The Worst Food I've Ever Tasted

Ni Hao, Everyone!

I'd like to start this post by saying that I am pushing through this busy month with flying colors! Today I gave my last "School Spirit" lecture at another university here in Hangzhou (and got paid over $100 to do it, hey!).

Taking pics after the presentation... duh.

My classes are on a roll - only three weeks left! What?!? In fact, my Oral English students start giving their final presentations next week, so I am technically done teaching that class this week. In the wise words of Wayne Campbell, I'd like to say: "Schwing!"



In today's post, I'd like to talk about what I did this past Sunday. It was a really lovely, sunny day (which was greatly appreciated after a week of rain) and I had plans to meet one of my students, Shamrock, downtown.

Shamrock and I!

Shamrock is actually a Hangzhou native, and her parents' apartment is only a 15-minute bus ride from where I live. So on Sunday afternoon, I took the bus down to Wulin Square where Shamrock was waiting to take me to lunch. We ate at a locally famous place named "Grandma's Kitchen" which is known for serving classic Hangzhou cuisine at reasonable prices.  We ordered the normal types of things: noodles, rice patties, and some pork - all tasty. But the reason we arranged this lunch in the first place was so that I could finally conquer one of China's favorite snacks: Stinky Tofu. In short, stinky tofu is moldy, fermented tofu - and it seriously stinks.

Rice patties - like "Rice Krispy Treats,"
but with Sweet 'n Sour sauce instead of marshmallow

Delicious cold noodles served with a spicy peanut sauce. YUM!

Regardless of its strong (and nasty) odor, stinky tofu prevails as a popular snack for many Chinese people (including my student, Shamrock). The most common (and supposedly better-tasting) form comes fried; however, Shamrock and I were not so lucky this weekend. Grandma's kitchen only serves steamed stinky tofu, which has both a stronger scent and a stronger flavor. Oh, joy.

Oh, it looks harmless now... but just you wait.

Everyone I've met describes the scent of stinky tofu a little differently. It's not like rotten eggs or sulfur (I would actually prefer that smell). To me, (forgive me, it's about to get graphic, y'all) stinky tofu smells the same way my mucus smelled when I had a sinus infection in high school - nasty. I imagine if someone vomited up some seriously stinky cheese, it might also compare to the scent of stinky tofu. Yet it is still a super common snack here in the PRC. I don't understand.

If only my camera could capture the odor of this little morsel...

Alas, I made it one of my goals to try stinky tofu before leaving China, and so I couldn't back down - even when they placed the plate of hot, steaming, stinky bean curd right below my nose; even when just the scent alone sent shivers down my spine and a gagging feeling in my throat. No, I could not back down.

Shamrock was a champ - she actually ate more than one bite.

I took a tiny bit in my chopsticks, held my breath, and went for it - and guess what? It tasted just they way it smelled,  but saltier. If the piece I had eaten had been any larger, I would have gagged (which I haven't done since I was 10, thankyouverymuch). Remember when I ate zhe ergon in Beijing? That stuff tastes like cake compared to stinky tofu. Never again, my friends. Never. Again.

You can't even imagine how much I didn't want to eat this...

But I did!

Once I had successfully drowned out the taste of fermented bean curd with some strong lemonade, the rest of lunch was quite pleasant. After finishing, Shamrock and I headed out for some shopping, where she helped my find a T-shirt maker to make my dad's dream come true:

Is it HZNU or just HNU?

(Seriously, the only thing he has ever asked me for from China is a T-shirt from my school... which my school does not have.)

I couldn't decide, so I made both!

Shamrock and I also got some adorable personalized stamps and some ice cream from McDonald's. And, finally, I headed back home. Aside from having eaten the worst food I have ever tasted in my life (ever), I'd say my Sunday with Shamrock was a success! Whoop whoop, I'm makin' memories, y'all.

Our stamps! Daww...

A successful day :)

'Til next time, Zai Jian!