Delivery

I was lounging on the stoop of my favourite bar the other day when a moped puttered into view, weaving manically through the throng of pedestrians on this busy little street. A large plastic crate precariously tethered to the parcel rack contained two plastic bags full of water. And fish.

Yes, it was the fish delivery guy.

He stopped at a restaurant a few doors up, and as he picked up one of his water sacks I could see that at least two of the fish in it were belly-up.

Fresh dead fish!

I had expected (well, half-expected; well, hoped...) to hear a violent altercation within the restaurant, to see the crestfallen delivery guy re-emerge still carrying his fish (or at least, the dead ones) - order rejected. But no. He walked out within a minute or so, a small roll of cash in his hand and a smile of satisfaction in a job well done on his face.

It is, alas, horribly common, almost ubiquitous in China for restaurants (and supermarkets) to have 'live fish' displays in large fishtanks (often in the entrance lobby, or even outside on the street)..... in which most of the fish are dead. Sometimes, I think, they even do that thing where they invite punters to choose the fish they'd like to eat.

"Oh, yeah, that floater on the surface. The really puffy, discoloured one, with the shreds of rotting flesh falling off it. That's the one for me!"

It's amazing that no-one seems to find this offputting, or, if they do, that no-one seems to make any effective complaint about it. (Public Health inspectors? Surely you jest!)

I'd never seen a delivery service like this before. But it's really not likely to help the problem, is it? I mean, 8 large fish in a fairly small, sealed plastic bag, with no air space in it..... on a baking hot day! It's a wonder any of them survived the journey.

The only sign of concern about the dead fish phenomenon I can recall hearing about in this country was a few years ago, when it was reported that some supermarkets had come up with the ingenious idea of attaching small polystyrene floats to the dorsal fins of their fish to prevent them going wrong-side-up. I kid you not.

It is a strange country indeed.