My advice for fellow westerners who find themselves face to face with a real chinese meal: close your eyes, open your mouth, and begin to chew. It'll end up tasting good--no matter what it looks like--I promise.
Above all--this is of the utmost importance--don't listen to your hosts when they tell you what you're having. Ignore them. Find out what's actually in the food your eating AFTER you're done.
I don't wanna sound disrespectful--I learned to love chinese food. But the first time I, a sheltered young adolescent north-american male, used to hot-dogs, roast beef, and the like--found myself at a friends for supper, face to face with chicken's feet, shark's skin, cow's tongue, jelly fish, and scads of veggies I'd never heard of or seen before...