Huangpu River crossing

Salty sweaty Shanghai. The air chokes. He's not sure if it's from bad body odour or the exhaust fumes of motorbikes. The air tastes salty. He can taste it at the tip of his tongue. Tip of Tongue. He learnt about it in his Psychology option. Funny thing, the mind. You could say it has a mind of its own. He wonders if the saltiness of the air is from evaporating sweat or the river. But are rivers ever salty? He wouldn't be surprised if this one was. With a river this polluted, it might even taste 'umami'. Umami. The fifth gustatory perception. Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami. You know. Glutamate. As in monosodium glutamate. Am-ass-gee. Something which the Chinese need to learn to use appropriately. Somewhere in the dark, a man clears his throat. There's an anticipatory silence before the inevitable spit. His mind turns to the view of the Bund.