Hospitality at its Highest

(Max)

This past week has certainly been one to remember. Last Sunday I joined my host mother and brother for dinner at quite a nice restaurant. We were having the dinner as a celebration of my host brother’s cousin’s tenth birthday. This was my host mother’s brother’s son.

So, we arrived at the restaurant where the rest of the family was waiting.

Two sets of grandparents, an aunt, and an uncle were sitting at the table with a treasure trove of dishes waiting to be eaten. As we walked up to the table my host mother introduced me and as everyone was so excited I presumed that they were expecting me. I was greeted with handshakes and pats on the back. It was a bit overwhelming but I began to get used to it as the meal continued. I had enjoyed many of the dishes before, but one stuck out because of its prestige in Hangzhou and the enjoyment that everyone had in eating it. The dish, a Hangzhou specialty, was shrimp, seasoned over and over again, and with shells intact. Observing everyone de-shell the little critters was quite the spectacle. When dinner was finished something happened that would surprise me for years to come. Before we exited the restaurant my brother’s uncle handed me a gift. It was a beautifully drawn water color painting of a hawk, accompanied by a few lines of intricate Chinese calligraphy. I cannot tell you how strange this was for me, to receive a gift while out celebrating the birthday of another person. These people, whom I had just met for the first time but 40 minutes ago, ate and interacted with me as if I was part of their family. I am quite certain this will be one of my most memorable experiences from this trip.

So from this night out my host mother inferred that I really enjoyed dumplings, as I’d eaten plenty the night before. On Wednesday of the following week, I came home to see a cooking station set up in the kitchen. Excitement shot through me, as I had told my host mom earlier in my stay that I enjoyed cooking. It turned out that she had planned for us to make and cook dumplings together. We probably made more than we should have; the dumplings were actually boiling over the side of the pot. Dinner was wonderful, as I expected, and somehow with the help of my host brother we managed to finish everything. That is definitely one thing my host brother and I have in common as teenage boys: we both eat a tremendous amount.

Another attribute we have in common is our inability to ice skate. Just this past weekend we went to the Hangzhou International Mall where we thought we would try some ice-skating. A bit more confident than I should have been, I sped out onto the ice only to fall about ten seconds in. In total my brother fell twice, child’s play compared to my five tumbles. I was sore the next morning. This week is our last until we travel to Shanghai, for which I am very excited.