China sweet China

I was amazed to learn that Chinese have a real taste for sweet things. Their soups are sweet, the meat is seasoned with honey instead of salt, the bread is sweet and the desserts are so sweet even such a sweet tooth as I am could barely eat them.
Since restaurants rarely have English menu, unless accompanied by a Chinese friend (we were lucky to stay with a Chinese family met through Couch Surfing) ordering can be a real challenge. Judging the food by its appearance can be misleading too. I ordered something which looked like a mushroom soup to me but turned out to be a dessert made of green lentils and seaweed :) It was so sweet I only managed to eat half of it.
The best food we eat was that prepared at home by our hosts. Big fat noodles with crab meat, fried tofu with fish and chili sauce, sweet baby octopuses and some Chinese-style sushi.
Karolina