noodles

well leave it to alina to find the best snacks to eat around the city. you know, even though i am the professional chef and all, my wife seems to have a much keener instinct when it comes to finding great food. today, in guilin, we were outside of qixing gongyuan, a.k.a. seven star park, waiting for bus 58 to head towards reed flute cave, another major tourist site right outside of the city. after arriving seconds too late for the first bus 58, we knew we would have a few minutes on our hands before the next one came along. alina quickly seized the opportunity, asking me if i wanted a lunchtime snack before heading to the next stop. of course i agreed, and waited near the bus stop. before i knew it she was back with a small take out container of stir-fried noodles. i was shocked to see such great looking food in such close proximity to a tourist site, as we have come to expect overpriced, mediocre options around most major tourist areas… instead, for only 4 yuan (about 45 cents) alina had found fresh, hand made flat noodles (the chow fun variety for all of you hawaiians out there) that were stir fried with the tinniest little, pencil thin, fresh bamboo shoots, vibrant green broccoli rabe (that even doug chang would have appreciated), shaved pork, fresh red chiles, garlic, onions and cabbage. they were piping hot, spicy, fresh and very satisfying. after alina had made her way back to the bus stop, we only had a few minutes to eat before the bus arrived, so we hopped on with the noodles and finished them in route to the reed flute caves, received a few nods of approval from several locals.
after spending a few hours touring the caves that alina's aunt d showed us such beautiful pictures of while in panama last february, we jumped right back on bus and headed into town. learning never to pass up a good thing, we decided to stop back at the noodle shop for another plate before heading to the hostel for the evening. the vendor that alina befriended only hours before was happy to see her appear again, this time with a big american in tow. she quickly cleaned up a table, sat us down and ran back to the kitchen to stir fry up a fresh batch of noodles for us to dine on.
alina and i headed back to hostel, with lunch and dinner under our belts (literally) for only about $1.50. as always, it seems like the greatest meals appear when you least expect it. - david