China, Beijing 4 (shopping, hairdresser)

October 16, 2010: Since prices here are unbeatably low, I’ve eaten on the street or in restaurants every day so far. Partly to pick up a few bits and pieces and partly out of curiosity, I ventured into a local supermarket. I stocked up on all kinds of snacks (dried beef comes highly recommended), but kept my hands off some of the delicacies in the snack aisle…

Can you tell what they are? Spicy duck tongues and chicken feet…….

October 17, 2010: By now it had been many weeks since my last haircut, and of course I looked the part. So off I went to have a new experience. On my own, I deliberately went looking for something resembling a hairdresser’s in a non-touristy neighbourhood. As I was wandering through the alleys, I spotted photos of hairstyles. I’d only been looking at the pictures for a few seconds when the door opened and three hairdressers, grinning from ear to ear, invited me in. Should I really…? … Hesitantly, I stepped inside. One of them immediately took my jacket and another pointed to a reclining chair in the corner. Using sign language I asked about the price, and one of them said Fifty (the only English word in that shop). 50 Yuan – about 5.50 € – OK. I made myself comfortable on the chair and got a thorough hair wash and a gentle scalp massage. Then I was led over to have my hair cut. Since I’m not exactly keen on a standard-issue Chinese haircut, I showed him a snapshot of my passport photo on my camera. The hairdresser nodded, inspected my hair and off he went. There was a clock behind me – he spent one hour and ten minutes perfecting the top of my hair. I’ve never come across such a fast and yet incredibly thorough hairdresser. At breathtaking speed he cut what felt like one hair at a time, leaving nothing to chance.

After the haircut I was led back to the reclining chair and enjoyed another hair wash, scalp massage included. Then my hair was carefully blow-dried. Wow, the full package for only 50 Yuan – not bad at all, that’s really cheap, I thought. Delighted, I paid and was puzzled by how much change I got back. … Finally the penny dropped: not Fifty but Fifteen…. 15 Yuan – 1.61 €. All my attempts to leave a tip failed. 1.61 € for more than an hour of professional hairdressing, including two washes, a scalp massage and a blow-dry…. Beijing, you’re a great city! :)