a lot like Cornish hens to me. Well, whatever it was, two thumbs up because it was tasty! You eat peking duck by putting a piece of the flavorful skin, some pieces of meat, spring onions, and hoisin sauce in a paper-thin pancake and roll it up like you would a tortilla wrap. We also ordered a ton of side dishes and ate everything family-style … rice, lo mein, garlic vegetables, soup, eggrolls, and probably five more things I am forgetting. Gosh, my mouth is watering right now. Good news for me – I have leftovers to eat the next day!

To end the evening, I briefly met one of David’s roommates who is Russian. I was so excited to be able to speak the only Russian word I remember – “Privet” (hello). I may have said that to one other Russian person since I was surrounded by them last summer.

Watch out, I’m on my way to becoming fluent in Chinese and Russian!

*photo credit

Here we are after enjoying a fun meal: