Our source of most good things is Mr. Chen, our foreign teachers' contact at JiaoDa. I email Chen and say "HELP" we need a . . . and he emails back and sends me a bus number, where to get on it, and a series of Chinese characters that tell someone who can read them where I am hoping to end up. Then I walk into the unknown, trusting my welfare to some kind soul on the bus or the street to point me in the right direction. It is always an adventure. Thus far it has turned out well each time.
One of my favorite places Mr. Chen sent me was to the Light Industry Wholesale Market--an enormous building packed with little shops selling everything including buttons, clothes, electric appliances, gas stoves, computer equipment, vacuums, foam rubber, rubber boots, rugs, flowers and on and on. It is an amazing place. We have yet to discover all it has to offer but our repeated trips there have resulted in our hauling home a piece of 4" foam rubber to convert our box spring (ala Chinese mattress) to something that makes sleeping bearable, rubber-backed carpet runner to warm our chilly tile floors, grain-filled bags to heat in the microwave to warm our feet on a chilly Shaanxi night, an area heater to cut through the cold, a shoe rack, speakers for John's baby notebook, and a flashlight for the times our power goes out (or is turned off). We have been back many times and each time we have experienced something to write home about.
I think our most memorable trip was to buy carpet runners. After a concerted effort we found the most ideal item for our purposes and I began my usual dickering for how much we were going to have to pay. The entrepreneur gets out his calculator and punches in the price to which I wave my hand and say Tai guile (too much) and then I punch in another number to which he laughs and says whatever Chinese means--"not a chance lady!" Little by little I inch up and he inches down until we agree and we go about measuring the meters I need. The trick is there is no place to roll out the product to measure and cut but on the cement floor.
Part of the charm of the Light Industry shops, however, is that bikes and motor bikes ride through the narrow paths and if you happen to be measuring rubber-backed carpet runner on the path they need to cross, they just drive on over your new carpet leaving their tire tracks on the rubber. Once our tire-tracked goods are rolled up and our yuan have been handed over we have the challenge of getting it home. Goodness, rubber-backed carpet runner is heavy! Getting it out to the street is the first challenge, easily overcome by the shop assistant's brawn who is directed to help the old foreign lady out to the street with her purchase.
Once there the trick is to find a taxi, a bus, or a motorized trike who is willing to take you and your load home. One little problem I should mention is that no taxis will take you anywhere between about 3-6. That's when the shift changes and if you need one then it is just tough. Buses work, IF you can pick up the stuff you bought and crowd on with the masses, but my favorite mode of transport is one particular little modernized version of a rickshaw driver who has twice brought me and my purchases home--right to my front door. He is delighted to have his picture taken by the crazy foreigners.
Our apartment is looking very spruced up these days--much better than when we first arrived, much in large measure to the Light Industry shops. We have also made progress in other creature comforts now that we have hot water now installed in the kitchen. (Though I should mention that Mr. Zhao's positioning left a little to be desired since he put it right on the edge of the sink so that when turned on water splashed as much out of the sink as in it. Yesterday I got a bit of inspiration to take the screws out and redirect the facet more toward the middle of the sink. I originally thought maybe I could get him to mount it over further, but we have since found that by simply taking the screws out and setting it on top of the washer hose it works just great--perfect placement--so we probably won't bother Mr. Zhao. Hey, this is China! we do with whatever works. This picture is for Lorenz to see how fine Chinese workmanship is done:) Have a great week everyone.
No comments:
Post a Comment