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Hot and Cold

A glass of hot water?

When I came to Hong Kong one of the things I found a little odd was that people drank hot water.  I had been used to drinking cold water, or hot tea or coffee, but not hot water.  When I first tried it I wasn’t convinced that it was a good idea at all.

In fact, doctors usually recommend that you avoid cold drinks when you are suffering from URTI (the common cold), and the body presumably responds better to something that is warm.  Given that we know that tea and coffee are not really good for the body and we are supposed to drink five litres of water per day, having warm water makes perfect sense.  Yet, you will almost always be offered iced water rather than warm or hot, and a request for warm water is often treated as if it were rather eccentric (which, to be fair, is what I thought before I was indocrinated in Hong Kong ways). 

Now, about those little metal lids on cups.. 

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4 responses to “Hot and Cold”

  1. fumier avatar
    fumier

    It’s quite difficult to get a glass of warm water by asking for it in English. More often than not, a glass of boiling water (hoi shui, I think) is delivered. Even if you ask for it in Cantonese (lun shui, I think), the odds are not great. And it’s not just my accent – Her Indoors has problems getting non-scalding water too.

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  2. Margaux avatar
    Margaux

    It’s interesting that you spotted this. I usually order warm water (or cold water with no ice) at restaurants for two reasons:
    1. Have to warm myself up from freezing. You know how most public places set their air-con in the summer here.
    2. From Chinese medical point of view, too much icy cold drinks or food is no good to one’s health. Have to strike a balance.

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  3. echa avatar
    echa

    hello 🙂
    same as Margaux, I drink hot water to warm myself up from freezing. Or just when it’s cold, i need something warm for my throat

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  4. denis avatar
    denis

    Now, about those little metal lids on cups.. ——-haha, very well spotted
    I believe it’s not only the lids but also those expensive metallic gigantic cups with lids that they use in office

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