Guangyou Sweet Potato Instant Vermicelli - Sour & Hot Flavor. I've been meaning to write this up for a while, and since it was the last packet, I decided to do it now. It has a doctor on it, so it must be good (but they all do). The text under his arm over the noodles says something along the lines of "sourness to make you happy, satisfyingly fast". And if you needed any more convincing, the best translation I can make for the brand name Guangyou is "entirely friendly".
Opening the packet (just a plastic bag) gives you a blob of noodles, and some packets of flavouring. I included the lid of my bowl in this shot becuase it is a bit strange - a Chinese version of Peter Rabbit I think. I'm not really sure what the "sweet potato" in the name refers to - perhaps the noodles themselves are made of sweet potato, or more likely, the stuff in the poop bag (you'll see) is based on it.
One good thing about China is you are pretty much guaranteed to always have access to very hot water. We have this machine in our laundry/bathroom area which, when it works, gives boiling water (when it doesn't, the nearest is 3 floors away).
The first thing going into the noodles (now looking like a squishy brain instead of a dried up brain) was the vinegar, the sourness for happiness. Mixing it in, things start to look and smell ok. Until of course I discover what was hiding inside the noodles...
The seal was intact, so I put it aside and went ahead with the poop bag. I call it the poop bag because of the graphic way the contents have to be added.
It looks a lot nicer after being mixed in. Now, I could turn my attention to the silver bag. This bag contained a powder mix. I've had the powder on its own before (I was recovering from being sick and didn't want to risk the other spicy-looking things) and it is pretty much the same as Maggi chicken flavour. That is to say, not that interesting. But, it comes with little seed things. Not sure what they are supposed to be or do.
Ready to eat! Not bad for instant noodles, a surprising sour bite combined with a long-lasting hotness, another enjoyable offering from Guangyou. But upon finishing the noodles, one discovers they were forged in the fires of Mordor...
I hope this glimpse into my student life has been interesting. I intend to document my dormitory conditions a bit more later, when I have time and nothing interesting to talk about.
I'll be leaving for Dalian tomorrow on a train. It is a port town with an interesting city. Not far from Beijing, but the shape of the bay between there and here dictates a 10-hour train ride. It will be my first sleeper train, so there will be much to share I'm sure. I doubt I'll have a chance to make a post while there, so expect a big one when I get back. I'll probably be getting back to Beijing around 6am Monday and going straight to class - so let's hope I can actually sleep on the train.
I'll finish with something more typically "China" - the front gate of the China University of Geosciences:
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