I'm talking about ones you see hanging in the windows of the Chinese
restaurants that seem to be patronized by lots of Chinese and few
westerners, almost fast-food places, not the ones with tablecloths.
Behind the ducks (and other hanging poultry and what looks like ribs)
there's a guy with a cleaver and a chopping block...a lot of jabbering
in Chinese, a few whacks with the cleaver, and presumably another
happy customer.

Well, I have a hankering to try this duck but there's a problem, the
same problem with all non-westernized ethnic groups, and that's that
the establishment offers little or no help to anyone not of the ethnic
group in understanding what's being sold, how to eat it etc. It's
almost as though they don't want to make money except off their own
group.

So, in the hopes that some of you have been through the experience of
purchasing this type of duck...

- I want to take it away. OK?

- I want to buy it about 11.00am and eat it about 8.00pm. Any problem
with re-heating it in the microwave?

- Is there a sauce that goes with it? Should I ask or will this just
make me seem an idiot foreigner?

- I'll probably be feeding 4 people (light eaters) with this and other
Chinese food. Should I buy a whole duck? Or would this create an
endless source of amusement to the counter jockey?

- Should I have it cut up? I.e., let cleaver-boy have his fun. Or will
they automatically do this?

- Is there something like: "No one in their right mind would ever
order the duck without requiring detachment of the head and neck" or
"the place will lop off those parts automatically and just keep them"
or "Don't be so stupid! Doesn't everyone know that the bird not only
has to be de-necked and de-headed but also the guts (still inside)
have to be removed."

Are there different types of duck? Perhaps smoked, bar-b-cued, or
marinated in the blood of 75 virgins <g>.

You can see I'm looking forward to this...

Any help will be appreciated.