Minority (Peasant) Dinner

Emma and I went to a traditional "minority" dinner.  There are 65 or so minority or peasant groups in the Yunnan province.  Audrey is likely from one of those groups and would have been biked, walked, mo-peded into the city and then dropped off.  We learned that she was left at the First Affiliated Hospital of Kumning Medical College.  Turns out that is where most of the babies are left v. a marketplace.  Kathie and Audrey stayed behind as Audrey was really tired.

Well, it was an amazing dinner.  We were brought 15 different items to our table...all at once!!!!  A giant Dali beer (fantastic local lager) and a giant Sprite.  I am sorry about the pics, but i don't have a professional flash.  The building was fashioned as on old village community gathering place.  We sat in a little, cave like room with three other tables.  Next to us was a group from the Chinese National Military...3 star officer.  They were toasting what looked like a Chinese vodka, which you could bring w you or buy on your way in.  

Halfway through our meal a minority show began w dancers in traditional dress.  One of the dances was a demonstration of man first meeting and mating w woman.  I knew we were in trouble b/c the back of the stage was bordered by two huge, crude wooden carvings, 17ft tall, of a women w huge wooden breasts and other huge wooden parts and a man with...well, let's just say there were flowers hanging off of his most prominent feature, which must have totaled about 12 rows of "lays" to the...well, tip as it were.  There are so many one-liners available here, i believe may brain is shutting down.  So let me just say Emma was laughing so hard she was shaking the table!

Menu:

• Traditional local rice noodle soup w beef, pork, chicken, duck with cabbage and herbs made from Chinese medicines like ginseng, catepillar skin, etc.  The broth is cooked for 8hrs, brought to the table in a huge bowl, where the ingredients are added all at once.  The best Chinese meal, we have been having a version at breakfast, but this was clearly superior.
  
• Steamed chicken.
• Beef kabob
• Salted, fried fish (like perch) on a bed of Chinese broccoli
• Hard boiled egg, that is infused with cheese and other herbs--delicious
• Chicken on flat noodle w local mushrooms (Yunnan mushroom capital of China)
• Chinese pancake w duck and chocolate sauce (you roll the duck and chocolate in the pancake), can you say rich?
• A plate of PEAS!!!!! corn and carrots! (i just found the line i would not cross)
• Chinese broc, sauteed.
• Another broth with noodle, very light, w a hint of flower blossum
• Three deserts and watermelon
• Peurh tea (aids digestion if you know what i mean...and i think you do if you happen to be related to me)

We later hit a Wal-Mart.  Holy Cow! do they love Wal-Mart and KFC.  Buses and cabs dropping off hundreds of Chinese.  The store was a sea of dark haired people, who all stopped to look when Emma and I entered.  A great evening, our last in Kunming.  We leave for Guanzhou (Gwan-Jo) this afternoon, about 90min plane ride.  G-zo is 45min outside Hong Kong (i hope to take a train one day).  But much more western....Starbucks next to our hotel.  Score!