Today was our first brush with, “Oh my god, nobody here speaks English. Deal.” We were at a diner in a mall where laborers, retirees, families and big groups of young people collected for what has been some of the best food we’ve eaten so far.

But getting that food wasn’t so simple.

After much confusion over which menu we could order from, the waitress called somebody who spoke English on her cell phone. I told this women, just order us one chicken dish, one pork dish, and one noodle dish. Somehow, that didn’t stick.

So our super-sweet waitress (pictured above) brought the dinner menu, which had English translations. Rose ordered honey chicken, pork ribs and noodles, but somehow communicated that we wanted the lunch facsimile of each dish.

Success achieved. Amazing meal. Many amused locals.