Canteen

Now that I've been working in China for 2 months, I guess I should start sharing some of the differences I've noticed between working in America and working in China.  There are of course several, so I will start with one for now: lunch!  While I was preparing for this assignment, my American colleagues that had spent time in Asia told me to take advantage of lunchtime and use it for relationship building (critical in Asia).  This alone was going to be a difference because, in the US, I often spent my lunch eating at my desk while I caught up on work or ran errands.  IF the weather was nice (the few weeks of perfect Michigan weather when it's not too hot and not too cold), I would eat a quick lunch outside with a few coworkers and then retreat back to my desk to catch up on things.  I almost always brought my own food, usually a sandwich or leftovers from the night before. 

So here in China (and Korea), free lunch is provided to all employees every day in the canteen (I always considered the canteen our vending machines, lol, but here it's the cafeteria).  And, for the most part, the food is okay.

Lunch consists of standing in a queue waiting your turn to get your chopsticks - although the VERY first thing I noticed is that most women bring their own spoon and the men eat with chopsticks!  Since it is pretty much the only time I get to practice with chopsticks, I always use them!  Rice is a staple so that is of course offered every day and then you point to one of two main dishes (meat).  Usually I have no idea what they are but I guess that's part of the fun!  Sometimes I will ask a coworker to help or I just take my best guess!  Next, there are two or three types of vegetables, a bowl of soup (which I have yet to try) and a piece of fruit. 

The second thing I immediately noticed is that NOBODY drinks anything during lunch.  I guess that is what the soup is for ... when I asked about this, I was told that drinking while you eat isn't good for you.  Hmm, guess I learn something new every day :)  Of course I down a glass of water when I am finished eating.  (It was the same in Korea too, except when you're done eating there you go into this little room where there are cups and a big jug of water for you to get something small to drink) 

Anyway, back to the food ... I usually always like the vegetables (but I am still not a huge fan of tofu) and sometimes I completely opt out of the meat and just get extra vegetables.  The green beans, cabbage, zucchini and potatoes are always my favorite!  I typically avoid the seafood as I am afraid I will swallow (or choke on) the bones!  Although, speaking of bones, a lot of the meat served at lunch still has the bone - chicken, pork, beef, seafood.  While I tried the foot of a swine (pig) once, I will opt out of that dish in the future.  To me, it was very rubbery (reminded me of fat) and after I saw some hair (pig hair, not human hair) on the bite I was about to take, I just could not bring myself to eat anymore!

The last thing I noticed during lunch is that everybody sets their tray on the table with the rice closest to them.  I have not seen one tray (besides my own accidentally) where this is not the case!

After lunch we stand in the line to empty what you haven’t managed to digest into the waste bucket.  I once asked what they do with all of the leftover food.  I was told that they feed it to the pigs ... nothing goes to waste here!  Every day after lunch, I take a short walk with 1-3 other coworkers and then on Mondays, my friend and coworker, Grace gives me a Chinese lesson.  We are starting with the alphabet!