A Familiar Face

The Bucks Stops Here

You want to know who the most recognized foreign face is in China?  Too bad.  I don’t know.  But I could take a pretty good guess.  You might think its Obama, but I doubt little kids know or care much about him.  If you guessed Ronald McDonald, I’d say you’re getting a lot closer.  But if I had to put money on it, I’d say Kernel Sanders takes the cake.  The Chinese love their chicken, and apparently Kentucky Fried is no exception.  In every major, and almost every minor city I’ve been to in China, I’ve been greeted by Golden Arches and the smiling Kernel.  But there’s a new face that is making her presence known: the face of Starbucks.   That’s right, Starbucks has touched down in Chinatown, and it’s that little mermaid and her sweet smiling face that I get excited about any time I see her in this country that is still so foreign to me. 

Every time I see the familiar green logo, I know I can get a little dose of home all the way on the other side of the world.  Some things are so different here that it’s hard to wrap my mind around it all.  But some things never change.  Starbucks is one of those things I can count on as having basically the same look, feel and taste no matter where I find it.  And sometimes, that’s the most comforting thing in the world. 

Of course, they add just the right amount of local flair to the menu and the décor.  When indulging in the ridiculously expensive Starbucks while here in China, I typically get their Green Tea Frappuccino to wash down my red bean scone.  I’ve also had the black sesame cookies, a green tea swirl cake and I’ve sampled the green tea and the taro macaroons.   All have been delicious!

Aside from Chinese inspired eats, the design of the Starbucks is also often very interesting.  Though the interior remains nearly identical to what you would find in the states, the exteriors vary greatly, and are incredibly amusing.  It’s funny because in some ways it’s like the ultimate visual blend of East meets West.  But oddly, and perhaps unfortunately, now that I’m a little more familiar with the Chinese mentality the metaphor that popped into my mind when I was looking at all of the pictures was ‘a wolf in sheep’s clothing .’  But whatever, I like wolves, I like sheep, and I like Starbucks.