Out and About in Shenyang

A few weeks ago there was a party at someone’s house. Like most Consulate parties here in Shenyang, the format was pot luck. My contribution was homemade hummus with Uyghur flatbread from a nearby street stand. A quick-and-easy snack.

The Americans at the party recognized it at once, and dove in with relish. It’s hard to find chickpeas here, so I used some that I bought from the U.S. There were several LE Staff at the party too, and apparently they had never seen hummus before. They were interested in it, and after they tried it, there was an animated discussion about how it’s made.

A few days later at the office, I was accosted by two different LE Staff members who demanded that I try their hummus and tell them if they made it right. One person invited me to stick my finger into his bowl of hummus. Another thrust a small jar into my face and demanded to know if she put in the right amount of garlic. “Does this stink enough?” she barked.

Yes, it did stink enough, indeed.

The gym in my building overlooks the front of the building, which displays the flags of different countries. One morning last week, as I was running on the treadmill, I noticed something funny about the way that the U.S. flag was hung.

This is a no-no. According to the U.S. law:

US Code:T36 Ch10.176
(a) The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.

I mentioned it to the concierge downstairs, who displayed a look of horror on her face, and immediately dispatched a bellhop to fix it.

Another day in the ‘Yang.

There really really really is a sculpture of the Death Star in a park near where I work.

See? I told you so!

Now I know what many people are thinking. I know because I have the same thought when I look at this. The thought is this: Why?

I do not have an answer for you.

This graffiti was spray-painted this week on a wall that I walk past on my way to work. I can’t condone graffiti, but I certainly appreciate the person’s frustration with the air quality.

To live and not to breath (breathe?).

This is Hell

Retired old ladies like to dance in the park. It’s a good form of exercise for them. Sure, they look like dorks, but if we’re being honest with ourselves, don’t we all look like dorks all the time?

Indoor plumbing is so much simpler when you don’t have to worry about pesky sewer pipes and drainage systems. Who needs that all that, when you have a perfectly good sidewalk?

Genius.