Beijing-Culture shock and night market

I cannot tell a lie. I am having a lot of trouble with the food here in China! Everything seems sweet and I like my food salty. I have made an effort to taste most everything that has been put in front of me, even when it violates my food rules. I have found one pork dish that I can stomach and one amazing potato dish. Otherwise, it has been rough going. Oh, I also tasted toffee covered sweet potatoes that were amazing. Apparently the Chinese have no tradition of desert coming after the meal and we just consumed this along with everything else! As a group we went out for Peking duck, a specialty in Beijing. We also had duck soup, duck stuffed bread, and duck parts fried. ( I guess to use up the whole duck!)









After dinner we went to the Beijing night market. This market is famous for selling all sorts of crazy food, like snake, scorpion, centipedes, and other perfectly atrocious options. Our guide Milly ensures us that this market is strictly a tourist attraction and that regular Beijingers do not eat these foods. Rather, the vendors come from all over the country and from afar to thrill the tourists. Milly is an amazing tour guide, and she made sure no one ate these foods since they sit out for a long time and are not very fresh. She is always looking out for us! Even though the food isn't THIS bad, these pictures sort of sum up how I'm feeling about the local cuisine. I've been through 17 countries and this is the first time I have ever felt the culture shock setting in!



















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