One word: Noodlehouse. For those who know my love for food, these have been my constant love affair since arriving in Shanghai. Canada could really benefit from tapping into the rich tapestry that is the street food market. Every two feet or so, on any street, in any given direction you can find food. Vendors spill out onto the sidewalks day and night, making it all too easy when you're busy and on the go. They have everything from noodles, rice, dumplings to delicious baked goods and pastries, fried dough balls coated in sugar (like timbits), pastry wraps filled with spinach and chives, sesame pastries and snacks, all kinds of meat skewers... it's endless. It astounds me that for only 80 cents Candian (or 4 Kuai here) you can get a bowl of noodles that will last you for breakfast, lunch and supper and sometimes into the next day. And these aren't just any noodles, they're made infront of you to order from a ball of dough, quickly tossed, stretched and folded until noodle like strands appear, then it's tossed into the pot all infront of your eyes when you order. Across the street from my school on North Chezhan Rd, there's a small Muslim noodle shop that, originally my reliable 'go to' in a pinch, has quickly become the centre of my staple diet here in Shanghai, so much so, I'm serenading you with the details! I often go over during lunch and after school to get my fix. I had a fellow teacher and friend scribble down "I want one bowl of noodles" in pignion on a piece of torn paper I keep crumpled up in my pocket. "Wo yao yi wan Lamien" I tell them, pronounced horribly. They now know what I get, so it's a little easier. There's not too many white girls in the area that get noodles on a daily basis, so now they just smile and spare me the embarassment. In front of my eyes, they roll, shape and throw the noodles into the pot and into my bowl within a matter of minutes. I carefully cart the suckers either back to school, or back home to Linping, which usually takes 45 minutes on the bus. Liquid gold, and they're still warm when I get home! I usually add the little chili sauce they have sitting on the table before I leave. No matter how cold I am, or how cold my classroom is, these noodles warm me up within minutes. They put them in a broth with spinach and what I believe is bok choy with tender pieces of beef that serenade your tongue. They seriously taste like heaven. I can't get enough of them on my chopsticks at a time. It's hard to explain, but at home, noodles were always just noodles, I could take or leave them. But here, they're so much more. They're fresh, tastey and they find a way to warm your soul. Canada needs to get on this bandwagon!
Another lovely discovery of mine while out shopping with some friends, was that Pepsi / 7up comes in gigantic 2.5 litre bottles here. For a fizz addict, such as myself, my jaw dropped when I saw them. So I bought one. And then I proceeded to drag it home across town, on the subway... on both lines three AND four, and then walked from the metro station on our street to the apartment with it all the way up to the thirteenth floor. For a bottle of pop it was actually quite heavy. So with all my lesson planning and late nights, I've been trying to make a dent in it. But I now understand why it's not available in North America, the sheer size and weight of the stuff makes it incredibly difficult to pour. In any event, it's just another small thing that helps keep me grounded and closer to home.
No comments:
Post a Comment