There are some 50,000 characters in the Chinese alphabet. We have 26. Their words are spoken in four different tones that can completely alter the meaning. This may not sound like an important detail to get right until you invite a new friend over for your first date. Then there are the people.
China has the world's largest population.
1.3 billion people crowded into an area smaller than the United States. Chow Mein, Egg Foo Yong and fortune cookies never appear in Chinese restaurants. Instead, you get things like dog meat, plump cicada larvae served like a shrimp cocktails, and stewed cow stomach. Yesterday I picked up a dish of delicious-looking chicken fingers. They turned out to be chicken toes, claws and all.