Aesthetics

Last night, kind of to celebrate the end of classes and partly because our favorite hot pot restaurant was full, we ate at this upscale “western” restaurant in town. It was the first time I had been there, actually the first time I had heard of it. It was western in the sense that we got salads (diced lettuce, carrots, and a piece of tomato covered with Thousand Island dressing and mayonnaise), TWO pieces of bread, plus a full set of silverware – salad and dinner forks, soup spoon, knife, everything. The menu was also in English. It was “western” in the sense that there were still frog legs, intestines, and other unrecognizable items on the menu. I had “Gordon Bleu:” a thin chicken patty with cheese and spam. It came on a huge platter with two fried pumpkin pieces, one piece of broccoli, and five French fries. The plate was big enough that nothing had to touch anything else. Anna would have liked that. It was a splurge – 58 Y ($7.25), whereas a normal Chinese meal is maybe 5-15 Y (somewhere between 50¢ and $2.00).
The food tasted fine, not amazing, but the atmosphere was beautiful. I’ve realized that aesthetics are very important to me. Sometimes I forget that until I am surrounded by beauty and realize that I’ve been craving that. Most of the places we eat would look barren and dirty compared to American standards. When I first came to China, I noticed the stained walls, dirty floors, aging furniture, and ever present mosquitoes. Now it’s become so familiar that I don’t even think about it.
But at this restaurant, there was a little arched walkway leading up to the door that was covered by sparkling white lights. Inside, I noticed that the floor was textured with green and black stone. The tables were a rich, varnished wood and there were actually sofas instead of seats! The lights were soft and noises were muffled. While we ate, someone began to play the baby grand piano by the door. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard piano music, and it made me think of my mom when she will play our piano every so often. I sat back and drank in the luxury. It was perfect, really. I was able to finally let go of some of the stress and frustration of the day and just relax.