Going Dutch

At the end of May, Hisoka and I had our first date. Generally speaking, if there is no second date within six months, there probably never will be. But we are both busy people. We also live in different countries. And I was out of mine for two of those six months.

We kept in touch during the six months and we both happened to go back to Hong Kong at about the same time. So we set up a second date at the end of November.

For our first date, he took me to Hiroshima on a private plane and I spent the night at the most amazing natural hot springs. Our second date was never going to be that noteworthy. We went out to dinner.

In honor of my new job in Amsterdam, Hisoka wanted to take me out to a Dutch restaurant. Hong Kong is not exactly a bastion of Dutch cuisine. I have lived here for years and could not think of a single restaurant. After a little research, Hisoka found a small place above the Paisano's in Mong Kok. It turned out to be a standard Hong Kong style “international” restaurant. He misunderstood the name, Go Dutch Cafe.

Despite the restaurant's name, I let him pay. I usually pay for myself on the first few dates. Some men have strange ideas about money and power. It is simply easier if everyone pays for themselves. At least until you know each other well enough that no one cares. I paid for almost nothing on my first date with Hisoka, but that one was highly unusual. I don't have the faintest idea what half of that would cost. After a year of not working, I did not mind letting other people buy my meals. Dinner at a moderately priced Hong Kong restaurant was never going to break Hisoka anyway. I can't begin to guess his salary, but I don't think he is living in a refrigerator box and eating cat food.

Dinner was nothing special, but I generally don't care where I eat anymore. We had a nice conversation. That was the important thing. He was also in town for a while, so we set up a longer, more interesting third date a couple of days later.

I also let Hisoka pay for our third date, but that was only because we spent almost no money. And what did have to be paid for, I never knew about ahead of time. This all happened at the end of November, but I was still typing about Barcelona back then. Now that I am in Amsterdam working on the future, I can type about my Hong Kong date in the past. Sometimes life moves fast.

As it turns out, there is a supposedly authentic Dutch restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong. Maybe some other time.