ABSTRACT
I had one more term to teach, and my students were anxious for my return. I also needed to get some much-needed dental work out of the way. Tina introduced me to an upscale dental office, a four story building in the Hong Bo district near An Qui’s apartment that was gleaming with polished metal, leather seating, chrome tables and chairs, the latest equipment, and numerous smiling doctors and technicians, mostly female. I was promptly and efficiently taken care of. I must amend my negative observation about Chinese efficiency in this regard: despite the deficiencies of crowding, poverty and inadequate facilities, medical care was highly efficient as well as effective, and often state of the art. I was xrayed, analyzed, cleaned, polished, and given four needed crowns, which took about six weeks, in all, for a total of about 2000 RMB. And these crowns remain in fine condition, among the best work I’ve had done.
