February 17th
One of my teacher friends has already started her job here in Shenzhen, so I took the metro to meet up with her after her shift. Her school is in a really nice part of the city—definitely an area with some money. We strolled around the fancy neighborhood, admiring the skyscrapers and watching expensive cars cruise by. We also wandered through an impressive mall, though honestly, they’re all pretty over the top here. This one had a gorgeous outdoor space with plants cascading over terraces of shops and restaurants.
No big purchases today, but we worked up an appetite and found a spot for dinner. It’s so interesting here how most restaurants have you order directly from a QR code on the table and pay straight from your phone. It’s fast and efficient, and I’m definitely into it—but it’s not exactly helping my Mandarin practice!
We ordered a bunch of stuff to share: spiced fried potatoes, chive flatbread, chili tofu, and dumplings. I still haven’t figured out what the spice mix on the potatoes and tofu is, but I’ve had it a couple of times now and I think it’s going to be my go-to order.. It’s not too spicy, but super salty and well-seasoned—definitely my new addiction.
After dinner, we made our way home and joked about how we’re already so used to ordering everything online now that when we finally go home, we’ll probably walk out of a restaurant without paying the bill without even thinking twice.
