One Year Later

It amazes me that I came to China to work and live over one year ago, the time has just flown by so incredibly quickly. Something else I cannot believe is that it is exactly one year to the day that I met Kimi for first time (outside Pizza Hut, Wulin Square, Hangzhou). To celebrate this fact, we decided to go for a foot massage together and have dinner in a newly opened Macau restaurant.

Today was my first time to have a foot massage and it exceeded all of my expectations. We entered the neatly decorated building and were rapidly lead to a small private room. There were two comfortable chairs and a television which was playing an irritatingly loud Chinese play. The TV was instantly switched off and I sat back as Kimi chose the type of massage we would be having. The order was made, a man and woman entered the room, and the process of cleansing (or cleaning) our feet began (it seems that females get a male masseur and males get a female). As I watched the woman massage me and the man massage Kimi, it almost looked like a mirror image. They were working in exactly the same order, manner and timing. One hour later and I felt like my legs and feet didn't belong to my body any more, they had completely switched off. The lady put my socks on and I realised it was time to wake up. The experience was very pleasurable, she didn't tickle or hurt me at all (unlike a "blind massage" where they practically pull the bones out of your sockets).

We paid, left the building, and caught a taxi to D&L square where the Macau restaurant is located. Neither of us knew beforehand but this restaurant serves hot pot (not to be confused with the Lancashire kind), a slight disappointment considering my preconceptions of what food in Macau must be like. We ordered the soup and various items that would go into the pot. From the menu it looked slightly overpriced for a meal where you basically have to cook it yourself. Seconds later the waiters came bringing the vegetables, meat (for Kimi), and the pot -- which is placed on a hot ring in the middle of the table. We threw in some food, waited for the soup to boil, and tasted....it was disgusting. Of course Kimi liked it, but I could taste something revolting in the water and it tainted everything that went into it. Not only that, but I was sure there was meat or seafood in the "vegetable buns" and "cheese buns". The latter was especially horrible and didn't taste like cheese at all.

The Hot Pot (ergh!)

Since I became a vegetarian I have not eaten a meal that I thought was unappetizing once. Today was the first time in over four years I have admitted to disliking something. The reason for this was simple: I don't think the meal wasn't vegetarian at all.

After we paid the bill (279 RMB) and walked out of the complex, the Pizza Hut near the entrance suddenly looked more appetising than ever.