I love to shop. Well, I at least like to shop. Kind of a lot. And I like to think I’m pretty good at it. But I met my match yesterday at the Silk Market in Beijing…
The so-called “Silk Market” is a 7-story shopping mall of sorts that sells everything from jewelry, to bed sheets, to Chinese tea… and everything in-between. It is a shopper’s paradise. And a barterer’s absolute utopia. I decided pretty early on that I wasn’t in the mood to fake price squabble with every 3rd stall salesperson yelling “hello pretty lady… you like Gucci purse for you?” Even though they promised to “give me nice price”, I opted instead to wander each floor, taking in the sights and sounds, and keeping the little Yuan I have left safely tucked inside my passport folder (carry it with you everywhere here!).
I did, however, come across one v cool part of the Silk Market that had nothing at all to do with selling me anything. Well, at least not directly. It was an exhibit outlining how silk comes to be. And it was fascinating. You can read all about the painstaking process right here, and I highly recommend that you do because it really is quite interesting. See pics below for all the gory details…