Dinning in Guangzhou
Jul 13th, 2006 by Yue
After my harrowing experience during the day, I thought a nice dinner would be a good way to relax. To be on the safe side, I walked to a restaurant nearby my hotel.
When I sat down the waiter didn’t bring me a menu. Instead, he asked me to follow him to the front of the restaurant so I could select my dinner. So I did. When we got to the front I screamed.
It was straight out of an Indiana Jones movie. There was a glass tank full of live snakes, slithering all about. Next to that, there was a dead alligator chopped in half on the counter. Then next to that was a live bird, an owl, a night flying eagle and a few mandarin ducks. The poor animals were so scared - they were huddling as close together as possible in their cages. I couldn’t bear to see it and walked out - I totally lost my appetite.
The Cantonese, who live in southern China and Hong Kong, eat just about anything, including cats, dogs, etc. Its all a bit strange for northern Chinese, and totally shocking for Westerners. I suppose there is no moral justification for eating a cow or chicken bought at the local Safeway versus eating a duck at the restaurant - but the immediacy of the animal’s death sure makes it feel different.
