Give me Asian chicken any day

You can learn a lot about people by sitting in a crowded food court in the city.

Today I took a bus into the Mall to run a few errands and soak up the atmosphere. I spent an hour browsing around Dymocks (I really miss big bookstores) and then crossed the street to the Myer Centre for lunch. 

As I rode up the escalator to the food court I was met with a cacophony of noise and movement and the aromas of a hundred meals. I stood for a minute savouring the mass of choice and then headed straight for the Asian section. Sure, a salad is healthy, chips are delicious and a sandwich is filling - but for my money, I will always choose Asian.

I ordered my soy steamed chicken with Asian greens on rice, got a stash of chilli oil, some chopsticks and a bottle of water and settled myself on a high bench seat, looking out into the food court. 

After the first few hungry bites I slowed down and started to watch the people around me while I savoured the flavours. Office workers dashed through lunches while talking on their phones, a tourist wandered past, holding a video camera aloft [Item - why would anyone want to see a holiday video of a food court?] Families looked for tables to rest their feet while the kids chowed down on chips.

A girl sat down across from me on the bench. She had a plain roast meat sandwich - brown bread, no salad - and a can of Fanta. I was amazed at the blandness of her choice. With a world of different food options around you, how could that be your decision?  
 

I dribbled some more chilli oil on my lunch, forked up some more fragrent chicken and tried to tell myself that everyone was different and that different was good.

"Excus me," said a voice. We both looked up to see an Asian man standing next to us with his wife and mother-in-law in tow.

"Iz there a McDonalds or Hungry Jacks sozewhere close?" he said.

I told him that I had just passed a McDonalds at the bottom of the escalator. He asked if I knew where the Hungry Jacks was and I said I didn't know. He thanked me degectedly and they walked away. The girl and I looked at each other in amazement and she said what I was thinking: with all this choice, how could you possibly want that?!

 

Diversity makes the world go round....