Is it worth the risk of Avian Flu?

I’m not sure if I’ve written about them before or not, but scattered around the city there are what we foreigners like to call ‘Muslim noodle restaurants’. They’re mom-and-pop operations run by Chinese Muslims, and specialize in noodles made from scratch. Out in front, sometimes right out on the sidewalk, they pull the dough into long, thin strands and boil them in a big pot. Inside the small shop, you sit on a stool at one of five or six tables, often with strangers when it’s busy, and eat with cheap disposable chopsticks. They all follow this same format, and are sometimes so similar that you might even think that they were a chain.

My favorite Muslim noodle place is right around the corner from the dorm, and I often go there for lunch. I don’t really like Muslim noodles very much, but this place makes really good stir fry as well, which I usually get with some white rice. It’s good food, a perfect distance for a good walk if I’ve been inside all day, and usually not much more than 10 kuai for a meal. On top of all this, they have printed menus (many of these places don’t) with characters, pinyin, and the English translation. It’s great to be able to know what you are ordering and say it to the person in Chinese instead of just pointing at the menu and saying “I want this.” So all in all, it’s a really great place for lunch. Until today.

Today, they got a pet canary.