August 3: Shop til you Drop Day

When we were in China to adopt Lil, the silk market was closed, so this time we wanted to make sure we didn't miss the opportunity for a visit.  It was an overwhelming, bordering on psychotic experience but once we got involved in bargaining, our heart rates came down a bit.  Imagine your local mall X 12 concentrated into a space the size of a basketball court and you've got the silk market.  Add 10 high pressure sales people per square metre and try not to make eye contact.  Now we're rolling.
We bought the girls silk dresses, chopsticks, china cups, jasmine tea, pearl necklaces and earrings, a putter, a fake cellphone charger, computer equipment for about one hundred bucks.  Who knows of any of our purchases will last until Thursday, but it sure was fun.
Lil who turns six on August 4 decided she wanted binoculars for her birthday and we managed to find a small pair at the silk market.  Thank goodness she didn't ask for a microscope although that request will probably come soon.
That evening, the group went to see the Chinese acrobats which was apparently amazing - I volunteered to stay behind with Grace where we spent some quality time with a box of crayons.
The heat in Beijing is also quite intense, made worse by the smog.  Many in the group are now homesick and want to get back to the familiar sounds and foods of home.  Another day down, two to go.  

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