Having been given the advice from some of the other American instructors to avoid the university's student cafeterias, we tried to avoid them. However, after noticing that all three cafeterias (yes, three!) always had decent crowds we did some investigating. We began to ask our students about the food and what they thought about it. They told us that it was delicious and the prices could not be beat. Loving hot and spicy food, we quickly learned that cafeteria #2 serves mostly Szechuan style food. We decided that we would check it out for ourselves.We entered into cafeteria #2 not quite sure what to expect. Inside we immediately saw over a hundred students sitting at tables eating their lunches. Lined up around the cafeteria were dozens of eatery kitchens, bakeries, and beverage stands. Each one displaying their specials and positioning a staff member out front to get students orders. The atmosphere in this building is loud, as you might imagine. The communication between cooks and customers placing orders attempts to overpower the conversations taking place at the lunchroom tables.
As we walked down one side of the cafeteria we could smell the aromas of meats, vegetables and hot spices. Unfortunately we noticed a trend. None of the kitchens had pitcures or Pinyin. We had a serious uh-oh moment. Then, almost like it was heaven-sent, two of Adán's male students stood waiting for their food at the very last vendor. We rushed over and greeted them and quickly asked them for help. You could see the surprise on their faces as if they were thinking at that very moment, "A professor needs my help?" Then they became excited to "teach" us as much as they could in the next 5 or so minutes as they helped us order and wait for our food to be prepared.
After learning a few new phrases to help us around the lunchroom, our piping hot meals came out of the kitchen. After we gave our approval of everything the two male students said goodbye and departed. We grabbed a seat and began to chow down. We must admit that the other American teachers don't know what they are missing. The food was actually very good and a steal. We order to large spicy chicken and mixed vegetable bowls with rice for 14 yuan (that's less than a dollar per bowl)! We also found the desserts and milk teas that are truly addicting. Oh, and the average price for sweet bread/rolls or a milk tea is 2 yuan! We calculated that to buy and prepare the same food we could not even compete with the savings. Basically, we are fools not to eat at least 1-2 times per day here.
Chinese International Education Fair
We decided to make a trip down to the China World Trade Center and attend an International College Fair. We planned to meet Chow Lee, a former collegue of Adan's sister. He was to be at the DeVry University booth meeting prospective students and their families. Getting to the event was cake. Luckily for us the subway system in Beijing has given us few headaches with transportation. Upon arriving to the trade center we noticed that this venue was done in true Chinese fashion--extravagantly. It's funny but anything that Chinese think might be frequented by foreigners, they pull out all the stops. We are talking an underground mall with indoor skating rink(see photo), fine dining, an extremely luxurious hotel, and an exhibition hall that dwarfs any exposition venue we had ever seen. Booths filled over three levels of exhibiton space with recruiters traveling from 12 countries and roughly 100 universities.
We enjoyed ourselves as we browsed the displays and booths of the diverse institutions. We saw everything from Fashion Design to Science and Research. It was nice to see a presence from the arts as well as the sciences. Ultimately we made our way to the U.S. universities. There we were able to meet Chow and visit with him and the other representatives. Our conversation was short and within minutes we were back to spectator mode. We noticed several universities from both U.S. and Canada had invested in this event. Columbia, Kansas State, George Washington and British Columbia were some of the larger ones we recognized that made the extensive journey for this five city tour of China.
Lovin' Our Markets
We are really beginning to like the markets that exist near our apartment. On Sunday we decided to venture out to the one outside of the North Gate of campus. This market is a bit bigger than the one that is right behind our apartment complex and we learned on this day that it also houses small shops with new and second hand items. We browsed through stands selling bootleg Nike and Puma shoes, Dolce and Gabbana purses, and Swiss Army brand luggage. Everything looked pretty legit considering. As we passed one seller, Adán noticed she had computer speakers. We have been wanting to by them for studying and entertainment but they are very expensive at the local grocery store and even more costly at Wal-Mart (go figure). But here Adán saw an opportunity. Armed with little Chinese he began to dicker. And to our surprise she understood probably 90% of the three sentences he said! Once the negotiating had ended we ended up getting the speakers for 50 yuan versus the original offer of 55. Adán was beaming with pride after this.
Next, we got back on track to our original destination--the vegetable and fruit market. Here, Pazi did her best to pick out a quality selection with a good variety. Our plan was to make a nice caldito (soup) with our ingredients. It also helped that we found chile(chili peppers) too! Are mouths were already watering. We finished our shopping and headed back home to plug in our speakers for the computer and prep for a nice caldito meal.
Goodies we picked up at the market. All this for 20 yuan (less than 3 bucks)!
