from cutting tresses to some stressful cuttings
today was going to be a restful day: an easy start followed by a good afternoon rest in preparation for a visit to the night market with the main objective of tracking down a couple of ‘’dragon’ shirts for the two older boys.
Well all objectives were achieved and so we could say it was a successful day, but the truth is, by the time we all got back to the hostel, we were all tired, nerves were frayed, tempers were short and bed seemed to be the best place for everyone to be! Now why would that be? (a short interruption to my thoughts here as Tgirl4 advises me that ‘going downstairs to the toilet with no pants on is totally cold’. I suggest to her that it might be a good idea to put some pants on before wandering around the hostel)
AS I said the day started well. We went for a walk, intending rather casually to see if we could find a barber – some of the herd were well past their shearing time. We checked out a few. Prices seemed to start at a base of Y20 with add-on’s in Y20 steps. Cheap enough by NZ standards (Y20 = $NZ5 approx) but when there is a mob of you there is always the need to find the best deal. Besides, your thinking changes as you get accustomed to values in the new currency and so you look for ‘best price’ regardless of NZ equivalents. And so it was that we came upon a splendid hairdresser’s manned by about 4 young men each adorned with the latest in Asian men’s hairstyles. Difficult to describe – long softly-flowing spiky tresses coyly covering sensitive almost feminine features, and one with artful touches of blond and pink streaks through. Hah! I thought, just the place to get my hair cut–NOT. But the price was Y10 – and that included a hair wash. So in we went. First the two young boys and Rob.
While they were being attended to, I went with the older kids for a walk around the block. By the time we got back, the team was ready to take the next batch.
These hairdressers were of unknown origin – they were Asian but did not speak the local dialect so even local customers were using sign language to communicate. But they had a stack of styling books and so every one was able to pick out a style they liked and leave them to it. In the end, the process of hair wash/cut/hair wash looked so relaxing (and cheap) that I decided to get a chop for myself. Very pleasant.
After that Mama took the littlies back for a rest as planned and the rest of us did a bit of shopping and then we returned to base.
So far all had gone according to plan! Now we all set off to walk to the Muslim Quarter which housed the Night Market, via the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower, two iconic landmarks which we we thought we could take in, en route. But as we are finding out more and more – ALL attractions in China attract a significant entry fee. So once again we contented ourselves with the outside view of things.
And so on to the Muslim Q and the Night market. Actually we got there before the night, and things were relatively quiet at the start. Rach and the boys trawled up and down the narrow aisles, which by the minute thickened up with traffic, looking for Dragon shirts of a) the right size, b) the right colour and c) the right price. You need to know that the search for Dragon shirts has been going on for about a month-obviously without success. The odds of being successful this evening were not good, but they were intent on tracking something down.
I think this is where the day started to unravel. It had been under stress during our walk: walking through crowded noisy streets to look at uninteresting things is not every young boys idea of fun, especially when bursting with suppressed energy, so they frequently found themselves racing beyond the parental bounds of control. This had to be dealt with, for the boys safety and our sanity and resulted in some grumpy uncooperative children. And then the search began………….
Crowded Night Markets with intersecting alleys, peopled by crowds, bicycles, scooters, tricycle goods carriers, the occasional mini-van and even an arrogant Mercedes or two, makes for a hazardous environment, and a place easy to lose kids, not to mention adults!
As we trawled up and down, doubling back occasionally with some going one way and some another, things became to me at least, very confusing. Who was where and what they were doing became unknown. Communication was difficult due to to the incredible racket of hawkers hawking, stall holders trying to persuade you, vehicles tooting, bicycles dinging and everybody shouting to be heard above the noise. Bedlam is a reasonable description of the scene.
Add to the mix some tired, bored & frustrated children, and the tension rises.
Jboy13 was the first to get lucky, and Kboy11 grew despondent his size just did not seem to be around. So we broke off for some dinner in the food section.
That raised flagging spirits, to such an extent that the search was resumed. By this time the market was actually shutting down. Jgirl14 and I, having lost track of where anyone else was, discussed the merits of chopsticks with a pretty but desperate stall holder. She started off with a special very cheap price of Y660. As we were finally walking away she was desperately offering them at Y40. But we were unmoved.
Finally a grinning Kboy11 and Mama appeared, having followed a guy to another place (who knows where?) who had actually produced THE goods – right size,design, colour AND price! We should have returned home rejoicing but the fact was too many of the kids had crossed the threshold and were too tired to care.
But what wonders a good night’s sleep can do! The happy purchasers proudly modeled their purchases for me this morning
and a bit later we on a marathon walk: 15.8 km around the top of the Great Wall which surrounds this city, And not a word of complaint from anyone. These kids are fantastic – but more of that on the next blog.
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Tags: Clothing, Family, Observations, People, Tag Index
kiwijoe
March 25th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
Hey Grandpa!
Im really enjoying reading your blog!
J and K look awesome in their Dragon shirts. Im suprised you didnt get a colour put in when you went for the hair cut – purple maybe? lol.
Much love
March 26th, 2009 at 6:51 am
[…] you’d like to read more of the Muslim Quarter walk, a truly warts-n-all account, then take a peek here at Dad’s post. Because I link to it, I get right of reply 1) Rob and I knew where the kids were at all times […]
March 26th, 2009 at 8:19 am
Ha Karli – I tried to tell him that a pink streak would look pretty hip… but he declined. Unkl Rb