You might have noticed that the rarest type of food in our card game, Takeout, is the Cold (冰）style. Why can’t players get a cold drink? This is my card game reflection of an aspect of Chinese life.
In China, most people believe that cold drinks are unhealthy. Cool glasses of water, beer, soda, or juice are considered bad for your stomach and digestion, so it’s really hard to find a cold drink, even in very warm weather. But I love my cold beer and iced coffees, so I really appreciated those times when we could actually find cold drinks in China. Now, Takeout players can easily find tasty Spicy, Sour, Salty, Sweet or Bitter foods, but they value these rare and precious Cold cards.
Warm water, on the other hand, has healthful properties in China. If you ask my Yangzhou coworkers, a nice mug of hot water is the cure for whatever ails you. (You can add tea or Nescafe if you like, but it’s apparently the healing hot water that provides the health benefits.)
Our friends at Laowai.Me have noticed the same thing, as this mug with a familiar suggestion to drink more hot water shows. So funny!
Laowai.me also has an awesome 老外 warning label shirt, with icons reminding others not to feed, touch, or photograph the foreigner. But I disagree with the last part — please do feed this foreigner!
SmallMonsters