A Training Course in China - tentatively linked to Saint Augustine Chao and the Chinese Martyr's

A Training Course in China

Paul was lecturing in China for a week in late November 2017 and as is normal, I went along to help.  This was the first time I had been in China.  We flew into Beijing and were picked up from the airport and taken to Tianjin.  We were staying in a hotel that had been arranged by our client.  It was nice enough and after a long journey I was looking forward to a nice Chinese meal and a glass of wine.

The hotel did not have wine … mmm I could see this week was not going to go well.  The food was nothing like any Chinese which I had in the UK, which I knew to expect but also nothing like I had anywhere else I had travelled … most of it was unappetising.  

On our first evening after the course, we were invited out by our hosts for a traditional dinner.  We learnt that you only drink when you toast someone or a group of people.  The first three toasts are done by the host and everyone toasts by 3 bangs on the table with the bottom of the glass, after that you can toast anyone … and must if you want to drink. This was a difficult practise as we are so used to just picking up your drink and drinking – which is seen as rude in these circumstances.

Fortunately, I had mentioned during the day that I do not drink rice wine, just red wine so I had a bottle brought for myself and the other lady with us, everyone else was on the rice wine.

The food was of course traditional and included battered shrimp – all of the shrimp, which were eaten whole, none of this taking off the shell and head … pigs trotters and various other ‘delicacies’ that I did my best not to think about as I ate as little as possible.  We survived though with only very mild food poisoning.

At lunch times we were taken to a shopping mall and bought lunch – usually soup which was described as pagan soup.  I was a little concerned by the pagan soup … until 2 days later we realised (to my relief) it was bacon soup.

The course went well and on about our 4^th night when we were getting desperate to eat something that we recognised, we went for a walk and not far from the hotel was the ubiquitous Irish bar – there are not many towns around the World where I have not found an Irish pub.  Anyway, it was a joy to see the menu that was Western … and they had wine – the rest of the week past with well.