Best and Worst Meats

One of the great joys of eating street food in a country you are visiting is the opportunity to try meats you've never tried before (both new animals and new parts of familiar animals). In the course of researching this book, I added a couple of new animals to my own list (donkey and dog come to mind immediately) and loads of new organs and things, and it was always a thrill. Something about new experiences--there's nothing like it. Unfortunately, that little jolt of excitement when you try something totally new to you is not always accessible when you are at home, so we are stuck living vicariously through others. This list of the best and worst tasting animals as judged by Andrew Zimmern--a man who has tried a wider variety of animals than probably anybody on earth (and whom I've discussed previously on this website)--is the crème de la crème of vicarious living. Many readers may have tried crayfish; fewer will have tried porcupine. Take note that donkey is his second item on the list. This won't be a surprise to citizens in parts of China, as I've written before. Donkey aside, the whole list is a lot of fun. What a good reminder of how many foods there are for us to try in one short lifetime!

I'm establishing a tradition of using this photo of Andrew Zimmern.

Final Stastics

I've run the numbers and come up with the following statistics about my journey. Whether or not you're the type of person who thinks in numbers, I hope this will put the trip into perspective a bit.

Number of days (including first and last): 92

Number of cities visited: 53

Number of provinces visited: 32

Number of provinces not visited: 1 (Tibet, due to restrictions on foreigners entering in February and March)

Combined population of the cities I visited (urban areas only): 172,560,038* (≈2.46% of the world's population)
Number of different street foods eaten: Uncertain, though I estimate at least 300
Number of times I got sick: 0
Number of miles traveled by train, bus, or boat (no planes) within China: 16,736 (26,935 kilometers) (Note: For perspective's sake, this is slightly more than the overland distance from Lisbon, Portugal, to London, England, with a stop for lunch in Vladivostok, Russia, along the way.)

This is about half of my train tickets.

Average number of miles traveled by train, bus, or boat each day: 186 (299 kilometers)
Longest single train journey: 1,596 miles (2,568 kilometers); 34 hours and 30 minutes (Urumqi - Xi'an)

Amount of time spent on trains, buses, and boats within China: 16 days, 14 hours, and 30 minutes
Amount of time spent on trains in "hard seats" (no bed): 13 days, 1 hour, and 43 minutes

Average amount of time spent in each city (omitting time spent on trains): 33 hours and 7 minutes
Number of hotel nights paid for: 5
Number of nights on overnight trains: 17
Number of nights hosted by friends: 14
Number of nights spent Couch Surfing: 53
Total money spent (including plane flight and two visas): $2716.87
Money spent within China: $1426.87 (≈$475 per month)
Money spent on intercity transportation within China: $697.38 (≈$12.91 per leg of the journey)
Money spent on hotels: $61.88 (≈$12.37 per night)
Money spent on food, intracity transportation, and other sundry items within China: $667.61 (≈$7.42 per day)
Books read: 5.5 (A Passage to India, Moby Dick, Never Let Me Go, The Great Railway Bazaar, Silas Marner, and half of Tristram Shandy)
Pairs of pants used: 1
Number of times I shaved: 1 (the day before I flew home)

The last picture before I got it shaved off for 10 RMB.

So there you have it. My China trip by the numbers.

*This is only a rough estimate, as the population of Chinese cities is notoriously difficult to calculate. This information came primarily from Wikipedia, with other sources used when necessary.

How to Find Street Food

Let's say you are in an unfamiliar city in China and you are hoping to find some street food. Where do you go? Naturally every city is different, so there really isn't a straight answer here. That being said, there are definitely ways you can shorten your search a bit. The following are some tips I have picked up along the way. None of them should be taken as absolute rules--merely suggestions or general guidelines.

1) The bigger the street, the less likely you are to find good street food. In Chinese cities, the main thoroughfares are noisy, bustling affairs full of people, cars, bicycles, and storefronts. Unfortunately, they are usually a bit too busy for street food. You'll have better luck exploring the smaller streets and alleys near the more populated avenues. Sometimes just a block or two off the main strip can make all of the difference.

2) Check the old parts of town. As Chinese cities continue to grow at an astonshing rate, there is a marked difference in atmosphere between the newer, shinier parts of a city and the older, grimier more charming parts of a city. In my experience, you're more likely to find great street food in the more traditional sections of town.

3) It is a truth universally acknowledged that a college student in possession of a poor fortune must be in want of cheap eats. This holds true in the USA, and it holds true in China. Wander around the neighborhood near the gates of a Chinese university and you will almost certainly find some street food.

4) The entrances of bus stations and train stations are always crowded with street food vendors. Personally, I tend to avoid them because they are rarely selling the best local dishes. Usually you'll find pretty generic fare with little variation across the country. That being said, there's nothing inherently wrong with eating this food--it's a cheap and tasty way to fill up before a long train ride.

5) Look for steam. It may sound silly, but it works. If you're hungry and wandering the streets, keep an eye out down every cross street for steam. Steam is often visible from pretty far away, and it can be a good indicator that there is food to be had.

6) Watch what other people are holding. If you see somebody walking down the street with a fresh snack, there's a good chance they bought it nearby. The less they've eaten, the closer the shop is.

7) Leave yourself in the hands of chance. If all else fails, there's nothing wrong with wandering aimlessly for an hour or two until you find something that strikes your fancy. Chances are good that you'll find something interesting to eat.

I've been in a lot of unfamiliar cities lately, and these guidelines have worked resulted in a pretty good success rate. Hopefully they will work equally as well for you. Good luck out there!

Frequently Asked Questions

Since I announced this project, I've received a lifetime's worth of encouragement from friends, family, and other sundry well-wishers. Thanks to all for your support! In addition to the encouragement, however, I've also gotten my fair share of questions about my project and my sanity. I have noticed certain questions getting asked more frequently than others, so I decided it might be best to put the answers all in one place. That place is here:

Question 1: Why are you doing this?
Answer 1: This one is a little tricky to answer. Here's the short version: I have a great affinity for China and Chinese culture, I love to eat street food, and I enjoy writing. This was a way to combine all of those into one amazing job. There's a bit more detail in this, my second blog post ever. Be warned, though, that you'll have to weed through some other expository details about my project to find the relevant points.

Question 2: What does your wife think of this?
Answer 2: My wife is, without question, the best wife in the world. Real quick, let's review all of the sacrifices she is making here: 1) I will be out of the country with occasional patches of inability to communicate for three solid months, 2) I get to go traipsing across all corners of China, and she has to stay home, and 3) She is going to be acting as the sole breadwinner for six months to a year here. Through all of this, she has remained incredibly gracious and supportive. The biggest issue (and the one people usually ask about) is that three months away from home thing. Leslie maintains, and I agree, that in the context of our whole marriage (which, assuming good health for all involved, will be going strong for at least fifty more years) three months apart is a drop in the bucket. It (along with the other two points) is a small price to pay, she notes, for me to be able to pursue a dream. Like I said, I have an awesome wife and I love her.

(L to R): The Best Wife in the World; Some Clown

Question 3: How are you paying for this?
Answer 3: As of now, all funding for this endeavor is coming directly out of my pocket. I considered a couple other options (including a Kickstarter campaign) but ended up deciding this was the best option. My goal is to keep the costs of the trip under $4000. After I get back, there will also be costs associated with production of the book, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Question 4: When are you going?
Answer 4: I'm flying out of Washington, DC, on January 11 and coming back on April 11. Three months on the dot (disregarding the fact that I'll actually land in China on the 12th).

Question 5: Where in China are you going?
Answer 5: I'm planning to visit every province in China at least once for a total of 50 - 60 cities. A common follow-up question to this one is whether I have a specific route planned out. The answer to that is no--I have a general plan to start in Shanghai and move west through the south of the country and then go north from Lhasa and move back east through Northern China. This route is mainly designed for reasons of climate (the longer I put off going to Harbin, the warmer it will be...).

Question 6: Do you have a publisher?
Answer 6: No. I am currently planning to self-publish (hard copy and digital) and don't intend to actively seek out a publisher. That being said, if the option came up to work with a publishing company, it would receive my full consideration.

Question 7: Aren't you worried about your stomach?
Answer 7: Nope! I have a mighty strong stomach that can handle most anything I throw at it with ease. That being said, I expect to get sick at least once while in China. As I wrote in this post earlier this year, that's just part of playing the game. Such is life.

Question 8: Is there anything you won't eat?
Answer 8: I'll eat anything so long as it isn't endangered or a primate. Anything else is fair game. Sometimes this question is a polite way of asking if I plan to eat dog. With apologies to any dog lovers in the audience, the answer is yes: if dog is available as a street food, I will eat it.

Question 9: How can I help?
Answer 9: Thanks for asking! In general, I am just happy to have your encouragement, whether spoken or unspoken. If you want to pitch in more tangibly, I encourage you to follow the blog (click that link on the right sidebar) and comment regularly. Once I have my Twitter and Facebook pages established, you can follow me there as well (in the meantime, you can find my personal page on Facebook). If you are really moved to help out, you are also welcome to make a donation with the PayPal button over there on the right. As I noted in answer 3 above, I am paying for this trip myself and am not counting on receiving any donations. Several people asked, though, so I set up the donation button. If you are so compelled, I thank you most graciously. I will make an effort to repay your kind generosity in some way, whether it be a postcard from China, a free copy of my book once it's done, or some sort of mystery prize.

Question 10: I was told there would be pie. Is there pie?
Answer 10: No, I'm sorry to say you were misinformed...there is no pie available on this website.

10 Great Places to Eat in China

Here's a mouth-watering article from asiancorrespondent.com about 10 Great Places to Eat in China. Nothing makes me feel Pavlovian the way phrases like "tofu pudding," "persimmon cakes," "chickpea bean jelly," and "beef starch noodles" do. I look forward to visiting these--and many other Chinese cities--very soon.

Picture Credit: AP