Thoughts from toad town

Fengjing prides itself on a long history and a taste for danger. Lin Jinghua reports

"Smoked La Si". Signs with these three Chinese characters were the first thing I saw upon arriving at Fengjing, an ancient town with a 1,500 year history in southwest of Shanghai.

I approached one vendor, there were small creatures, gold in color placed on a bamboo plate. At first I thought they were frogs. "No, they are la si," the vendor said. That didn't help me. "La si," repeated the woman. "They are toads," she finally gave the answer in Mandarin. What! I suddenly felt disgusted.