Wheels of Addis

It’s our last day in Beijing and our last chance to stock up on souvenirs. We left our hotel early and headed out to the nearest shops. It was beyond freezing: even my teeth were cold! Jean-Pierre was now wearing two scarves. I put on tights, leggings and trousers. Our cheeks were like apples and our noses cherry red.

We stopped for a quick snack on the side of the road and shivered as we gobbled down the hot pastries:

We then happened upon a salon that was just opening and decided it would not only be a good place to get a haircut, but also a warm place to get our circulation going again. We came out later, freshly clipped and somewhat thawed.

Next was my chance to stock up on as many jujubes as I could fit in my bag. We found a shop that sold nothing but these Chinese dates and bought them by the bagfull.

By lunchtime, we dropped by a Muslim restaurant which looked warm and inviting. At some point I’m going to have to learn that ‘inviting’ does not always equal ‘delicious’. Yes, it did seem to be a very popular lunchtime venue, but the food was really unappetizing. We somehow ended up with a giant bowl of persimon soup. It was easily enough for ten people and didn’t contain even a hint of persimon. One beef-burger filled dumpling, a biteful of bitter vine leaf dumpling, and half a biteful of sesame bun later, and it was time to go.

One final shopping opportunity: our hotel recommended a market for locals where you could buy all sorts of stuff. We arrived after a long taxi ride through the intense traffic and were greeted by staff in Santa costumes.

Swathes of people were pushing and shoving their way through the milling throng - all to nab a bargain. It was utter chaos - like Westfield all squeezed into an apartment block and filled with tat. 

The building’s decor was as chaotic as the crowds: giraffe heads and cows heads mounted next to each other on the wall. Penguins next to pigs, next to rabbits, next to cockerels - all plastic and cloaked in Christmas gear.

Twenty minutes of mayhem and we were ready to escape. Our last experience of Beijing a glimpse into a world of intense, meaningless materialism. Mounds of junk that will probably fill landfills for just as long, if not much longer, than the Forbidden City has been standing at the heart of the city.