[pattye]

Hi all you Shoppers,

Just love your reports, so fun to hear about all these adventures, hanging on every word, especially knowing it is unlikely I will ever be going to China. Green perls, I hope you can show us some pictures of your loot! Nerida, I am sure you will find some fun things to show us also! We know we can count on you for lots of good photos, Raisondetre!!!

Pattye
so many pearls, so little time

[GemGeek]

I agree with Pattye. I have enjoyed all the posts. The only thing that would make it better would be photographs. You know how I am!

[Nerida]

But please Blaire - do I have to take a hand-puppet (oh, sorry Octavia, didn't mean to offend!) with me as well??

[Raisondetre]

LOL I think I'm tempted to get a handpuppet too. Good news is I've convinced my mom to go to Suzhou with me next time. I think by next year I would have gathered enough courage to actually go to Shanxiahu, not that it might be worth the effort. The thirst is consuming me!

[Nerida]

I hope you go, Raisondetre - you'll never ever know if you never ever go, and besides, we all want to see your photos!!

[jerin]

Hi Greenpearls, Raisondetre and Nerida!

I do enjoy reading of your visits to the different markets, please keep on reporting when you go somewhere.

A good back-up would be photos of course!

[green perls]

Pearls are hard to photograph!

So, the first photo is of the lavender rope I brought-it is the length of four necklaces!

The second photo is of the earrings I purchased on the fourth floor of the pearl market in Beijing-photos cannot do justice to the lovely colors they have!

Third-my imperfect 12mms-but I think they will be fun!

[Caitlin]

Thanks everyone
for pealing the skirts of China back and showing us your buys and sharing your experiences. This is wonderful information whether you are going to China or not. (After the bathrooms I used in India, I am afraid to go to China- I am an old sissy I guess.......)

[Raisondetre]

Hey Caitlin, considering I used to be able to time my shopping breaks so I could duck back to the hotel rather than use public bathrooms, I don't blame ya ... I have since spotted "usable" but not clean bathrooms in all the areas I've been to. Hongqiao market in Shanghai, actually the Japanese restaurant just outside, passes the bathroom test.

[Nerida]

Hi Caitlin,

I spent 14 hours on an overnight bus from Delhi to Daramshala to visit one of my sons last year (he was about another 2.5 hours out of Daramsala at a monastery) - NOTHING in China even comes CLOSE to my experiences on those buses (sadly, had to go back to Delhi at the end of my visit on another bus!). China is perfectly clean compared to much of India - although I would love to go back to India, minus my anti-materialistic son to shop for gemstones. I accompanied an Indian friend buying wedding jewellery for her son's future brides once about 10 years ago, and I couldn't focus enough to actually buy anything! I was too gobsmacked!

[Caitlin]

I saw that about the bathroom in the Japenese restuarant. It was reassuring. I heard China had those squat toilets too and that is what worries me.

I know cows in China aren't eating plastic bags and that is good. I was gobsmaked by culture shock in India. That's a good word for it. I loved the food, though and still eat curried something, often.

I am not used to having people crowd up against me- even shove me. My personal space had a hard adjustment even when I was telling myself it was just another culture and just relax and go with it, it was hard to keep my center, my balance, and my purse.

[Raisondetre]

Ha, don't get me started about getting stepped on and shoved in all parts of Asia, except Japan (the Japanese seem to have radar or something). I just do not understand the need to sidle up against any party of moving people when there is perfectly adequate space on either side. Even in Singapore people tend to say excuse me, not allow any time for you to step aside and just hit you anyway. I swear, if that was the case with Western cultures, with my size, I'd have been flattened a long time ago. When I picked up my luggage from the conveyor belt in Shanghai I could not avoid hitting the people surrounding the entire belt who just would not budge because they were too busy looking for their bags. Seriously, your bag wouldn't go missing and pickup would be much faster if people didn't crowd around and not allow people who've picked up their bags to leave.

And squat toilets ... there are still people who don't close the bathroom door in public toilets. The squat toilets at Pudong airport's arrival hall were absolutely filthy. I can't believe it's a newish airport! There's a cleaner there who only mops the floor. At Singapore's airport, the cleaners actually clean ... I wonder what they pay them for ...

[GemGeek]

Originally Posted by Raisondetre

And squat toilets ... there are still people who don't close the bathroom door in public toilets. The squat toilets at Pudong airport's arrival hall were absolutely filthy. I can't believe it's a newish airport! There's a cleaner there who only mops the floor. At Singapore's airport, the cleaners actually clean ... I wonder what they pay them for ...

Octavia was thinking about stowing away with you until she heard about the toilets...

[jerin]

Originally Posted by Caitlin

Thanks everyone
for pealing the skirts of China back and showing us your buys and sharing your experiences. This is wonderful information whether you are going to China or not. (After the bathrooms I used in India, I am afraid to go to China- I am an old sissy I guess.......)

Plaese Caitlin, can´t you tell as about Indian bathrooms and their likes in other places you have been to?

Inge

[Nerida]

Indian bathrooms on our overnight bus trip were just pieces of corrugated iron leaning up against posts (tree branches) over a hole in the ground! No lights, no lighting to get to them, and usually 400m or so from where the bus stopped for the so called "comfort" stop!

In the Weitang pearl and gem market - they were pristine. Certainly there are often squat toilets in China, but usually at least they are made often made of porcelain, rather than holes. There are still some fairly filthy ones - the airport ones like Raison has already said were shocking! Just remember always to take your own tissue no matter where you are in China - it's not often provided!