Friday night, 27-August
The days with my international teams are such a treat – they truly are. You get these precious few hours to spend time with folks who work hard 24/7 just for a sincere ‘thank you’ and it reminds me that this is what it’s all about… But I digress.
Tonight was dinner with the Dalian team and we had a great time. No “eat your fear” moments with squid suckers still working to hold onto your fingers… Just a great fun time with one of the most sincere crowds anywhere to be found. 
The blog post title is Mandarin for “waiter” (pronounced foo-woo-you-in). I’m fond of saying it every chance I get… It works at Subway as well as any five-star place, and is always good for a laugh with the team. I’ll often just wander around saying “Waiter, check please” – it’s my only full phrase in Mandarin and I’m so very proud of it.
Tonight was one of those “pick your supper while it’s still breathing” places… and we had more dishes than I could count. My new favorite was a warm drink (they called it a soup) made of red bean and dates – ever-so-slightly sweet and sooo soothing. I could have drunk the whole pitcher. 
The only thing I wanted this entire stop was tofu (with hot pepper paste and mushrooms). It’s another of my very favorite things to eat here in China. And for dessert? Well, apparently Dalian is well known for (of all things)… PEACHES. So I hacked at a peach with a knife that wouldn’t cut warm butter and did an official US vs China peach taste-test. 
Given that I want to make it home, the winner will not be announced until Sept 1. Stay tuned.
