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Wednesday, 27 June 2012

A Sodium Overload

By Marcy Belson

We were flying somewhere, reading the airline magazine and talking to each other. There was an article about Chinese food in San Francisco, listing the author's favorite restaurants and cafes.

We hadn't been to the City in a long time and it didn't take much conversation to agree, a trip solely to find the restaurants, have as many meals of Chinese food as possible and be home in time for some other obligation.

Done! We had reservations for the flight, a room booked at our favorite hotel downtown, and reservations for dinner, wherever necessary. Some of the food palaces were walk in and wait your turn. Our plan was to have lunch and dinner, enjoying Chinese food, for three days.

Good weather blessed us and we began the food marathon on day one, walking to a small cafe in Chinatown. Tasty lunch and on to the evening meal after enjoying the sights of the City.

Enjoying the sights to me meant a trip to Britex, an excellent fabric shop, as I recall, it is five stories, with a small, cranky elevator. I always felt as if I could stretch my arms and touch both sides of the shop. Almost to the ceiling, wonderful colors and fabrics begging to be touched.

Most of the employees were dignified men with English accents, using long poles with a hook, they would pull your choices from the shelves. I never left without my souvenir from Britex.

Another stop on our walk through the streets was at Pierre Deux, specializing in fabrics from France, Quimper dishes, a riot of country blues and yellows. My husband sat down at the desk and told me to take my time, enjoy myself and I did so.

When I found some trinket I wanted, I went back to the chair and desk where Gordon waited for me. I paid with a check and we started out the door, when he said, "I liked that cologne and used a little."

I said, "What cologne?"

He answered, "The spray canister was sitting on the desk, all writing on it, naturally, in French."

I decided he needed that cologne.

I went back to the clerk and asked about the price. She didn't even smile as she informed me that it was room deodorizer. I turned on my heel, thanked her over my shoulder, and did a quick retreat out the door.

We did eat six Chinese food meals. This was many years ago and I can't tell you the names of those eateries, but we had a lot of fun and we really did enjoy most of the meals.

By the end of the third day, the sodium overload was evident. It was time to go home. My hands and feet were swollen, my eyes were puffy, my pants wouldn't zip.

My husband's last request, as we left the hotel in a rental car, was a quick trip back to Chinatown. I was to jump out and while he slowly circled the block, I was to go into a small shop selling barbecued chickens which were visible hanging from the ceiling.

Mission accomplished! We made it to the plane, carrying a bag with the chicken.

On the flight home, the chicken was smelling tantalizingly delicious. Gordon could stand it no longer and had a bite. A flight attendant stopped and asked what smelled so good. He offered her a bite and she accepted. Between them, there wasn't much left when we landed at our destination.

The foodies recovered from the sodium overload. Good trip. Never tried that again.

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