Thursday 27 January 2011

The SUREFIRE way to have a prosperous year - toss some raw fish...

Family,

And a good evening to you from across the globe after another GREAT DAY in the Lion City. Today I experienced yet another CNY tradition - the tossing of raw fish.

So honestly, heading to lunch I had NO IDEA what I was getting myself into. Basically all I had been told about "Yee Sang" was that it eating it would bring prosperity. Armed with only that knowledge and a mental image of throwing a raw mackerel towards the ceiling, I headed to eat.

The place (which was AWESOME, btw) was called "Bosses." Why was it called "Bosses?" BECAUSE THE SAME CHAIN IN CHINA IS OWNED BY THE MOB - SERIOUSLY. The whole place is black, and you're pretty sure that, at some point, you've eaten some dude who hasn't paid his debts. All the same, this place was GUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD (peppy cheekies).

So here's how it works:

1. Everyone starts with a piece of crusted fish skin (think pork rinds for the ocean) and Chinese tea.

2. A HUGE salad comes out, with about 5 other dishes in tow.

3. The waitress, speaking ONLY IN MANDARIN (luckily Evelyn was translating for me), then proceeds to wish us all prosperity, riches, and that all our dreams will come true.

4. She then dumps in salmon, ginger, and honey.

5. Finally, a batch of crackers (symbolizing gold) is dumped into the bowl.

6. Everyone stands up, chop sticks at the ready.

7. Everyone plunges their chopsticks into the pile, picking up the fish and the food and yelling whatever they are looking for in life for the next year.

8. Food goes flying EVERYWHERE.

9. People look at Sammy funny because he's speaking only in Spanish (P-Mac - you would have been proud. They all thought I was a FREAK).

10. It was tasty, but since I have a team of females who collectively eat in a day what I eat for brekkie and collectively weigh about 47 pounds, Martin and I were stuck eating the lion's share (you can't leave a bite behind).

After this, we had carrot cake - but NOT the carrot cake that you're thinking of. Here they bake white or black carrots into a meal and then cover it with a thin egg. I must confess that the first bite was odd, but after that it was SO GUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD. I've been told that the black carrot is better (and spicier), so it's now on the list.

The work day was great but CRAZY fast (as always), and then JT and I hit the gym with a vengeance. Honestly, the workouts have felt SO GOOD lately. It feels so good to have a goal again and really feel like I'm making progress and improving both my endurance and speed.

Okay, that's all the news that's fit to print. Chat tomorrow!

Love,

Sam and Jenny



No comments:

Post a Comment