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Just remember to bargain. Start at 10%, and go no more than 40% of the "listed" price. Even 25% is "over paying". Unfortunately this insane bargaining has led to inflated pricing even for local Chinese. And you get what you pay for - knock offs are not the real thing. Lots of souvenirs and our bargaining skills honed, we made it home and laid our loot for our host's judgement. Not bad Cindy declared, while promptly directing us to Tao Bao, Chinese eBay, where we subsequently increased our loot with a few extra things. Why not?
Next up was Tantan (Temple of Heaven) Park. Lots of curious activity by folks of the older variety. Open-air dancing, including ballroom, line and choreography with ribbon twirly things. Pure, unadulterated group dancing, not something you would see in Chicago's Millennium Park. Gotta say though, they were fearless, unabashed and enjoying it, which was nice to see. Other entertainment included Chinese guitar (Erhu), group singing, bird walking (yes, birds in cages), Tai’Chi, exercising, weight lifting, badminton, cards, and Go (Chinese board game). We also picked up a cute crocheted dragon. Although the atmosphere of the park was a bit odd, i.e. lots of elderly out and about doing wacky and lively things, we agree it'd be nice to find ourselves twirling ribbons and playing cards in the park at that age. So good on them.
We headed further south in the park to the Temple of Heaven complex, including the main temple, Echo Wall, and Round Hill Mound. At the Echo Wall our voice circumnavigated the stone wall 360 degrees to return to us, and at the Round Hill Mound we watched locals speak to the heavens while surrounded by the nine Heaven Stones. Serious stuff.
From the park we headed to the Forbidden City, historical home of the emperor and now a sad, barren shell of its former beauty. Grass was removed and paved during Mao's Pest Campaign. Facades hundreds of years old crumble due to lack of care and groping by Chinese tourists. The majority of furniture and artifacts are (rumored to be) fake - the real ones actively stolen, and sold on the black market by officials. While the government shows a complete lack of interest in the site, thousands of Chinese (and international) tourists visit it daily. It is pure Beijing - dusty, gray, hot, cramped, and a glimpse of the city's past beauty.
Heading back on the Metro we hit rush-hour! A full body rubbing might be 2¥ well spent for some folks, but while it is cheaper than a good massage in developed countries, you don't have the luxury of choosing the age, gender or attractiveness of whom one is rubbing with. But hey, it is only 30 cents after all.
The next day we learned that our (real) home - Texas - was burning. We spent the day worrying, checking reports online, and trying to arrange our SE Asia and North Korea (yes, North Korea!!) trips. By the following day we learned that Jazz's parents had to evacuate as the fires got to within a mile of the house, but luckily everyone was okay. Worries alleviated, we finalized our plans for SE Asia (with minimal gear as motor biking around Thailand doesn't lend well to a wheeled duffel bag)... To accomplish this we left our stuff at Cindy & Nikos'. Thanks guys, and hats off to AirBnB for helping create this sort of opportunity. On our return trip, after SE Asian and North Korea, Cindy again pushed us out the door with a visit to the Summer Palace and the 798 Zone art district. Cool stuff and definitely worth a visit.
Overall we found it to be the most exhausting and oppressive city we've visited. Ordinary people, including 80 year old women, were often rude and deliberately in your face, while the city itself is unforgivably massive, hot and dusty. However, surprises abound, including hidden gardens, alleys, courtyards and palaces filled with plenty of friendly people responsible for a culture and history that, while sometimes hard to find, is well worth it when encountered. Before heading to Hong Kong, we'll leave you with a few impressions from our week in Beijing.
- Men like to rub their large bellies in public. With there shirt rolled up.
- Women (those we talked to) find Chinese men ugly and fat. This opinion was supported by said men rubbing their sweaty bellies in public. *shudder*
- There's a lot of corruption in China. No surprises there considering the train ticket fiasco. Honestly though, would trade a bit more corruption for a bit less rubbing.
- Many apartments in Beijing don't have toilets, so people are expected to use common public restrooms built on the street without doors (for showers or the "whole in the ground" toilets). Joy!
- There is an underground cooking oil black market. The oil is skimmed from the sewer and re-used in restaurants. Many restaurants. All over Beijing. Police apparently shut down two of these "oil recycle rings" after we left. Yay. Enjoy your meal.
- Beijing men (especially the plump variety) are big talkers, while foreigners are apparently not to be touched. This might explain why, when Lee elbowed a Chinese man in his belly for cutting in line, the man simply barked something at him instead of punching him in the face like might have occurred in Texas.
- eBay is nothing compared to Tao Bao. You can buy $10,000 kittens on Tao Bao. What the heck!?
Next Up: Hong Kong
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