Size Does Matter

I was really looking forward to the first language exchange, and even though I was tired after teaching I wanted to get to know the women in my office. We headed off to dinner at this little restaurant for dinner and they proceeded to teach me some Chinese. Being around all these kids, I've been exposed to a million times more germs than normal so I've got a little cold again. After singing three songs and talking for four hours straight, my throat was a little raw. I ordered a hot green tea, and Angel asked what size I wanted. So far most sizes had been quite small, so I thought a large would be enough to warm my throat. Seeing as most small drinks are hardly more than a thimbleful of liquid, this seemed like a wise choice. Next thing I knew the waiter carried out a cup that was about the same size as a 7-11 Big Gulp! I think he actually might have gone to a 7-11 to get this cup! I'd never seen any cups that big in Taiwan, and I'd certainly never seen one filled with hot green tea before! We had to get a smaller cup just so I could drink some if it! It was actually pretty funny and a little embarrassing that this 'cup' of tea bigger than my head was for me! We sat there talking for an hour after we had finished eating just so I could finish drinking this gargantuan beverage I had ordered.

The moral of the story: sometimes 'large drink' means a vat of boiling hot liquid served in a paper cup.